As Silvia Flores, ministries department secretary, listened to the exciting evangelism outreach stories during evangelism committee meetings, she longed to get involved. “I so wanted to be part of what was happening around our conference,” she says.
Flores, a single mom, had joined the Central California Conference staff in 2000, relocating from the Bay Area. The Camp Meeting Evangelism Offering—record keeping, disbursement of funds, reporting—was a significant part of her responsibilities.
During the 2002 camp meeting, as she heard the testimonies of new members each night, she was impressed to make a pledge. “I started praying about it,” she recalls.
As she asked God what He wanted her to do, a number kept coming into her mind. It was one-fifth of her income. “No way! This is impossible!” she prayed as she struggled with God.
On the last evening she made her decision. “I’m going to trust You,” she told her heavenly Father as she filled out her pledge card. “The moment I did, such a peace came over me, and I heard His voice in my head saying ‘Get ready! Exciting things are going to happen.’”
At home, three checks were waiting in the mail: a two-year-old overpayment reimbursement from a hospital; excess escrow funds from her mortgage company; and, a correction from the IRS for a duplicate property tax payment. “There’s no way I paid my property taxes twice,” she says. “I don’t have that kind of extra money.”
The total cash received was $1,100. That was just the beginning. Her part-time catering business increased 300 percent from the previous year. Other surprise checks arrived. “My pledge was paid off early, I was able to refinance my house and pay off all my debts,” she reports. She’s even been able to do several home improvements.
Flores shared her story at camp meeting this July telling the audience to “Trust God completely. He just wants us to have a little bit of faith, and He’ll take care of the rest.” Humbled and privileged that God could use her experience to inspire others, she says, “I’m an instrument in His hands.”
