God's Principles - Part Three - Financial Health

The Word of God is full of advice on how to live a healthy life mentally, emotionally, financially, physically and spiritually (3 John 1:2). If we ferret them out of the chapters and verses, we find amazing truth by which to live our life (Proverbs 4:22).

When our thoughts, words and deeds please the Lord, even our enemies are at peace with us (Proverbs 16:7). He daily increases our blessings, and this even includes our children (Psalm 37:25, 115:14). We lack nothing that we truly need (Psalm 34:10; Deuteronomy 28:6; Philippians 4:19).

God actually gives the ability and wisdom to produce wealth to those who covenant with Him (Deuteronomy 8:18; Psalm 24:1). He yokes up with us to carry our burdens each moment of the day, because He is the only God who truly saves (Psalm 68:19).

God's blessings bring us wealth, without the painful toil that so many must endure (Proverbs 10:22). When we humble our self enough to respect, honor, obey and consult the Lord throughout the day, we reap riches and honor (Proverbs 22:4).

The secret to financial success in life is to seek God's Kingdom before our own desires, and He will give us everything we need (Matthew 6:33-34). When our ways please the Lord, He also gives us wisdom, knowledge and happiness (Ecclesiastes 2:26).

       

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for Your abundant prosperity for Your children. You bless the fruit of our labors, and our physical and financial needs. You open for us the windows of Heaven and the storehouse of Your bounty. You send rain to water our gardens, and You bless all the work of our hands (Deuteronomy 28:11-13).

As we pay attention to and obey Your precepts, we will always find fulfillment, peace, joy and richness in our life. Remind us to tithe a tenth of our income; because if we do not, we are guilty of robbing You. However, when we are faithful tithers, You open the floodgates of Heaven and pour out Your abundance of blessings on us, so that we have enough to share with those in need (Malachi 3:10).

Thought for the Day:

Financial responsibility and honoring the Lord with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength will result in His bountiful provision in our life, His protection over our resources, and His abundance in all of our endeavors.

- Malachi 3:11-12; Deuteronomy 29:9

Praying up a Storm

 

If we allow our thoughts to randomly flit through our mind, we run the chance of making decisions that do not honor God and that will tend to bring us hardship and shame. Satan and God both influenced our thoughts (1 Timothy 4:1). Our thoughts, even our subconscious thoughts that we are not aware of at the time, influence our feelings. Our heart is deceitful and wicked, and we should submit both our thoughts and our emotions to God at all times (Jeremiah 17:9). We can control our thoughts by using them to pray each moment of the day. We control our emotions by sharing them honestly and kindly before they build up and explode.

We start in a place of aloneness (all-one-ness) with God. God has the perfect formula for prayer. Vain repetition in prayer does not honor God nor does it help us in any way (Matthew 6:7). Quoting scripture to God in an attempt to force His hand to provide what we want is useless and insulting to Him. We can use Bible verses in our prayers, but not to twist God’s arm to do our will. Sit in a very still and quiet place with your journal. Submit all of your thoughts and emotions to the Lord (2 Corinthians 10:5).

As you do, jot them down in your journal. You can even write out your prayers in your journal. Pray for everyone the Lord brings to your mind, issues in your life about which you need His wisdom, besetting sins that trouble you, negative emotions that crowd out His joy in your life, world news, unreached people groups, the persecuted church, government officials, etc. Whatever the Spirit brings to your mind. Another way to pray is when you see someone who reminds you of someone you know, pray for that person you see, as well as the person you know.

When you hear an emergency vehicle siren, pray for the people impacted by that emergency: for God to meet their needs and to reveal Himself to them. As you travel in the car, pray for the people with Christian symbols or bumper stickers on their car; if they are bold enough to display their faith, they could use your prayers. When someone dials the wrong number and they get you instead, tell them the reason they called is for you to tell them that God loves them and has a perfect plan for their life. Then, pray for that person as the Lord brings them to your mind.

We do not pray in order to force God’s hand to do our will, but we follow Jesus’ example and pray according to His will (Luke 22:42). As we seek God’s will, our thoughts and heart become one with His. We are dead and our life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3-4). It is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in us. We do not have to summon our faith, because we are filled with the faith of the Son of God (Galatians 2:20). Obedience to God’s will is the common denominator of all people of faith in the Bible. Their example gives us a peek into the life of people of prayer.

Prayer:

Father God, we all long to hear Your voice. You are our Abba Father and You desire nothing more than to commune with Your Body each moment of our day. Remind us to listen more and to talk less throughout the day; so that we can be led by Your Spirit to accomplish the works, which You prepared for us even before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 2:9-10). Help us to discern Your Spirit from the voice of the flesh, the world and Satan, which all try to negatively influence our thinking and behavior. As we read Your living Word, allow the verses to penetrate our heart and to sanctify our soul (Hebrews 4:12).

Thought for the Day:

We have confidence that God hears us in our prayers when we ask according to His will. - 1 John 5:14-15