Today I needed to be reminded of some biblical principles and thought this would be an appropriate time to post something from one of my “hero’s of the faith.” In an article on Stewardship, George Muller writes:
In 1 Corinthians 16:2, we find it written to the brethren at Corinth, “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God has prospered him.” A contribution for the poor saints in Judea was to be made, and the brethren at Corinth were exhorted to put by every [Sunday], according to the measure of success which the Lord had been pleased to grant them in their calling during the week. Now, ought not the saints in our day also to act according to this Word?…
It might be said by a brother whose earnings are small, ‘Should I also give according to my earnings? They are already so small, that my wife can only with the greatest difficulty manage to make them sufficient for the family.’ My reply is: Have you ever considered, my brother, that the very reason why the Lord is obliged to let you earnings remain so small, may be the fact of your spending everything upon yourselves, and that, if He were to give you more, you would only use it to increase your own family comfort, instead of looking about to see who among the brethren are sick, or who have no work at all, that you might help them, or how you might assist the work of God at home and abroad? There is a great temptation for a brother whose earnings are small, to put off the responsibility of assisting the needy and sick saints, or helping on the work of God, and to lay it upon the few rich brethren and sisters with whom he is associated in fellowship, and this rob his own soul!” (1)
George Muller was 25 when he made the decision to accept voluntary poverty and lived his entire life refusing to accept a salary. He established several orphanages during his lifetime, caring for over 10,000 orphans in all, without ever receiving government support and accepting only unsolicited gifts. Muller never had a trust fund, never had health insurance, and never had a savings account. He “held that to lay by in store is inconsistent with full trust in God, who in such case would send us to our hoardings before answering prayer for more supplies… Experience confirmed [him] in the conviction that a life of trust forbids laying up treasures against unforeseen needs, since with God no emergency is unforeseen and no want unprovided for and He may be as implicitly trusted for extraordinary needs as for our common daily bread” (2).
Muller’s biographer writes of him:
“If few men have ever been permitted so to trace in the smallest matters God’s care over His children, it is partly because few have so completely abandoned themselves to that care” (3).
1.) HeartCry Missionary Society, Muller on Stewardship, September-October 2005, pg 17-18
2.) A. T. Pierson, George Muller of Bristol, His Life of Prayer and Faith, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI, pg 75, 76
3.) Ibid, pg 72
Related Posts:
Let Him Give… Not Grudgingly or of Necessity
Rina Marie 
Oh, that is so inspiring, Rina! What wonderful quotes.
This is indeed inspiring. Few of us trust God with the bare necessity of daily bread.
One other thing to note for those families who are truly stretched to the breaking point to even feed themselves and pay for housing is that there are other things to give besides money. For those years (thankfully few) when giving financially would have meant hunger for my family, we gave to the church by doing the leg work that many who could give financially were unable or unwilling to do.
Thank you for your comment, Silda. I agree that it’s very important that we give in ways other than finantially. I do believe that we ought to give finantially as well (2 Corinthians 8-9, 1 Cor 16:2, Mal 3:10, etc.), even when we feel that we “can’t” afford it. In 2 Corinthians 8:2, the Macedonian believers are praised for giving abundantly “in their deep poverty” even “beyond their ability.” This is considered the “grace of God” (vs. 1). I believe that this is the spirit of giving that God would have us all embrace (please see my post entitled “Let Him Give, Not Grudgingly or of Necessity“.) I also believe, as you have mentioned, that it’s very important that we give of our time, our talents, our labor, etc., and that we should not focus solely on finantial offerings. Thank you for reminding us of the many ways that we can give.
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