Easter Eggs and College Tuition

“Now it’s time to wait and see what new adventures God has in store for us,” I said bravely. My husband, Greg, was on the other end of the phone. He had called to let me know he was being laid off. The para-church organization he worked for had been struggling for some time. So after a bounced paycheck or two, it came as no surprise that cut-backs had to be made. Greg’s position at the company was one of the casualties.

In the upscale community and white-collar church we were a part of, I witnessed a number of families walk through the same scenario. Now it was our turn. But as a pastor’s family, a new job would probably mean a major move to a new church in a new city. However, we had a daughter in college, one in high school and one in elementary school just beginning her flute “career”. I really didn’t want to move. Could we stay in our home? Was Greg’s free-lance writing income and my part-time job enough to cover college tuition, a mortgage, health insurance and more? Slowly, God began to answer, “Yes.”

It all started on a dull, cold Easter morning in Chicago. I opened the front door to herd my family out to church. There on the doorstep sat an Easter basket filled with plastic Easter eggs along with a carved, wooden cross. Upon opening the eggs we found a generous cash gift. Then came unexpected help from the women in my women’s Bible study, gift cards to my favorite grocery store from our small group, help with our insurance premium from our church. 

I began to keep a record of God’s incredible provision during the year and a half of unemployment that I have to this day. One of the most amazing gifts came in the form of a phone call from our daughter’s college. The person on the other end of the line said this was the kind of call she loved to make. An anonymous gift had been given towards our daughter’s tuition. 

In the distribution of tasks assigned within a marriage, it falls to me to pay the bills. Every other week I sat down to juggle accounts and stretch our income. And every time I was able to cover our expenses. As I closed my checkbook, I would breathe a prayer of thanksgiving that God had provided enough for that day. That’s all I needed. Enough for that day. I was truly learning what it meant to take one day at a time.

I also learned that God will not leave us destitute. He can be trusted to provide our needs. It may not come in advance, it may not be more than I need, but it will be enough.

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:19

That wooden cross that appeared on my doorstep some years ago hangs on my wall in my kitchen where I catch a glimpse of it regularly. It continues to be a visual reminder of God’s faithfulness in providing for our family at an uncertain time. And it’s a prompt to whisper a prayer of thanksgiving that God is indeed worthy to be trusted.