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Handfuls of Purpose

Writer's picture: Danielle CunninghamDanielle Cunningham
holding hands

Yesterday marked our 16th anniversary. It is hard to believe that we have been married such a long time, and at the same time such a short time. Every year I seem to marvel that we have only been married for a few years, and yet every year it feels as though it's always been this way. For all the ups and downs in our lives, our marriage has been a point of stability, and I can say with confidence it's because it was founded in our love for the Lord and His Church, and because to this day it continues to be our touchstone. Yesterday, as per the norm, we celebrated by spending the day with the people we love most in our favorite place - Church. One day I'd like to go on a trip for our anniversary, but the truth is Church is where we most enjoy being.


Way back before we were married, when we were still living 726 miles apart, we talked on the phone every evening, late into the night. I spent my days in college classes, my nights working at Wendy's as a night shift manager. He spent his days working for an ag company and evenings waiting for me to call. Often our phone calls didn't start till 1:30 am. We talked about everything, but we especially talked about the Bible.


Once he asked me what my favorite book of the Bible was and I told him Ruth. It is such a beautiful, real life story of redemption and God's provision, for someone that wasn't anything special to the world. It's a special little book, tucked in between the stories of the prophets and priest and kings of the Old Testament, the big names you might say. He shared with me that one of the most influential sermons in his life came from Elder David Montgomery when the Church was searching for a pastor. He preached from Ruth on "Handfuls of Purpose." Gary spent a long while on one phone call telling me about that sermon. Then, in the mail about a week later I got a box, inside was a tape of the sermon, a short note where he told me he was also including some handfuls of purpose (he had added some cash). We then spent a few weeks studying that book together and discussing it on our phone calls.


Ruth, a woman from Moab, alone with an old Jewish woman are trying to make it with nothing. To take care of them, she goes out at the time of harvest to glean in the fields. She's there to get the leftovers, what is dropped or left behind. "And her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech." She wasn't traveling somewhere specific she just happened to end up there, but God led her without her knowing it to the very man in their family who could help her. Boaz sees her and has mercy on her and tells her to stay and glean in his fields with his maidens where she'll be safe. But then he goes on and does something that she doesn't know about, he tells his men "let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her and leave them, that she may glean them." Looking out for her, he makes sure that she has enough to eat for both her and her mother-in-law. (Ruth 2:3 and 16 KJV)


We have struggled most of our married lives with jobs. Gary longs for a career that is more permanent where he can work for years and have stability. He longs to work in the field he loves and make a difference. Most of all he wants to take care of us, because that's where his heart is. For whatever reason, though no fault of his own, it has been our lot in life to struggle with employment. However, despite those hardships we've endured, the Lord has provided for us. I couldn't even begin to tell you how many time the Lord has thrown handfuls of purpose our way.


One time when we were just on our first week at a new job. We had eaten through our savings, and maxed out a credit card, but we were nearly out of food in the house. But now Gary was looking at another two weeks before he'd get his first check. He had been going round with the people with the state for more than two months trying to get EBT so that we would at least have grocery money. They wanted paperwork that the old company didn't provide since he was considered an independent contractor not an employee. Finally someone told us to write that up and try submitting it even though it wasn't remotely what was required, so we wrote it up, signed our name on it, and submitted it. The next morning as the kids ate the last of the pancake mix for breakfast, EBT approved us and Gary left work to go and get groceries so that we'd have something for lunch that day. The Lord gave us a handful of purpose right when it was needed.


One time we didn't have the money for the electric bill and a sister at Church gave us some money, and told us the Lord just laid it on her heart. It was enough to pay the electric bill and fill up the gas tank on the car. It was a handful of purpose. Another time we didn't know how we could afford to pay for rent, and the Church member we were renting from told us that we could catch up when we had work. By the time we got a job we owed him three months of rent. That was grace. Once more recently, we thought this was it, we are just going to be behind on the mortgage, we'd exhausted our options for keeping it paid until the house sold. The Church didn't know that, but had taken up money to help us out, just knowing that we were struggling because we were out of work again, it was to the dollar what we still lacked. It was yet another handful of purpose. I could keep going on.


The Providence of God is something I long to better understand. I've talked with my father at length about it, on several occasions. But as Daddy once told me, if we understood where the line was between His providential care and our duty to be laboring, then we wouldn't appreciate it as much. He also told me that He intervenes and cares for us far more often than we realize. God has never given me the keys to a storehouse of everything we'll need in our life. I've never had a million dollars. He's never given us what we need before we needed it, but He's been faithful to let fall some handfuls of purpose for us throughout the most difficult times in our lives. We can keep going because of His providential care. While I don't expect I'll ever understand why He sometimes steps in, I'm oh so thankful for the moments that I realize He has, in His love for us, intervened.

Gary and Danielle in the Church yard, on our 16th anniversary.

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