121 Stories - Confidence in Uncertain Times
Focusing on our faith in God helps us face the challenges in life.
Charlie Howery
May 18, 2020 6m
In this message Charlie Howery shares how he and his family turned to their faith in God to face unexpected challenges in life. Charlie shares how God has protected him and his family through job loss and financial hardships during the Covid pandemic. Video recorded at Grapevine, Texas.
TranscriptionmessageRegarding Grammar:
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
Charlie Howery: 00:00 My name is Charlie Howery, and my wife is Laura. We've got a two and a half year old, and my wife is pregnant with our second.
Charlie Howery: 00:09 These last couple months have been a challenge, there have been some ups and downs. So we found out at the beginning of March that my wife was pregnant, and so that was great news. And then a week later, we found out that I was getting laid off, and so you've got fantastic news and then disappointing news right after.
Charlie Howery: 00:39 And so we've been taking it one day at a time, relying on the Lord during that time as well. He's been shepherding us through throughout this time as well, and learning how to lean on him and trust him, even when we don't know what's going to happen next.
Charlie Howery: 01:00 You know, one of the challenges that we've been facing during this time, is like a lot of our country, we've had issues getting unemployment payments and stuff like that, and so it took weeks before we got assistance in that way. And during that time when we weren't sure when, or if, we were going to get help after I got laid off, just seeing God carry us through that time, just God's Providence, and how he used the church to just bless us immensely. And getting, you know, unexpected gifts and seeing the outpouring of love from our community. And not only receiving, but just the gift of being able to give. Even when we feel like we didn't have much to give, we still wanted to give, because we were being blessed and we just wanted to bless others as well.
Charlie Howery: 02:12 Another challenge during this time has been my wife's pregnancy, it's been a very difficult one compared to when she was pregnant with our son, Samuel. Her progesterone levels were not where they needed to be, and so we ended up having to start doing progesterone injections. And so that's been really rough on my wife, and just her level of energy has just been down, and seeing how God has provided a way for me to be home right now to take care of her and take care of my son has been a huge blessing. I know that, you know, my wife says it would have been a lot harder if I had not been at home.
Charlie Howery: 02:57 With being at home, that's also brought some challenges. Getting out of a routine of, you know, working 50 to 55 hours a week, and, you know, being gone most of the day. To being home all day, doing more things around the house and, you know, taking care of my wife and take care of my son. Though, those have been a rich gift, it's also been difficult because of realizing how impatient I've been with my son. And when I'm tired, you know, I gotten to a point where I don't want to help, but know I need to. And so that creates, you know, I choose to have poor attitudes in those moments. And so it's just revealed some sin as well, that God revealing that to me, and convicting me of that, has been difficult, but also just realizing that it's a problem has been refreshing as well.
Charlie Howery: 04:00 One verse actually that I've been reminded of is Psalm three, about how God is our shield. And even though it's been difficult and challenging these last two months, we've had a confidence knowing that God will get us through it.
Charlie Howery: 04:27 I love music, and I love getting to lead worship. And with so much more time on my hands, it's been really neat to be able to still serve. You know, whether that's, you know, recording, you know, a couple of songs for students and send it to Jermaine, or helping out with the Spanish service. It's just been, it's been different, and it's been really cool. I've been kind of thinking about this lyric, the verse goes, "You can do more in my waiting, than in my doing I can do."
Charlie Howery: 04:57 And there are times where I can, you know, try and try and get stuff going. And when I've just trusted the Lord during that time, trusting that he'll provide for us, you know, he did, and I didn't have to do anything for it. We're still in the middle of this, and we don't know what's going to happen with my job. And we're just taking it one day at a time, and we trust that God will continue to provide, and continue to give us all that we need, and that's enough.
Charlie Howery: 05:33 And so we're just so grateful for verses like Psalm 23, and Psalm 3, for his word and how he reminds us of who he is and what he does for us. And that's enough for me and my family.
Recorded in Grapevine, Texas.
Charlie Howery: 00:09 These last couple months have been a challenge, there have been some ups and downs. So we found out at the beginning of March that my wife was pregnant, and so that was great news. And then a week later, we found out that I was getting laid off, and so you've got fantastic news and then disappointing news right after.
Charlie Howery: 00:39 And so we've been taking it one day at a time, relying on the Lord during that time as well. He's been shepherding us through throughout this time as well, and learning how to lean on him and trust him, even when we don't know what's going to happen next.
Charlie Howery: 01:00 You know, one of the challenges that we've been facing during this time, is like a lot of our country, we've had issues getting unemployment payments and stuff like that, and so it took weeks before we got assistance in that way. And during that time when we weren't sure when, or if, we were going to get help after I got laid off, just seeing God carry us through that time, just God's Providence, and how he used the church to just bless us immensely. And getting, you know, unexpected gifts and seeing the outpouring of love from our community. And not only receiving, but just the gift of being able to give. Even when we feel like we didn't have much to give, we still wanted to give, because we were being blessed and we just wanted to bless others as well.
Charlie Howery: 02:12 Another challenge during this time has been my wife's pregnancy, it's been a very difficult one compared to when she was pregnant with our son, Samuel. Her progesterone levels were not where they needed to be, and so we ended up having to start doing progesterone injections. And so that's been really rough on my wife, and just her level of energy has just been down, and seeing how God has provided a way for me to be home right now to take care of her and take care of my son has been a huge blessing. I know that, you know, my wife says it would have been a lot harder if I had not been at home.
Charlie Howery: 02:57 With being at home, that's also brought some challenges. Getting out of a routine of, you know, working 50 to 55 hours a week, and, you know, being gone most of the day. To being home all day, doing more things around the house and, you know, taking care of my wife and take care of my son. Though, those have been a rich gift, it's also been difficult because of realizing how impatient I've been with my son. And when I'm tired, you know, I gotten to a point where I don't want to help, but know I need to. And so that creates, you know, I choose to have poor attitudes in those moments. And so it's just revealed some sin as well, that God revealing that to me, and convicting me of that, has been difficult, but also just realizing that it's a problem has been refreshing as well.
Charlie Howery: 04:00 One verse actually that I've been reminded of is Psalm three, about how God is our shield. And even though it's been difficult and challenging these last two months, we've had a confidence knowing that God will get us through it.
Charlie Howery: 04:27 I love music, and I love getting to lead worship. And with so much more time on my hands, it's been really neat to be able to still serve. You know, whether that's, you know, recording, you know, a couple of songs for students and send it to Jermaine, or helping out with the Spanish service. It's just been, it's been different, and it's been really cool. I've been kind of thinking about this lyric, the verse goes, "You can do more in my waiting, than in my doing I can do."
Charlie Howery: 04:57 And there are times where I can, you know, try and try and get stuff going. And when I've just trusted the Lord during that time, trusting that he'll provide for us, you know, he did, and I didn't have to do anything for it. We're still in the middle of this, and we don't know what's going to happen with my job. And we're just taking it one day at a time, and we trust that God will continue to provide, and continue to give us all that we need, and that's enough.
Charlie Howery: 05:33 And so we're just so grateful for verses like Psalm 23, and Psalm 3, for his word and how he reminds us of who he is and what he does for us. And that's enough for me and my family.
Recorded in Grapevine, Texas.
Read More
