More Precious Than Lilies
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My family and I were moving from one European country to another after my husband was called to minister as a pastor in a different union.
As I packed, I tried to think ahead because I knew that for at least the next year, my husband’s salary would be the only financial support we would be able to count on.
It took me one minute to realize that both of our fast-growing schoolboys needed winter clothes—and so did I. We went shopping the next day, but the stores’ mid-summer offers included no winter clothes sales, and I found only one beautiful pink coat, just perfect for church. It was the only coat available, and I would have been more than happy to buy it, but I knew, in spite of my preference, I needed a practical black coat.
Then, after seeing the price and the fact it was three sizes too big, I gave up the idea. A few weeks later, we went shopping again, and this time I found a fluffy white jacket, perfect for the cold winters in our new home. Our sons found good, warm jackets for themselves. But when we reached the counter, I realized I could only pay for two of the three jackets. I happily put mine aside, grateful the boys would be warm in winter.
We moved soon after, and I began to adjust to the new environment, language, and people. How I enjoyed the beauty of the countryside as the autumn colors painted the landscape. I had almost forgotten I needed a coat. Then, one day, I visited a family we had just met.
We had started studying the Bible together and were visiting them every two weeks. As we got ready to leave, the lady turned to me and, with some embarrassment, said, “I hope you do not mind if I give you a little gift from our three daughters!” It might be hard to believe, but inside the wrapping lay a beautiful pink coat—the exact same one I had seen in the store, but in my size. Beside it lay a warm, fluffy white jacket and a black church coat! I had not shared my need with anyone. I was too speechless to say much then, but later I shared with them my little miracle. God cares about the smallest details in our lives and delights in surprising us with things we have not even dared ask for. Remember—you are more precious to Him than lilies.
Elida Oncea
