2018: A Year For Hope (Week 15)

Have you ever noticed that just about the time that the seas calm, the winds still, and the fog lifts … so that you can finally see the destination for which your eyes have been straining so hard to see … up comes another wave! Of course you have! We all have. Countless times.

The scenario usually plays out something like this:

He has a good job but it does little more than pay the bills each month. Six months ago, he had an unexpected medical bill and had to put it on a credit card. That really bothered him because after attending Financial Peace University at his church, he made a decision to operate his finances in a way that honors God and he is trying hard to stay out of debt. So he put in some overtime, cut back on the grocery budget, swapped lunches out for PB&J sandwiches in a brown paper bag, and just sent payment in full to the credit card company so that he’s no longer paying interest. He’s thrilled. He praises God. He feels on top of the world, and is back on track. Until he gets his tax returns back a finds out he underpaid by over $3000.

Splash!

It happens all the time! In finances. In relationships. In health. In work. Why? Well at the risk of sounding like a 5-year old, I think it boils down to two simple factors:

We live in a broken world (one that does not operate according to God’s original design for it).
We have an enemy (who is always… ALWAYS… seeking to steal, kill and destroy).

Over the years, I’ve become more and more convinced that the devil only has a few game plans in his play book. Bearing in mind that the Word of God reveals the will of God, almost every situation we come across in life that contradicts the will of God for our lives can be bucketed into a few basic categories (objectives) of game play.

Objective #1:
get us to doubt the Word (the Promise and instruction) of God.

Objective #2:
get us so distracted (by enticements or troubles) that we don’t hold onto the Word of God

Objective #3:
get us to disbelieve the Word of God, in whole or in part

The Word of God says that every need you have is met in the riches of Christ Jesus. That all the work of your hands has a blessing upon it, and that you are blessed at your job, in your bank accounts, in your family, in your health, and that you are blessed so much that you have enough extra to be generous with others. That’s the Promise of 1 Timothy 6:17, 2 Corinthians 9:6, Psalms 25:12-13, Proverbs 11:24-25, and many others!

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. Romans 10:17 (NIV)

But your check book says …. err … nope! You’re as broke as the Ten Commandments! You’re job is a dead end job, for all your efforts your savings account has less than $50 in it, and every time you make any headway at all, something comes along and completely rips the rug out from under your feet!!

And this is where things fall apart … at the intersection of FAITH and FACT.

FAITH says you’re rich, an co-heir with Christ Jesus of the cattle on a thousand hills.

The FACT is that you need to pay $3000 for income tax that you don’t have.

And when you find yourself at that intersection, it’s critical that you pause (often) to examine what you’re looking at. What your vision is focused on. And who’s voice your listening to!

Don’t go by what you see, but go by what you hear. Because what you hear (from the Scriptures) is what will determine whether or not you can overcome. ~ Jentezen Franklin

Are your eyes looking beyond the current situation (of lack) to the destination God has promised (abundance)?

Are your ears tuned to the Promises of God (who says He will lead and guide you through every circumstance to a victory that glorifies His Name), or are you focused on the cries of your empty bank accounts?

Are your eyes locked on the emerging manifestation of what you have been praying and believing for … or are you overwhelmed and thereby overtaken by a time-limited storm and unexpected wave?

Friend, God has good plans for your life! The devil doesn’t like it and he’s got a game plan and strategy to get you to distract you from, get you to doubt, or convince you to disbelieve the promises of God for your life … but God’s ways are higher and superior to the strategies of the enemy. Who’s voice are you going to listen to?

WAKE UP YOUR FAITH by listening to the following message by Jentezen Franklin. Give it a good shake-up, and then open your mouth and start telling your circumstances what God’s word has to say about them!

Here is a link to My daily confession written in 2014 when launching my business. That was a HUGE leap of faith, and I needed to make sure that my ears were finely tuned to the Promises of God more than the screams of my half-starved bank account. It’s scripture based, and I declare it over myself and my family on a regular basis.

Faith comes from hearing God’s Word for your life, and if you are not in the practice of speaking God’s Word over your circumstances, please take this and begin speaking it over yourself and your family on a daily basis. And tell me what happens! Because I guarantee you, if you hold fast to the Word of God … stuff will happen!!