Matthew 10:8-10 ESV Heal the sick, raise he dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food.
The Bible teaches that those who minister the gospel deserve to receive a living from it (1 Corinthians 9:8-11, Galatians 6:6). The Bible also indicates there is value in ministering for free (1 Corinthians 9:12-18). I support full-time ministers being paid a living wage for their service. However, there is great freedom, growth, and even power that comes from ministering without payment.
God has blessed me with the privilege of serving on the mission field for nine years in Asia. After returning to the States He graciously allowed me to be a bi-vocational pastor of two very small churches. In total I actively ministered about 14 years without receiving a salary.
It is no secret to those that know me that I have long wanted to be a full-time paid minister, but God never opened that door. What God did provide was a wealth of blessings and faith-building experiences that more than compensate for the time and energy I have expended in His service.
Jesus sent His disciples out with no support and told them to trust in God to provide everything they needed, including their next meal. That can be a very frightening experience to be in, but also a situation that draws you deeper into a relationship with God.
I have never been to the point of not knowing where my next meal was coming from but I have on many occasions been in a foreign country without sufficient resources to cover my next rent or meet various financial obligations. Yet, every single time God has come through, sometimes in quite incredible fashion. I regret not keeping track so that I would have a better testimony but I am sure over 50 times God has provided needed finances at just the right time – sometimes in sums of thousands of dollars.
My wife and I felt led not to raise funds but only let our needs be known to God and trust Him. I do not advocate this for everyone. I have nothing against fund-raising. This is just what we believed God wanted for us. This practice drew us to our knees in fervent prayer time and again. The first several times were quite scary. I was tempted repeatedly to ask for help from people and churches but God always held me back. Then He would provide.
After a year or so these situations stopped causing anxiety but rather created expectation. It became exciting as we prayed and wondered to each other how God was going to come through this time. It was during this period I enjoyed such sweet intimacy with God.
I want to give you a few examples of the way God worked. On dozens of occasions money would be given anonymously to the organization we were part of, usually the right amount at a critical time. One time our rent was coming due. Where we were it was customary to pay rent six months in advance. Only days before the deadline a friend emailed us to say that God told her to give us a specific amount but she could only send us half now and another half in six months. Each of those installments were exactly our rent payments.
Once, my wife needed some medical treatment so we went to a hospital in the capital city. There we met a wealthy businessman in the waiting room who was very distressed over his son’s illness. Despite not being a believer he allowed us to pray for him and his son. Eventually his son did recover but not until much later. We did exchange email addresses with the man and kept in sporadic contact. A few months later we wanted to fly to Singapore for an event but had no money to do so. We prayed for God to provide if he wanted us to go. “Out of the blue” this man wrote us and said he really wanted to buy us air ticket so just tell him where we wanted to go.
Another time we had just returned back to the mission field after spending six weeks in America. We had spoken to several churches and groups about the work we were involved in. A church sent us a very generous gift. I don’t remember the amount but it was several thousand US dollars. At the time we were amply supplied and didn’t need the money so I wanted to use it for some useful but unnecessary items. My wife told me to wait, God had a purpose for that money. Not long afterwards the brother of a local woman we worked with was in a motorcycle accident. He needed emergency surgery or he would likely be paralyzed. His parents were poor village farmers. Even if they sold their farm they would not have been able to raise enough money. The amount needed? Of course it was basically the amount we had been given.
Sometimes God calls you to go so far out on a limb that if He does not come through, you are going to crash and burn. Those times can be unnerving. When we trust Him and let Him show His faithfulness it emboldens us and builds our faith.
Thank You Lord that You always provide all that we need. You never shortchange us! Even when You demand a great deal from us You always pay us back in much more than we could ever give You!