Pepper!
1 Peter 5:7”….casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
After I returned from seeing my mom, I had not unpacked the suitcase immediately, after a couple of days I sat leisurely to unpack the suitcase and also reminisce on the things that my family had given me as gifts. Well, on top of the clothes I found a cute little bottle, just the size of our middle finger and it said ‘ pepper’, I found it very cute and thoughtful of my mom to pack it for me. Few seconds into digging dipper into my suitcase, I found another round shape huge box that said, ‘pepper’. Now, this set me thinking, why so much of pepper? I went ahead taking some more items, and believe me I saw another bottle that said, ‘pepper’, now I got anxious. As I came to the last layer of my packing, I saw a huge packet of whole pepper!!! It was pepper, pepper, pepper everywhere!
I got the reason behind the ‘pepper’ a few days later; after I resigned my job with a multinational bank and joined the mission field to work for my Lord, I surrendered myself to whole-heartedly live a simple life, without expecting help from none but God. We had to downsize and get rid of some of our expenses. It was hard, but we kept going.
The greatest test of my ministry came when we relocated our ministry from Tamil Nadu to Hyderabad – we had severe challenges to face. God changed the course of our ministry and enabled us to venture into the educational institution and start a free English/ Telugu medium school exclusively for the poor and the less privileged kids. It is during this period, we had to compromise on many of our expenses and live a simple, calculated life. When my mom had visited our home, I had cooked food without pepper and used red chilly instead, my maid who worked with me spilled the beans and told my mom that I avoid pepper due to the high cost as compared to red chilly. My mom kept that in mind and filled my suitcase with pepper! Imagine! Let me tell you, from that day on, all my dishes were ‘pepper chicken’, ‘pepper fried rice’, ‘pepper mutton fry’ – all dishes had a blackish tint!!!! I write this with deep love for my mom!
Friend, when a mother can care so much, how much MORE would your Heavenly Dad care for you – think for a moment!!!! Incomparable! Indescribable! Inexpressible! Stop worrying!
When Ruth, a Moabite widow obeyed God and left her home town, parents and everything that belonged to her and walked behind Naomi to follow Jehovah, God watched her heart! God looked at her whole-hearted surrender! Are you listening??? Never for a moment think, ‘who cares about me’ or ‘what does people know of the sacrifices that I made for God?’ He knows. He has not forgotten. The Bible says: Psalms 69:19”You know my reproach, and my shame and my dishonor; my foes are all known to you..” Finally, Ruth walked into the field of Boaz in Bethlehem, a rich kind hearted man, who took care of her and finally married her.
Trust Him to take care of you and your family for He is able and powerful to meet your needs beyond your expectations!
