An anonymous reader emailed in the following testimonial which I thought many of you would find encouraging:
I was the tight-fisted frugal one when we got married, but my husband was so impressed by my freebie-grabbing, creative penny pinching and compulsive saving that he quickly got on board! Even though we’ve only had one income for our family of seven, and that one income has always come from the notoriously underpaid field of education, we’ve never had any debt except for our mortgage which we vowed to pay off in less than five years (which we did). Our vehicles, home renovations, computers and all other purchases have always been paid for with cash.
A few years ago we heard about an orphanage in Burundi that was in distress. Its 20 young occupants shared two 10 x 10-foot rooms and had no running water or electricity. A piece of property had been located that had roomier buildings, water, power and a little land (i.e. for gardening, or some animals to help feed the orphans). Burundian refugees in America who were supporting the orphanage had no idea how to raise the exorbitant (to them) sum of $15,000 to pay for this in full, as apparently there were no mortgages in this primitive country.
Hearing about it through an emailed prayer request, my husband investigated the need, prayed and fasted, and ended up writing a check for the whole amount of $15,000! He was able to visit the property a year later with our daughter. What a heart-stopping, choked-up moment that was for them!
He took the above picture of the orphans in front of their new home and would have packed one or two of them into his suitcase to live with our family if he’d been allowed to! I love that guy!
My seamstress daughter also designed simple dresses like the one below which her sewing ministry was able to make for the girls:
God’s ways are awesome and we’re so blessed to be a part of His will. My tightness paid off in that we were able to splurge for others far away when it was really needed!
-An anonymous reader
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What an uplifting and heart warming story.
Anyone who was encouraged by this will also probably be encouraged and challenged by a book I read recently called Radical by David Platt. While reading it, I was inspired to see if we could give sacrificially. Our budget was already pretty lean–not many “extras” to cut. But where could we make SACRIFICES, rather than giving our “leftovers” to God (to use a term from Crazy Love by Francis Chan)?
I wasn’t sure how we’d do it, but we made the commitment, and it has been amazing to see how God has stretched our dollars! We’ve been able to stock up on personal and cleaning items for free or cheap by using coupons, and somehow we’ve managed to get by on less and less for our groceries. It has taken some practice, and it certainly takes time and effort; but, the motivation to give to others has made it worthwhile.
You may not be able to give $15,000, but you may be able to set aside $10 more dollars a month, then maybe $15, then $20…
Compared to most of the people in the world, we Americans really are rich! Shame on me for ever flippantly calling myself “poor.”
Danielle,
You’re an inspiration of living out those convicting books. I’ve read “Crazy Love” and am currently reading “Forgotten God”, also by Francis Chan. Haven’t made it to “Radical” yet but it’s on the list. Kuddos on taking what you’ve read to heart and obediently giving.
I have been so humbled the past 2 days with how much my husband and I have. And this article definitely sealed the deal. We are so blessed and have so much. I want to be this generous!
Look at the smile on that little girl in her gorgeous dress! That in itself was worth the $15,000 donation and the trip your daughter and husband made to visit those children. Priceless!
This is wonderful!!
Thank you for this story, I really needed to read this today. This is my goal when we become debt free- hopefully in 5 years. I want to find ways to give back and help others.
Wonderful story!I was touched and blessed by your example.What generous hearts you have.The beautiful face and smile and dress of the little girl brought tears to my eyes.You have stored up your treasure where moth and rust cannot corrode.
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Thank you so much for sharing your story. What a wonderful gift in Jesus’ name and an inspiration! God is so good!
Wow – incredible and inspiring.
I love your story. What a difference you have made to those childrens lives. I am an obsessive frugal couponer and we also have lived debt free. Our only debt is our mortgage to which we have 10% left. We recently used a good portion of our savings to adopt 2 little boys ages 2 and 4. (I finally get to take advantage of those great diaper deals.) We are so blessed, and couldn’t be any happier.
What a special story. This is my favorite so far! How generous your family was and what an important thing you did for those orphans. And the “simple” dress is beautiful.
Wow- I love this story- it beautifully illustrates how a little frugality and sacrifice can mean the world to someone else. Thank you for posting.
Thank you for posting this story. I love the dresses.
This is beautiful… and the fact that the person sent this in ANONYMOUSLY makes it even more beautiful to me. Doing something for the glory of God and not for attention is something that is truly honorable. Thanks for sharing this!
this story is so sweet and heartbreaking…i thank the lord everyday for people like you..god will bless you.. and thanks for sharing this story
Very touching story, thanks for sharing. And the look on that little girls face in her new, beautiful dress.
Priceless!
Wow! What an incredible story! Brought tears to my eyes. To give so freely of yourself is exceptional. My family is working to pay off the rest of our debt as we hope to be in the position to do things like this as well.
I am speechless and that doesn’t happen very often! What an encouraging and beautiful story.
That is definitely living like no one else, in order to give like no one else!
Mary Ellen
The Working Home Keeper
It is amazing how little money can do so much good overseas. It would have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to do the same in the USA. Our church has planted and supports 60 churches and a number of orphanages in India. Our pastor always says ‘I don’t want you to go, but I want you to give so that we can plant more churches.’ If we go we expect to live an American lifestyle but our Indian brothers in Christ do not expect to live like we do so our dollars do so much more when given to native pastors. What a blessing it is to our fellow Christians overseas when we give freely to help them!
Thank you! I was moved by the first picture but when I saw the little girl in her gorgeous dress, tears came. A beautiful story to share, I pray your family will continue to be blessed so you can continue to give.
What a beautiful and inspiring story!
W.O.W.
What a moving story! Just beautiful…
VERY HEARTWARMING!!! What a wonderful thing you and your family has done! God bless you!
THANK YOU FOR POSTING! This story blessed me abundantly. My heart is so warm, and I am encouraged.
I have been so blessed by this story. Thank you for being obedient to His calling and for sharing this. It inspires me and convicts me.
We are very blessed to be on a fairly fast road to paying off our debts and it hit me recently that we’re completely focused on our family. Paying off our car, our house. Writing up all of our goals for things we intend to pay cash for. We have had absolutely zero goals for giving to others. I’m realizing that I need to write down those goals as well so we have something tangible and measurable to work toward.
Thank you again! Your daughter’s sewing ministry outdid themselves on the lovely dresses.
I hope this woman reads all of the comments that this has generated. This short story is so inspirational! Thank you for sharing!
This brought tears to my eyes. THIS is the purpose of prosperity!
I am ever in awe of my parents’ faith and money habits.
Thanks for taking the time to leave comments – Reading them brought tears to my eyes.
this story was AWESOME!
Praise God! That little girl in her dress takes my breath away.
Makes me want to keep powering forward paying off our debt so that we can give more to people so desperately in need.
What a wonderful, wonderful story. Just think how many lives you changed with $15,000 – that would barely buy a car here in the U.S.
Ok… that made me cry!! How wonderful!
What an awesome, uplifting, INSPIRING post – made all the more awesome because this person doesn’t want to be publicly recognized for her (and her family’s) huge act of generosity.
Thank you for sharing – you (and the comments following) truly made an impact on the way I see so many things. God bless you abundantly.
God bless you!
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