Daily Devotional for Sunday December 29, 2013
Where Are You Financally Right Now
(Matthew 6:25-33)
***ASK BILL: Pastor Bill, I would like to know why Moses was punished and not allowed to enter the promise land?
ANSWER: One word, DISOBEDIENCE! As I share often, our acts have consequences. Moses struck the rock twice, instead of speaking to the rock as God had told him. While God used his life in a mighty way, there is a price to pay for rebellion, and for Moses, it was not being allowed to enter into the promised land.
Every day I get a breakdown, by category, of the 40,000+ prayer requests we receive here at Liveprayer. The top three each day are always health, relationships, and finances. These three issues transcend age, race, nationality, and financial status. They are the common bond all men who live this life share. Everyone deals with health issues at some point in their life. Everyone deals with relationship issues at some point in their life. Everyone deals with financial issues at some point in their life. I have dealt often with the health and relationship challenges we all face, and today I want to focus on finances.
Money is a necessary part of living this in this world. We must have money to survive. The Bible has lots to say about money. I rarely recommend resources but for those struggling in this area of your life or simply looking to be better stewards of your money, I would look into getting anything written by Larry Burkett, a man God blessed with incredible wisdom to teach people what the Bible says about money and finances; and a dear friend, Dave Ramsey, another man God has raised up in this day to teach people the Biblical truths regarding finances. Burkett went to be with the Lord recently, but his books are still very popular and available at any Christian bookstore as are Ramsey's.
I want to focus today on where you are financially right now. Many who read this are not having any problems with their finances, while others are struggling. Some people have been blessed with a tremendous abundance of resources and other people have virtually nothing. Regardless, if you find yourself today with a surplus of money or without any at all, never forget that it is God who is your source and it is God who supplies your every need throughout this life. God knows and understands the basic necessities of life like food, shelter and clothing.
Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." The original Greek of this verse says that our number one goal in life is to be a member of God's Kingdom and be perfectly holy, in God's sight, just as He is. WOW! That is powerful and puts in perfect perspective what our true goals in this life are-to be a member of God's Kingdom and be perfectly holy in God's sight.
However, tying into today's message on finances is an incredible truth from God's Word found in this verse that many people miss and never connect. The end of Matthew 6:33 says, " . . . and all these things will be given to you as well." What things? The necessities of life that were spoken about in the preceding verses, food, shelter, and clothing. What God is saying is that if you will seek Me, seek My Kingdom, seek My righteousness, I'm going to take care of your day-to-day necessities of life. God is saying to you today, "Be about My business and I'll be about your business."
I love you and care about you so much. I want to encourage you and pray for you today. For those of you who God has blessed financially, never forget that to whom much is given, much is required. For those of you who are facing great financial obstacles in your life today, now is the time to make your faith real and trust that God will provide as He promised in His Word. Even if you don't have great financial wealth, you are still accountable to God for what He does bring into your hands, so be faithful with what He provides.
Whatever we have in this life has been given to us by God and belongs to Him. We are simply stewards of what He has put into our care. I pray that you will seek the Lord and get His wisdom and discernment in how you can always be a good steward of the resources that He has entrusted to you. God wants to use you regardless of the amount of money you have to be a blessing to others. The Bible has much to say about the care of the poor. We immediately think of the poor as being those who have no money, but this also includes the spiritually poor, those people who are living without the hope and love of Christ in their life. Everyone can do something with what God has given you to be a blessing to those who are financially poor as well as those who are spiritually poor.
I want to pray a prayer of blessing over your finances. "Father, I pray, today, for each person who is reading these words. You know exactly where they are at today financially. I pray that whatever they have today is multiplied many times over in the coming weeks and months. Bless them in the area of their finances, Father, so that they may not only care for their day-to-day needs of those they are responsible for, but so that they may feed the poor around the world, those who are materially poor as well as those who are spiritually poor. I pray, today, a prayer of BLESSING on the finances of the person reading these words. Whatever we have in this life comes from you and is yours Father. May we be faithful in managing what you have given to us. Multiply many times over what you have currently given to the person reading this word today and allow them to be a great blessing to the work of God throughout the world. I pray BLESSINGS over the finances of the person reading these words today for the glory of Almighty God. In the name of Jesus. Amen!
In His love and service, Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller