Perspective

These past few weeks have been very rough on me emotionally in relation to our finances, and yesterday's sermon on being generous didn't help much, but I read something this morning that seems to have brought things back into proper perspective:

This is a response from someone in Mexico who listened to a one of our partner's radio broadcast:

“A few weeks ago I was getting ready to commit suicide. I had the noose prepared and was about to hang myself. I had no hope or motivation to continue living. Then I had a tremendous urge to turn on the radio—a rare thing for me. At that precise moment someone was speaking about the hope we have in Jesus. This message touched my heart, and I didn’t follow through with my plans to kill myself. Instead, I picked up the phone and called you. Now I listen to your station every day because all the programming inspires me to live and to have hope.”

The work that I am doing is having an impact on people's lives. I may not have been the person speaking over the radio waves, but I play a role in that radio station airing that message of hope. A friend spoke to me after yesterday's sermon and basically said, "You are being incredibly generous by not getting a big paycheck. In a sense, you are donating all that potential money into building God's kingdom." It didn't help me feel much better at the time, but the truth of that statement has been slowly sinking in.

Anyway, I am amazed how changing one's perspective can have such a dramatic emotional affect. Hopefully this discouragement will remain squashed for a LONG time! : )