George Müller’s Life Of Trust (Part 4)
Trusting Day By Day
Arranged from the book, THE LIFE OF TRUST, By George Müller (1805-1898)
George Müller, having felt led of God to establish and maintain an orphanage by prayer and faith, after a few years was responsible to feed ninety orphans and workers each meal. It kept him much in prayer to overcome the serious trials of faith that resulted. Always God proved faithful, although sometimes provision came at the last minute and in unexpected ways. From his account we learn the following:
At one crisis time the need of the homes was met by the gift of a poor German missionary who was just embarking on missionary service, and the gift he gave was all he had. At another time of dire need, a sister who had taken upon herself to sell some articles that had been sent for that purpose reported that although she was not feeling well and would have delayed her coming with the proceeds from the sale, yet it was laid so strongly upon her heart to come at once that she could not stay away. Those funds were needed at that very moment.
One day during a severe trial of faith, the Lord laid it on the heart of a brother on his way to work to give a gift for the orphans. He thought he would not go back immediately but would take something that evening. But the Lord so constrained him that he turned his steps right then to the orphan houses. Had it not been for his gift, there would not have been milk for the children that day. Another time it was only an hour until the children would need food for afternoon tea – but there was none until a brother came by with some funds sufficient for the food.
Some days the need was so urgent that the workers were greatly tried. But God did not fail! These "nick-of-time" provisions made Müller to exclaim: "Truly it is worth being poor and greatly tried in faith for the sake of having day by day such precious proofs of the loving interest which our kind Father takes in everything that concerns us! And how should our Father do otherwise? He who has given us the greatest possible proof of His love which He could have done in giving us His own Son, surely He will ‘with Him also freely give us all things’ " (see Rom. 8:32).
He could write: "Though our trials of faith during these seventeen months lasted longer and were sharper than during any previous period, yet during all this time the orphans had everything that was needful in the way of nourishing food, the necessary articles of clothing, etc."
Although the trials of faith in operating three orphan homes were great, Müller felt led to open a fourth. A home miraculously opened up on the same street for the fourth and was rented to accommodate more children.
Another trial of faith was seeing his father and brother die seemingly unsaved. What could be harder? Yet in this he found peace through the Word of Scripture: "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Gen. 18:25). He turned to the Word of God for comfort and peace also when lying reports were circulated, saying that the orphans had not enough to eat or were being cruelly treated.
Strengthening One’s Faith
George Müller insisted that he did not have a particular gift of faith, although he acknowledged that faith is a gift. He encouraged every believer to prove God. His suggestions for strengthening one’s faith were:
Since faith is a gift, it should be asked for. "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights…" (Jas. 1:17). Faith is strengthened by careful reading of the Word of God and meditating upon it. This will teach how in addition to being a holy and just God, He is a kind, loving, gracious, merciful, mighty, wise and faithful God, not only having ability to meet our needs, but willingness.
It is necessary to keep an upright heart and a good conscience. We must not shrink from the trials by which our faith is strengthened. In time of trials, we must not seek our own deliverance but wait upon God for His deliverance.