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Not long ago, during a Wednesday night service at Family Worship Center, my husband and the panel were discussing Hebrews 2:13, which begins, “And again, I will put my trust in him.” During that discussion, it became clear how our trust in the Lord is revealed in the decisions we make in relation to the perfect will of God.
My husband shared some decisions made in our ministry life and, looking back, we realize now that things could have turned out far differently had we not trusted the Lord at those critical moments.
Like the time we were first getting started in evangelistic work. Full-time ministry life was still new to us, and the meetings offered to my husband were from very small churches, which of course affected our income. So when his Uncle Elmo (Jerry Lee Lewis’ dad) came driving up in a brand-new Cadillac with news that Sam Phillips had sent for him, it was enticing. Mr. Phillips owned Sun Records, which was quickly becoming one of the biggest record labels in the world; he had started Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Charlie Rich, Carl Perkins, along with Jerry Lee and a host of others. “Sun Records is starting a gospel line,” Uncle Elmo said, “and you will be the very first artist.” My husband was more than ready to say yes to this offer, but as he stood there in front of his uncle and in front of that shiny Cadillac, the Lord spoke to his heart and said, “No.” Later, in prayer, he asked the Lord, “Why couldn’t I accept this offer? It’s gospel music. What’s wrong with that?” He said the Lord spoke just two words to him: “Trust Me.” That was it. No fanfare. Just, “Trust Me.” And he did.
There was another specific point in ministry when, after traveling for months across the country, living mostly out of our car, we arrived at our next stop bone tired. While there, we were told of a church that had come available, and the opportunity to pastor it looked so good. If we took the church, we would be able to stay put and have a home. Donnie could attend school in the same district for a full year at a time instead of changing schools nearly every month. My husband went to prayer and told the Lord, “I want this church,” but he also had enough spiritual knowledge to say, “I want it if it’s Your will. I don’t want it if it’s not Your will, and I’m not interested in any ‘permissive’ will. I want Your perfect will.” And the Lord told him, “I have called you for world evangelism, and I have not lifted that call.” God meant for us to trust Him, and we did.
At these critical moments in our lives, we could not yet see what the Lord had in store. We only knew that He had a calling on my husband and to trust the Lord completely. Later we would learn that when God calls somebody, you never know where that call is going to lead.
We didn’t know then that the Lord had plans for my husband to preach and teach the gospel over radio. In those days, radio was dominated by secular programming; you didn’t hear ministers. Eventually, when the first preachers did go on air, my husband was so appalled at what they were teaching that he said, “I’ll never be a radio preacher.” God had to change his mind. God had to show him that just because there were some bad apples, so to speak, who were only interested in making a pull for money, that radio could still be used for His glory. We had no idea that the Lord would make possible the The Campmeeting Hour, which would eventually air on six hundred radio programs daily. He may have started out saying “I’ll never be a radio preacher,” but by continually trusting the Lord, my husband wound up being one of the largest.
So we didn’t know that radio would happen, but God knew it. We didn’t know that television was in our future, or that the Jimmy Swaggart Telecast would be broadcast over much of the world, but God knew it. We didn’t know that Family Worship Center was in the future, but God knew it. We couldn’t see the citywide and international crusades that would touch the entire world, but God saw it. We didn’t know that SonLife Broadcasting Network was in our future, but God did. He knew the future for this ministry, and God wanted us to trust Him, to believe Him, and to stand on His Word and His promises.
In those early days, had my husband signed on with Sun Records or insisted on pastoring that church, we believe with all of our hearts that none of these other things would have ever come to pass. Now we may be wrong in that, but that’s what we see, because the will of God is so very, very important. If we get out of the will of God, then nothing goes right. But if we stay in the will of God, then, no matter what happens, it’s going to turn out right.
Looking back, we see now how everything was so directed and orchestrated by the Lord. I remember each moment of every decision vividly—and there were many to make. They were not bad choices. They were not sinful choices. They were not fleshly choices. We were trying to do what was best for the ministry, and, at the same time, do what was best for our family. And I thank God that we made the right decisions, because it was not our will that we wanted to see fulfilled; it was the will of God that we wanted to see fulfilled. And, because our trust was in the Lord, we did do the right thing. It’s a beautiful thing to trust God. Our trust, then and now, is in the Lord. And the good news is that it’s not over yet. What the Lord is doing through this ministry is ongoing because the Lord has His hand on Donnie, and He’s got His hand on Gabriel.
I know all of you can look back on your lives and recall your own critical moments when life-changing decisions had to be made. You had to choose, you had to move, you had to go one way or the other, and it was extremely important to make the right decision. Whether you are in full-time ministry or a Christian layperson, it is so important that you make the right decisions. And how do you decide? By trusting God to lead you. Even now, you may be seeking the Lord about a decision, and the Lord is leading you in a direction that you don’t understand. I would offer you two words that mean more to me now than ever before—trust Him.
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