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By Christopher D. Beard
Are you struggling with your finances regardless of how much you earn?
Are you constantly desiring things that are out of reach for your budget
and making yourself miserable because you cannot have them? Even worse,
you may be justifying why you need them and overextending yourself by
purchasing these items with credit before you can actually afford them?
If this is the case you may be sabotaging yourself from receiving true
blessings and real prosperity. The truth is, it really does not matter
if you struggle to make ends meet or you earn lots of money. You are stressed
because of your constant striving for more and more of the things of this
world, or you are in debt up to your eyeballs trying to pay for and maintain
those things you have already acquired. The desires of the world will
pass away, God reminds us not to put our faith in these things. Review
the following verses.
John 2:15-17
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world,
the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the
cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what
he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world
and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives
forever.
Romans 8:5
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on
what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit
have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
Ecclesiastes 2:17-18
So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous
to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. I hated all
the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to
the one who comes after me
Meditate on that for a moment, if your first priority is self seeking
worldly things (idols) which are a big no-no in the Ten Commandments,
you will never find lasting peace in worldly things. As in the verse above,
the king in the book of Ecclesiastes who after much worldly toil (pursuits)
discovered that true peace and happiness is found in the Lord and obeying
His commands. The funny thing is he was a very wealthy king and could
acquire and accomplish anything he wanted to do.
God knew the struggles we would have with money on this earth. Jesus spoke
about money in 17 of the 38 parables in the bible. When was the last time
you actually stopped to consider where
you focus most of your energy? Do you spend most of your time focusing
on how you will achieve a bigger home, a new car, stretching yourself
out for that new flat screen or surround sound system your friend just
purchased? We are not defined by our possessions or how much money we
make but rather by our hearts.
Mathew 6:21
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also
Mathew 6:24
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the
other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot
serve both God and Money.
There is nothing wrong with wanting nice things, we all do that. The point
I am driving at is keeping it all in its proper perspective. Sure, you
may have a family with needs and we are supposed to work to fulfill those
needs however, the scriptures reveal that money and our commitment to
God are interconnected.
The world is full of constant marketing for everything you can imagine
today. You find it everywhere you go: TV, radio, internet, magazines,
direct mail, billboards. We are constantly bombarded with this stuff such
that we become delusional about those things that we think we need but
really we are just creating false needs, which leads to discontentment.
If you do not learn to control this yearning you will eventually end up
over extended wondering how you got in that situation, regardless of how
much you earn. People with bigger paychecks usually buy bigger more expensive
houses, cars and so on.
Proverbs 21:20
In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish
man devours all he has.
Proverbs 21:25-26
The sluggard's craving will be the death of him, because his hands refuse
to work. All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without
sparing.
When you review these verses carefully they explain that those who properly
give and save will have much and those who seek selfish desires only will
find disappointment. If you find yourself in this predicament take a deeper
look at the time you invest in your pursuits and ask yourself: 'are they
worldly or divine?' In other words, are you looking to fulfill your own
plan for your life or the plan God has for you? God's will for you includes
success and prosperity, however, only in his timing. God owns everything;
he is the true controller of money and true lasting peace. Only when you
reorganize your priorities focusing on God's work and purpose will you
be at peace about your finances. I challenge you to track your expenditures
for a month or two and then try reorganizing in this order: tithing, expenses,
saving and then lifestyle purposes. When you choose to follow these principals
you will see true blessings, peace in your heart and real prosperity like
you never imagined. What we truly desire in our emptiness is love, and
we choose to fill it with whatever will fill that void. God is love! Fill
your heart with God's love and everything else you need and desire will
follow.
Proverbs 19:20-22
Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.
Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that
prevails. What a man desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than
a liar.
Romans 12
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed
by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve
what God's will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.
About the Author: Christopher Beard is a specialist in
assisting borrowers with credit issues by helping them obtain single digit
market rate mortgages. He is the president of Trinity 1 Financial Group
and works one on one with clients with planning mortgage and insurance
strategies visit his site on the web at www.trinity1financialgroup.com
Source: www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=221633&ca=Religion
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