Eola Cross has experiences in giving to God that span nine decades, and her stories are powerful. She is now nearing 98 years old, and her excitement for giving is only increasing. She gives her tithe in addition to offerings, school support, ministries, and gifts to help the people around her.
Cross, who attends the English-Spanish Church in Watsonville, grew up while the Great Depression had a stranglehold on the United States. When she was five years old, there was a time when her family began running out of food. “I remember one time—my parents were very poor—we didn't have money to buy food. And I went as much as three days without food.”
Her parents were part of the Adventist church, but they weren’t active in the church. This began to bother Cross even at five years old. She wanted to be closer with God, and she remembers she had a dream after her mother put her down for a nap one afternoon. “The Lord was coming. I know the Lord will not be any more visual than He was in that. And the angels and Jesus were sitting on the throne. I dreamed I was lost and I woke myself up crying, begging the Lord to give me one more chance and I would do what was right.”
When Cross was 10 years old, she had committed herself to the Adventist Church. She attended it regularly, but she only owned one dress and it had reached its end. “I had this one white and blue dress with white polka dots. My mother had mended it until there wasn't anything left. And when I took it off the last time, my mother said, ‘Well, I guess you'll have to stay home next week because we don't have 15 cents to buy a piece of material to make a dress.’”
Despite lacking the money, Cross was sure God would provide. She said to her mother, “I'm going to pray to the Lord to send the dress.” They lived in the country, and it was her job to go to the mailbox to pick up the family’s mail. “I went every day to get it, and on Friday morning I said to my mother, ‘Well, my dress is going to be there today because I'm not going to stay home from church. God's not going to allow that to happen to me.’”
Her mother warned her not to be discouraged if she didn’t have a dress, but Cross was sure it would be waiting for her. “I had to go down a short hill, and it was about a quarter of a mile. I looked down and there was a package on the mailbox.” She brought the package back to her house and asked her mother to open it, telling her she knew it was her dress.
Her mother responded, “Well, I don’t know this person.” But her mother opened the package. “And there were three dresses that fit me perfectly! There was a brand new dress that a woman had made for her daughter, but she wouldn't wear it. It was beautiful. It was gold with black animals on it with a white collar. And she sent two other dresses. She wrote, ‘I don't know you, but a friend of mine told me that if I ever had anything, to send it to you. I'm sending this because my daughter kicked her feet and said she wouldn’t wear the dress. I'm sending these things hoping they come exactly on time.’”
Because of these experiences, Cross chose to commit her life to helping others, and has continued this throughout her life. “All my life, I've given everything I could. I've helped kids, I've taken kids in and put them through school. My husband and I used to take in kids. We have had over 100 kids.” Many of these children whom she and her husband helped are still part of the Adventist Church.
She has also committed her life to making sure everyone around her is fed. Every Friday, her church feeds over 500 people through their food distribution program. When she was young, her family struggled to make sure they were fed. “I prayed and I said, Lord, if you'll let me grow up, I'll never see anybody hungry if I can help it,” says Cross. “And the Lord has always provided food and things to help me be able to help people through the years.”
God continues to provide Cross with what she needs now. A few years ago, her vehicle needed enough repairs that she didn’t have the money to pay for her property taxes in addition to the vehicle. Nevertheless, she left it in God’s hands. “I said, Well, Lord. I don't know how you're going to do this. I don't know how I'm going to get that money for my taxes.” She could have asked someone to help, but she chose to leave it up to God.
Not long after this, Cross’s neighbor asked if there was a box where the neighbor could store some of her things. The neighbor returned a few weeks later, and Cross opened the box. “I laid it on the bed, and on the very top was an envelope. It had water marks on it and money sticking out of the envelope. She knew she hadn’t put it there. She hadn’t seen this envelope before, and the neighbor didn’t know where it had come from either. “We counted it and it was right down to the penny.” The money for her taxes had been provided.
Written by Brennan Hallock of Exploring Creative, LLC | exploringcreative.com
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