Deep faith and abundant blessings should go together. Too many times, prosperity and peace only produce apathy about the things of God. A once deeply devout disciple develops a sense of independence based on the illusion that he can manage life quite well on his own, so long as he gives a nod in God's direction every now and then. As a Pastor for many years, I have observed the pattern over and over again. Life falls apart and a man is left in ruins. For some, it is a divorce that destroys their family life. For others, it is financial loss that follows a job loss or disaster. Yet for others it is a time of sickness. In desperation this broken person remembers God. He finds that old friend that always talked about Jesus. As he looks to the Lord and sincerely seeks after Him, just as the Word promises, he finds Him to be a Friend and Savior. He loves worship, showing up every time the doors are open. He devours books that show him the ways of Christ.
As he grows in faith and walks in spiritual disciplines, his life takes on new ways. Destructive habits are replaced with responsibility. Godly ways are the fertile soil in which blessings grow. What will he do with his blessings? Sadly, many grow independent of the very God that blessed them! Financial independence allows diversions that lead away from faithfulness to the things of God. Ministries that once were the core of his life are side-lined as he pursues the hobbies he can now afford. Focus on family life is eroded by demands of his work. Because he has moved into a place of greater responsibilities and more compensation, his kids don't see him pray except the formal kinds of prayer at dinner, because Dad really doesn't pray that much at all. He doesn't feel any real need to pray, to worship. Of course, if you ask him, he will thank God for the things he now enjoys, but his words and his true values are far apart.
Think that's far-fetched? Take a look at the wisdom of the Word from two sources: Jesus spoke of the seed of the Word which was received with joy but then "the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." (Mark 4:19, NIV)
As an old man near the end of his life, Moses warned Israel of the dangers of prosperity they would confront when they entered the Promised Land – “Jeshurun (God's people) grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior." (Deuteronomy 32:15, NIV)
In what is, even in this time of economic downturn, the richest nation on earth, empty churches on Sunday morning are but one stark symbol of our lack of regard for the Lord and things of the Spirit. Entertainment has replaced worship as the central focus of the weekend. Sports, properly enjoyed as a diversion, are now gods that received the adoration of millions. Our kids are trained like professional athletes from the time they are 4 years of age, leaving little time for God, for church, for family prayer. Christian parents focus their children on attaining physical prowess or academic degrees with little more than formal acknowledgement that a life of real abundance lies in knowing and serving God.
How I pray that the price of real spiritual revival and continued spiritual fervency is not sorrow and deprivation. Here’s a prayer that the honest man will pray in sincerity, trusting God to keep him. "Give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name." (Proverbs 30:8-9, NLT)
Jesus said, "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. Self-help is no help at all.
Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?" (Mark 8:34-36, The Message)
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