God Provides Daily

The 19th-century English minister George Müller is an astonishing example of trusting God one day at a time. In 1838, Müller was caring for about 100 orphans across three houses, and after he faced some illness, he was completely out of money for daily expenses. After reading Scripture and meditating on his problem, he decided to pray to God and trust completely that He would provide each day.

For the rest of that year and several years to follow, Müller wrote down example after example in his diary of God providing exactly enough each day. One day, £20 was delivered immediately after he finished praying for it. Another day, he was considering selling some things from the orphanages, but prayed that he wouldn’t have to, and that afternoon a woman brought over a package of money that filled that need. Once, a friend who Müller knew was in debt gave him some money, and Müller resolved to return it because he knew the friend needed it. Before he returned the money, someone brought over £5, enough to buy food for the day. 

There’s one popular story about a time when his orphanage was out of money and food. The housemother came to George and told him, “The children are dressed and ready for school, but we have nothing for them to eat.” Instead of panicking, George told her to have the 300 children sit at the tables. Then, he bowed his head and thanked God for the meal they were about to receive, even though there was no food.

Moments later, a knock came at the door. It was the town baker. “Mr. Müller,” he said, “I couldn’t sleep last night. I felt like you might need bread this morning, so I got up early and baked three extra batches for you.”

Before George could even respond, another knock came. This time, it was the milkman. His cart had broken down right in front of the orphanage, and the milk would spoil before he could get it repaired. So he donated ten large cans of milk—just enough for the 300 children. 

Over the years, Müller’s orphanage cared for more than 10,000 children, and he trusted God to provide for each one. As Basil Miller observed, “Many times he was forced to say, ‘The funds are exhausted.’ But not once did these words hold true over night.”

A diary entry from March 17, 1842 described an especially incredible story. The orphanages had been out of money for several months, and Müller left his house a few minutes after 7 a.m. to see whether there was enough money to pay for the milk, which would be brought around 8 a.m. On his way, he prayed and reminded God of the consequences for the orphans if He did not provide. When he was about two minutes away from the orphanages, and still praying, he had a quick conversation with someone he saw on the road. He didn’t mention needing money for milk, but after they walked away from each other, the man ran back and gave him £1 for the orphans, enough to pay for the day’s milk. Müller wrote, “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.”