Jonathan was confusedly motionless, staring at the sack letter in his hand when a homeless man approached him for anything to grab lunch for himself. “I’m hungry. Anything for lunch.” the homeless man asked, with hand outstretched. Jonathan, frustratingly looked into his eyes, without uttering a word, squeezed the letter into the homeless man’s hand, turned and left. The hope of getting his own taxi before resigning has been dashed.
Things are hard. With rent expiring, no electricity, no gas, no money, no food, Jonathan went into compulsory fasting. Being retrenched as a senior supervisor in a private transport company, he was looking for positions of similar status. When it was hard to find, he began looking for just any job to survive.
He had prayed and fasted severally. Nothing seemed to be working. Because he’s a dedicated Christian believer, he never compromised in his job. Therefore, no one liked him because he would not manipulate figures for them. Understandably why none of his former colleagues he called for assistance ever responded.
He applied for car loan to start a taxi business. But it was turned down after the background check.
There came an opening in a construction company. But unfortunately for Jonathan, he could not operate a forklift. And there was no room to learn in the job as he requested.
Jonathan had been a committed giver, despite the little he was earning. He could give and walk the distance to his office. He could give and skip lunch some times. And he believed God would not let him go through what he was going through. He continued believing God for a change.
He received a job interview invitation from another construction company he applied to earlier. Due to his previous experience, he never had the motivation to attend. He was sleeping when he heard a knock on the door. It was the mailman. “This must be from the gas company.” he murmured to himself. Flipping it with his left hand to a corner, he went back to his bed.
Later in the day when he got up, he decided to check the mail. It was a cheque for some money from a brother in the church. He was so grateful for the gift. The next in mind was to go grab some food. On his way, another homeless man approached again. This time, though the money was not much, he took the homeless man to the restaurant so they could eat together. As they were eating, he got to know the homeless man. He also narrated to him his ordeal. “There’s no single good deed God does not reward,” the homeless man assured him. He continued, “I’m homeless not because I can’t afford to pay rent. I get that from good spirited people. But I take care of other homeless people I could find. ”How then does God reward you?” Jonathan inquired. “God has been very faithful to me. I don’t have need to visit hospitals. I don’t go hungry. I’ve never lost my peace for once. I believe God has called me here to take care of others, and I’m comfortable with that,” the homeless man replied.
On his way home, Jonathan had the thought of attending the construction company interview, but it was already late. The following day, he decided to attend despite knowing the odds were against him. He took a taxi to the company. In the car, he got talking with the taxi driver and they got to know each other. The taxi man just got the car brand new and is gradually making payments for the car. The same idea he tried that couldn’t work for him.
When he got to the place, they promised to catch up some other time. But as the taxi was pulling out, the driver, through the side mirror, saw his old class mate he lost contact with walking into the building with a lunch pack in his hand. He turned back. It was a surprise reunion. It turned out the man is the operations manger in the construction company. They got talking and with the help of his classmate, he got a better job in the construction company. On the other hand, Jonathan didn’t get the job. The day for the interview was the previous day.
On the third day, Jonathan got a call from the taxi driver. He invited Jonathan for lunch. At the lunch, he handed over the taxi to Jonathan. “This is yours now,” giving him the key. “I’ve already made the full payment,” he continued. Jonathan was speechless. He could only give his friend a huge hug. With tears in his eyes, “My friend, I’ve always known that God is faithful. I only didn’t know what was keeping Him. Thank you.”
Lesson
No matter how hard. No matter how difficult. No matter the delay. God’s always faithful. He’s never late. He knows everything. He knows the perfect time. Do not weary in well doing. Our ways are not His ways. Do not be discouraged.
In the case of Sarah, her doubt never stopped God. There are promises of God He’s fulfilling not because of your faith, but because He doesn’t want to be a liar. In due time, it will come to pass. He will surely come.