Expect provision

I've heard many stories of people in ministry receiving a check in the mail for the exact amount of a recent need. I think when you are "in ministry" full time you depend on the Lord in a way that most don't have to. I know when I was in India I learned what it felt like to need God. Many times I found myself in a position that I could not provide for myself. It was in those times the Lord sent his divine provision through many creative ways. Since settling in the States I've become quite self-sufficient, earning, saving, budgeting. I know it is the Lord who provides for all of my needs but sometimes I don't let myself get in that place of "need". So this recent story touched my heart and reminded me that God is Jehovah Jireh- God our Provider.
As the weather turned cold quicker than expected many of my friends were not prepared for winter on the street. The winter season shelters had not yet opened their doors leaving the year round shelters overflowing and turning many away. I planned to go out and buy some blankets for my friends that I had been spending time with and investing in. That day I received a check in the mail from someone who follows my blog. In the memo line it read "For your street ministry". I know hanging out with these guys is a ministry but most of the time I view it as just hanging out, living life so I forget to depend on the Lord to provide for their needs. 
Another example of Jehovah Jireh came during the same cold snap. Several were complaining of chapped, hurting lips. I was planning to go to the store after work and pick up a couple of chapsticks. While at work that day a coworker came to me and said "I know this isn't much but I hope that you can do something with it for your friends in the park." It was enough to buy several sticks of chapstick. WOW! It is so exciting to see the Body of Christ come together and allow God to do even more creative things than we could imagine.