A Story of Thanksgiving

Since I’m taking the week off of teaching, I won’t be blogging either, but I wanted to share a really cool story with you that happened this past week.

The church where I have been holding my Christmas recital for years disbanded this fall and sold the building. I knew I wouldn’t be able to use it for my Christmas recital, so I’ve been praying that God would provide a location for us to use. My criteria is a place with a nice piano, preferably a grand, and a fairly cozy environment. And affordable, of course! One of my families volunteered to check with their church and I was really hoping that it would work out, but we got word back last Thursday that it would cost $550 for two nights of use (the rehearsal a week earlier and then the recital the following week) – and it wasn’t even available the nights I needed it.

With that door shut, it was time for more brainstorming and praying. With the rehearsal only 4 weeks away, I was beginning to feel the pressure of finding a place. I called a teacher friend of mine whose church we used for a festival several years ago to see if she thought their facility would be a possibility. She gave me a bit of hope and the name and number of the church secretary. First thing the next morning I whispered another prayer and made the call. The secretary said the dates were open, so she would send me the contract. I decided to drive over there instead to pick up the info in person and speed up the process.

As soon as I skimmed the contract, my heart sunk. A quick calculation of the numbers brought the sum for use of the sanctuary and fellowship hall to $300. I double-checked with the secretary on the cost and she said she would confirm the total with the trustee. I went home and resolved to keep trying to come up with alternatives. Maybe I needed to think outside the box. The possibility of checking with some area hospitals to see about using their chapel crossed my mind. It would be kind of cool to use a more public venue and try to reach out to hurting people through our music.

With that in mind, I prayed that if God wanted us to use the aforementioned church that He would put it on the trustee’s heart to offer it to us for $100. But if God wanted us to explore some outside-the-box options, the church would keep the cost above $100. I was excited about some other possibilities, but with such a short time left for planning, it seemed overwhelming. However, I was open to following God’s leading either way.

About five minutes later my phone rang. It was the church secretary. She had just gotten off the line with the trustee and he instructed her to offer to let us use the building for both nights for only $100! I was ecstatic! It was such a quick and obvious answer to prayer, and it gave me the confidence to move forward with this location. I’m still working on details and don’t know if we’ll have the ability to live-stream the event like we did last year, but I am so thankful to the Lord for meeting our needs in such a specific and special way!

May God make Himself real to each of you this week as you face needs and turn to Him to provide for you. He is more than able to do so! Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!