How to be blessed

Money worries are not at the top of my list. “Oh,” you say, “Jerry is wealthy.” By the standard of 90% of the world, you are right. I am rich! In America, I would not qualify as rich, probably not even as ‘well to do.’ So, why the confidence? Because I have a rich Father who cares for me and promises to provide for my needs. The ministry I lead is not large, nor do we have endowments. We are a ‘faith’ ministry, depending on the faithfulness of God and His people to meet our budget. Seeing how He has provided over the last 11 years, through every season, is a story that is simply wonderful!

God created the world as a place of abundance where every need of every person should be met. It is a consistent theme of the Bible. Genesis tells us that He looked over what He had made and said, "It is good!" Not, “just about right, acceptable and we'll work out the bugs. “ , etc. He created a world that provides us with everything that is necessary for life.

Abraham, when he experienced God's provision at a moment of 'impossibility' named Him, "Yahweh Yireh" – “The LORD, my Provider.” To be sure, Abe's trust wasn't perfect and on more than one occasion he tried to take care of his own needs in his own way. The results of his attempts at self-sufficiency were always less than wonderful. When he lived in faith, his life was full of blessings.

Paul traveled the empire of Rome. He knew how to live in faith and from his own experience of the riches of God, tells us to remember that "this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19, NLT)

Ultimately, God reveals that poverty is the result of sin. Be careful how you apply that phrase. Don't misunderstand me as saying that you or I can look a poor person and conclude, 'he is a sinner!' That would be both unloving and wrong. It might be the sins of past generations, the sins of his nation, the sin of his extended family, or even the sin of his neighbor. But, the truth is that where people live in God's ways, prosperity is the general result!

The key to enjoying God's provisions is obedience. In Deuteronomy 15 (NLT) we read: "There should be no poor among you, for the Lord your God will greatly bless you in the land he is giving you as a special possession. You will receive this blessing if you carefully obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. The Lord your God will bless you as he has promised. You will lend money to many nations but will never need to borrow! You will rule many nations, but they will not rule over you!” Isn't that a great promise?

But God also recognized that there would be those who, for one reason or another, were not blessed. And what of them? Take a look. "But if there are any poor people in your towns when you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tightfisted toward them. Instead, be generous and lend them whatever they need. Do not be mean-spirited and refuse someone a loan because the year of release (part of a God-designed 7 year cycle to defeat greed and perpetual poverty) is close at hand. If you refuse to make the loan and the needy person cries out to the Lord, you will be considered guilty of sin. Give freely without begrudging it, and the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do. There will always be some among you who are poor. That is why I am commanding you to share your resources freely with the poor and with other Israelites in need." (7-11, NLT)

I take two lessons from that passage.

The first is- God will take care of me.
I don't always live at peace in that promise, do you? But, when I center my thoughts on His Word I am able to trust Him in new ways. Don’t be stupid and run out to buy a new Mercedes, claiming God’s promises to meet your needs! But, life with confidence that your true needs; relational, economic, physical, and spiritual – are a true concern to your Father in Heaven.

The second is- if meeting humans needs is important to my Father, then it must be important to me.
The poor man is my brother. I have not met his needs when I give him a dollar. I must love him as I love myself.
Here's a passage to ponder this day.
Ask the Spirit to make it your way of life so that you can be just like your Abba.

“The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped. Curses on those who drive a hard bargain! Blessings on all who play fair and square!” Proverbs 11:24-26 (The Message)