My divine appointment with George Mueller that early Sunday morning several years ago continues to speak to me and sometimes-even shouts to grab my attention. When I read and re-read his life story what continues to come across loud and clear is a testimony of real, radical, faith! Throughout his life George was routinely asked, “What is faith? ” His response was:

Faith is the assurance that the thing, which God has said in His Word, is true, and that God will act according to what He has said in His Word. This assurance, this reliance on God’s Word this confidence is faith, (p. 30).

The bedrock truth for Mueller was to hear and trust in the Living Word and to become like a young, humble child. Listen to the words he shared at the age of 76:

I have been able with the simplicity of a child, to rely upon God. I have had my trials, but I have laid hold upon God, and so it has come to pass that I have been sustained. It is not only permission, but also positive command that He gives to cast the burdens upon Him. Oh, let us do it! My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, ‘Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee,’ (Ps. 55:22), (p. 35).

Muller’s life demonstrated that faith increases by the exercise of it. He goes on to add that the way we grow in faith is through – “trials, obstacles, difficulties, and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith,” (p. 32). How right he is as you read the stories of so many heroes of faith-check out Hebrews 11-notice that each one’s faith was forged in the furnace of adversity. How often is this true in my own life? At times the Father strips away chunks of what I consider security. Or He has allowed me to face impossible situations? Then, I realize that He is all I have left; He is the only One who can truly help. He was simply waiting for this needy child to hand over to Him “the impossible” and allow Him to grant a glorious intervention of His mighty grace.

The first time I read about the works by George Mueller I was taken back, here I was a seminary student and thought, “I will never have the same gift of faith that this man does!” But then Mr. Mueller’s response was right there in the text for me:

This is a mistake –it is the greatest error- there is not a particle of truth in it. My faith is the same kind of faith that all God’s children have had. It is the same kind that Simon Peter had, and all Christians may obtain this like faith, (p. 36).

The key for Muller was to start by trusting God in a small ways. First he prayed and trusted the Lord for a smaller gifts like $10, then he slowly increased that prayer and trust for $100, or $1000. Over time the small amounts added up and because of the Father’s faithfulness more than a $1,000,000 was given to provide for the orphans under his care. Day by day, month by month, year-by-year George Mueller prayed and learned that if he trusted for something in accordance with His Father’s promises in His written Word the answer would come no matter how impossible it appeared.

Receive George Mueller’s words of encouragement in your OWN faith journey:

Fifty-one years, and God has never failed me! Trust Him for yourselves and find how true to His Word He is!! (p. 36).

Right now I’m in the middle of planning Oceans Ministries’ next trip to Lesotho, Africa, this coming January. I enjoy the planning and preparation phase of the trip, but have learned along the way to wait with anticipation of how God will impact each trip in unimaginable ways. Every time I have the privilege of leading a team I find myself surprised by God and the way He expands his kingdom through the hearts of His children.

I specifically remember a young woman from a previous trip sharing the ways she encountered her Abba, Father in Lesotho. During a walk around the Beautiful Gate campus her heart was broken over a young boy whose father had died the night before, leaving him an orphan. As she walked, thinking about the boy, she was surrounded by countless children who wanted nothing more than to be held and feel affection. Simply put, she saw more brokenness in a week than she had in her lifetime. Her response after she returned home astounded me. She said, “While I was in Africa the thought that kept going through my mind was this is Heaven, this is the closest I have ever been to Heaven.”   

As I listened to her words, I was struck again with the mystery of our Father God’s kingdom. How is it that through the brokenness of loss, hunger, and injustice she felt the love and acceptance of God through endless hugs from orphan children? I think the answer is this: As her heart softened and became broken for these children, she was sensing a fulfillment of God’s call in Psalm 82:3 to: Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. You see, God does some of his best work through brokenness, he uses it to open our ears to hear His voice, and through this, His kingdom expands.

Kingdom expansion is what we are seeing through our trips to Lesotho. This upcoming trip will focus on discipleship and the working of the Holy Spirit through our partner ministries in Lesotho. As always, Beautiful Gate is a focal point of our trip, but this summer we were also introduced to a care center in Semongkong, a two-hour drive from Beautiful Gate. During our visit the hearts of our volunteers ached for the children who live there with very little food, clothing or care.

Oceans Ministries has decided to partner with this care center to assist in meeting their needs and bringing hope. In fact, it will also be one of the focal points for the January trip we are planning right now. A few weeks ago I Skyped with some business people who will be joining us on the trip. These individuals also visited the Semongkong care center this summer and Christ’s call to care for the poor and broken came alive for them. Their response to action was like hearing the voice of God saying: “we can’t let those children go hungry!”

These memories, combined with the plans and details of this upcoming trip leave me excited and hopeful for what God will do next through our continued connection in Lesotho. If you feel the pull of the heart-strings of our Father, let us know we would love for you to join us.

– Mike Verkaik

On another note, Climbing Prayer Mountain is now available as an ebook on the Kindle platform.

Until the end of September, you can purchase the Kindle version on Amazon for the promotional price of $4.99. After that, the price will revert to $9.99.