William "Bill" Jefferson
The story of Bill Jefferson has inspired many to reevaluate their own choices concerning the resources God has entrusted to them. It is a story of one very ordinary man who loved Jesus Christ, and wanted to use his life to advance the Kingdom of God. Though Bill was not a wealthy man, God honored his heart for giving in unbelievable ways!
Here is the amazing story of William "Bill" Jefferson, as shared by Roger Lonnquist, President of Your Network of Praise radio & New Life Africa Networks...ministries Bill joyfully supported during his life.
"When I joined the staff of Your Network of Praise part of my desire was to meet with those who were generously providing for YNOP's financial needs. One of the names that showed up high on the list of "major donors" was William Jefferson. Based on the amount of money he was giving each year I assumed he was a business owner or executive of some sort.
I called Bill and asked him if he would like to have dinner, and he was very excited to meet with someone from YNOP! As we began to get acquainted I was amazed by several things about the perspective that Bill had about life, giving, and his own commitment to generously supporting certain ministries that he loved.
But, what surprised me the most was that Bill was not a wealthy person...he was, in fact, the laundry man at a local children's hospital!
Bill had determined that financially supporting God's work was one of the things God had called him to do. So, he lived in a small house, drove the same car for more than 26 years, and kept his personal expenses to an absolute minimum. He was already past retirement age and receiving Social Security but he continued to work full-time into his 80's in order to be able to divide his paycheck between his church and YNOP, and a few other ministries.
Bill was not in the best of health, but continued working and in spite of back and neck pain from years of hard work. He never complained...he was always joyful, and excited about what God was doing and very happy that he could be part of providing for the financial part of God's work.
Bill passed on in 2021, just as Your Network of Praise was in the process of launching the New Life Africa Networks. He was very excited about the outreach to Africa, and even though he did not live to see the official launch of New Life Africa Networks he played a significant part in it...prior to Bill's passing he had made arrangements that would provide YNOP and 4 other ministries with one final gift. His estate gift helped launch the African networks so that millions of people across Africa would have the chance to hear the good news of Jesus!
Always joyful...always generous...always excited to be participating in God's work through his gifts. That is the story of this very special person.
II Corinthians 9 says that "God loves a cheerful giver"...and that is exactly how we would describe our friend William "Bill" Jefferson!
What resources do you have...financial resources, time to volunteer in ministry, special skills...that could be put to good use in God's harvest field today?