Obedience Results in Stability!!

We had no idea the peace and stability that would come into our lives when we began the journey of saving money in our newly formed storehouses. We had been givers, tithers, for years but saving money changed our lives.  Isaiah says that wisdom and knowledge (of God and His Word) will be the stability of our times.

Isaiah 33:6  And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times,

We are to be not only hearers of His Word, but doers of the Word as James says.

James 1:22  But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

I began saving by putting my change in quart jars.

Then we started an emergency fund. Once we started that, it was as if the devil tried to see if we were serious and going to stick to the decision of an emergency fund because we had one emergency after another.  But this time, the situation was different. Instead of charging the event on a credit card, we had cash to pay.  We had depleted our emergency fund afterwards, but we had no debt because of the event. One of the great keys to prosperity is to have no debt. Every article or book I have read on prosperity including the Bible says one of the fundamental principles of prosperity is to have NO DEBT!!

We would drain the fund and then fund it again. Then another emergency. Eventually, the emergencies calmed down and we moved past them, but the funds in the emergency fund began to increase.

At one point we realized we were just piddling at saving money and decided to get serious. We set up an automatic withdrawal every month into a money market account.  Then as we were faithful to that, our ability to save even more increased.

Having a storehouse/savings account adds financial stability to your life. It is being obedient to what God has said.

In Proverbs 3, God tells us to honor Him with the first fruits of all our increase, and He will fill our barns/storehouses.

Proverbs 3:9,10  Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns (storehouses) be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

Well, we must have a storehouse for him to fill. Then we need to set aside some of our increase that God provides to put in that storehouse.  Today we might call that a savings account.  What will be the result of that action over the long haul?

We have no idea where the promptings of God, obeying the promises of His Word will lead.  We cannot see that far down the road.  We have never been there before.

In Acts, Peter was on the housetop praying while they prepared lunch.

Acts 10:19,20  While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee. Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.

When Peter was on the housetop praying and God told him to go with the men sent from Cornelius, did Peter know at that moment what was going to happen at Cornelius’s house? No. But Peter would use the second key that Christ gave him to open the kingdom of heaven to the Gentiles. (To learn more about Peter and the keys to the Kingdom Jesus Christ gave him, click here.) Did God tell him the end results of his obedience? That he would unlock the door for millions of gentiles around the world to gain eternal life? No.  But he trusted God and obeyed His voice and went with the men God sent, not knowing what would happen.

In another record in Acts, Jesus Christ confronted Saul on the road to Damascus.

Acts 9:3-6  And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.

When Jesus Christ confronted Paul on the road, did God tell Paul he would write the seven church epistles that would be the foundational revelation for the grace administration?  No.  Paul simply obeyed the vision, and God revealed more and more as Paul continued to walk the path God laid out in front of him.

We have no idea where putting money in our storehouse/savings account each month will lead to down the road. We literally cannot see the end result of that obedience to God’s Word. We may have never been there before – the result of long-term saving money. But the vision/promises open up as we obey our Father God.

If for some reason down the road, you lose all your wealth, and money, as God says sometimes it makes wings and flies away, what you still have left is the wisdom of how to save, how to invest, and what all is involved.  You have been there before. You know that starting with $20.00 in a savings account is only the beginning, and the end result will be well worth the effort.

Deuteronomy 8:18  But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

God gives you the power to get wealth and he has many promises of prosperity to those who believe, trust, and obey his word.

Proverbs 21:20  There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up.

Proverbs 8:21  That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.

Once again here God encourages us to save some of the money, he sends our way.

This storehouse money can give great stability and peace to your life.  What is stability?  Stability smooths out the rough ups and downs of our financial lives.  God shows us in His Word that He desires stability for us even in the financial realm.

For example, Joseph stored up grain for seven years in the years of plenty, and it saved the world during the seven years of famine.  It helped to lessen the depth of the valley produced by the famine.  Saving money can do the same for us.  Why do you think God put this record in His Word?  We too go through economic ups and downs, and we have emergencies that come up in our lives as well as the funds we need for old age.

God tells us to do the same with the analogy of the ant that stores up in the summertime for the months when there is nothing to harvest.  He tells us to go study the ant for a reason.

Proverbs 6:6-8  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

Once you have believed this truth of saving money for many different events, your life begins to change.  Much of your anxiety over money can begin to subside – worrying over bills, emergencies, and retirement.  You will manifest more of the stability and peace God desires for you as His child.  Learning God’s will and carrying it out is all part of The Prosperous Life God wants for us as his children.

Prosperity Stories

Share your journey!

Some of you have left comments on the blogs or here in this group or emailed me personally. I would like to use some of those in a new book I am going to do shortly. I am willing to give one of these coffee cups to anyone who writes to me. The Pictures are the front and back of the same cup.

I would like some testimonials about the book, Poverty vs Wealth, and/or the blogs from the Facebook group, The Prosperous Life.

  1. I would like to know something about you. What field do you work in?

If you are a stay-at-home mom, how has it changed your family and/or your peace of mind?

  1. What was your financial life like before you read the book and/or blogs?
  2. Did you have any unanswered questions about money from the Bible, and did you find the answers that satisfied your soul?
  3. What have you experienced since you read the book or blogs? Has your financial life changed and in what ways?
  4. What would you say to someone on the fence about reading the information or saving money?
  5. What topics or areas benefited you the most? What truths became clearer?

As I stated above, I plan to do another book in the next year or so using some of the blogs Https://RogerBraker.com, and I would like to use some of your stories to introduce some of the chapters. Or I may use them on the Facebook group. I would change the names so as not to embarrass anyone or expose you.

I would like them to be as long as it takes you to communicate what is in your heart. I believe they will be extremely helpful to others to see that if this information worked for you it may work for them.

If you’ve been a reader of most of these posts and the book, Poverty vs Wealth, most of you are regular givers. Giving is something we’ve been taught for many years and that God will bless us back when we give. Therefore, the emphasis of the book and the blogs is more on saving, investing, and trusting because these are the areas in finance that we were never taught.

We designed these cups to inspire you to save your money, to invest it wisely, and to trust that God will fulfill His promises to prosper you because these are the areas most of us need to grow in.

S = Save – Proverbs 6:8 says the ant is exceedingly wise as she stores or saves for what is the winter ahead. We save for many reasons – a new car, retirement, college for the kids, etc.

I = Invest – “Luke 19:23 “Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury/interest?” Putting the money in the bank is a form of investment. Investing is implied throughout the Bible.

T = Trust – Trust that God will fulfill His promises to prosper you and fill your storehouses. We do what He asks and then He does what He promises.

The unique thing about these cups is that when you drink your coffee or tea in the morning, it can remind you to Save – Invest – Trust, OR to Speak -In – Tongues. Maybe both, and both are part of The Prosperous Life!

I only have a limited amount of these cups. This offer will not go on indefinitely.

Please don’t post your information here. Please send the stories to: Roger@RogerBraker.com

Also, I will need your name and address for the shipping.

God bless you all! You are the best!

Roger B.

Another Piece of the Puzzle — Investing Part 2

The scriptures are divinely designed to be put together. They reveal themselves to those who consider them.

In our quest to understand The Prosperous Life God desires for us, investing is one of the important topics. Sometimes reading verses from other translations can give us greater light and understanding. When it comes to investing, Ecclesiastes 11 is interesting from the NIV.

Ecclesiastes 11:1, 2, 4, 6

1 Ship your grain across the sea; after many days you may receive a return. (Some translations say, “a profit.”)

2 Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight; you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.

4 Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

Procrastination is partly what keeps us living from paycheck to paycheck. Many times, there is no perfect time to start with investments. Just get started.

6 Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let your hands not be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.

God does not command us to invest our money, but He does not prohibit it either. But there are many implications that we are to invest the money He trusts us with as we just read above. One thing to remember is that wealth is not a large paycheck. If you have a large paycheck, once it is spent, you are broke again. Wealth is more long-term; it comes from investing part of that paycheck each time so that you can provide an inheritance for your grandchildren, a retirement for both of you, or help your church to grow and move God’s Word, etc. God gives us the power to become wealthy. He explains how in His Word.

When it comes to sowing and reaping, a verse that I think of is:

2 Corinthians 9:6  But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

The great man who was a Sower in the Bible was the Lord Jesus Christ. In a parable, he talked about the Sower going forth to sow. If you think about it as an actual seed, the seed could have been ground into flour and eaten or it could be invested/planted in a field and reap a great crop, thousands of times more seed than what was planted. Thus, a return on the investment.

Jesus did this. Not all the seeds he sowed landed on ears that truly listened and grew. But some did. He spent most of his time with his 12 apostles. Sowing. On the day of Pentecost, the crop had ripened, and then God began to reap the work that Jesus Christ had planted.

Notice Jesus did not invest great amounts of time with all the people, but mostly with his apostles. We too do not want to spread our investments so greatly that we cannot look after them. Some have said that 12 investments are about the most many people can handle. Ecclesiastes says seven to eight ventures or investments. Good numbers to keep in mind.

Jesus was not opposed to investing money as it is implied in the parable in Matthew 25.

Matthew 25:14-29

14“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. 15 He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.

16 “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. 17 The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. 18 But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.

19 “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. 20 The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’

21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

22 “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’

23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. 25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’

26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, 27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’

28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver.

29 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.

30 Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ (NLT)

Many translations use the word “invest” here. Jesus is speaking here about the Kingdom of Heaven, and he uses the proper use of money to illustrate his point. Then he gives us the point of the parable at the end.: “To those who use well what they are given, (talents in the Kingdom or money) even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.”

 So investing is much implied in God’s Word. The Bible shows that investing is normal and expected. The idea of living from paycheck to paycheck is not seen anywhere as a virtue. Once we start investing God’s money, we should pay attention to our investments.

Proverbs 27:23  Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.

God does not give us great wealth all at once because we would not know how to handle it or since it did not cost us any great labor to get it, we would not pay as much attention to our investments.

Proverbs 13:11 Wealth hastily gotten will dwindle, but those who gather little by little will increase it. (NRSV)

Little by little we invest and learn to see it grow, and we learn how to manage it.

Learning to be patient is required in investing and building wealth. Most investments take time. An oak tree takes many years to become large enough to harvest. Some investing we do will be of great benefit to our families in the generations to come. Some investments will be more short term as in planting a garden — planting in the spring and reaping in the summer and fall. Slow and steady wins the race. …

When we use up all our seed (money) each week, it leaves nothing to multiply or grow. We are not managing our money well. We are just using it all to live.

Proverbs 21:20 There is precious treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man swalloweth it up.

Procrastination is a mistake. Let’s face it, it’s easy to procrastinate when it comes to investing in the future. Most people believe investing is important, but they put it off. They want to pay the bills first and buy a new car.

Proverbs 20:4 “Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.”

Investment in knowledge pays the best interest. Ben Franklin

God invested Himself in mankind. He worked all through the Old Testament waiting for the right time to send His son. God and Jesus Christ worked together to bring the salvation of mankind to pass.  God started planting the seeds of salvation right after Adam and Eve sinned. Eventually, God reaps the return of His investment at the end of the world when He sends forth His angels to reap the earth.

Revelation 14:14-16

14 Then I looked, and there was a white cloud! On the cloud sat someone who was like the Son of Man, with a gold victor’s crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.

15  Another angel came out of the Temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one who sat on the cloud, “Swing your sickle, and gather the harvest, for the hour has come to gather it, because the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.”

16  The one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was harvested.

God has a great investment going on right now on the earth and in your life. He wants you to prosper as one of His children and He has laid out the path to prosperity in His Word for us to follow. We are to be followers and imitators of Him and be great investors ourselves and thus bring glory to Him. This is another piece of the puzzle in the quest for The Prosperous Life. I leave you with these two verses to consider.

Deuteronomy 8:18 But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God, for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as at this day.

2 Timothy 2:7 Consider what I say; for the Lord shall give thee understanding in all things.

 

The Next Step in the Process – Investing

 

I have been asked many times where to invest the money folks have saved. In other words, after you have been following the instructions God gives on how to handle the funds He trusted you with by giving and saving and you have a few funds saved, where do you invest these funds?

Learning to invest is another step in the growth process. First, I am not an investment advisor. I am not licensed, so it would be illegal for me to advise on any particular type of investment. Nothing in this blog should be taken as advice on what to invest in. Talk to your spouse, pray and study to come to a conclusion. Having said that, many people ask me about how to invest some of their saved funds. What are some good investments?

I feel that many people fear the loss of their hard-earned savings. Fear is a great detriment to prosperity. God says about 365 times: “Fear Not” or “Do not be afraid.” Some simply want someone to tell them what to do partly out of fear of making a wrong decision and assuming that I would know how to invest their money better than they would.

Psalm 62:10 Trust not in oppression and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them…

Proverbs 11:28  He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.

So here God tells us to NOT trust in our money and not to set our heart upon riches. If we keep prosperity in its proper order, we have no reason to be afraid. As last week’s blog, “It All Belongs to Him,” showed, all the wealth of the earth and the earth itself belong to God. Our Father is well able to take care of us no matter what happens. Prosperity from God is one of the benefits of being part of His family. God simply trusts us to manage the money for Him. And He reminds us not to set our heart on the money but to keep our eyes fixed on Him — to worship Him, to walk with Him, to pray to Him, and to put our trust in Him.

It is also interesting that God tells us that riches can just disappear.

Proverbs 23:5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

The righteous people that survived the Babylonian captivity and that were carried away captive to Babylon probably lost all their wealth. The Babylonians spoiled the city and took the wealth for themselves. But the righteous ones that were spared from death still had their lives and their relationship with God. That is the most important part of our lives as well. But if they did lose their wealth the thing that could not be taken away was the knowledge and wisdom they had acquired concerning wealth. This is why wisdom is more valuable that money. They can steal your money but not your acquired wisdom.

Proverbs 27:24 For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?

For some of us, this truth from God’s Word that we are to save money was a new level of understanding. But after you have the habit of saving worked into your life, we are ready for the next level of the prosperity journey: Investing!! Now we are growing up a notch!!

Most of us did not grow up saving or investing. So, learning to invest can be a daunting task. What to invest in?

Some people have their investments in 401K’s or in an IRA. Here, most of the investing is done for you.

Some people bury their wealth under the floor, in milk cans in the back yard, etc. The problem here is that even though the robbers can’t get it nor perhaps the government, inflation eats away at its value until it is practically worthless. So, to be good managers or stewards of what God has given us we need to LEARN how to invest. We need to send ourselves back to school!!

The first lesson to learn in investing is this from the prayer of Jabez and also from the book of Proverbs.

1Chronicles 4:10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.

Psalm 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Remember, the money you have saved really belongs to God, and as you endeavor to invest it, He will be right there with you helping you. But we have an obligation to learn how to invest. Like the verse says: the horse is prepared against the day of battle, but safety is of the Lord. We do our best and, in the end, God is the one that fills our storehouses. And in the end, sometimes that work/that wealth just flies away. This is part of why God says not to set your heart on the money. What you have left is the wisdom you obtained in the process. That is worth more that the money. You could do it over again much quicker.

(A side note here is this: many people prosper without believing God and His Word. That is because God causes it to rain on the just and the unjust. Prosperity is available to all.  We are endeavoring to use what God gives us according to His Word. His promise is whatever we do will prosper, and I suspect we will be rewarded when Christ returns.)

So, let’s look at investing. What are the main reasons for investing?

  • Make your money work for you to increase your wealth — to be good managers.
  • Achieve self-determination and independence. In other words, freedom.
  • Leave a legacy to your heirs as Dave Ramsey suggests.
  • Support causes that are important to you.
  • Fund your retirement.

I had a designer years ago who invested her profits in art from current popular artists that she liked. She felt the art work would increase in value and that it would fund her retirement. This was an area she knew about and was interested in.

Some people buy:

  • Stocks, bonds or mutual funds and reinvest the dividends that result; in compounding.
  • Art
  • An interest in racehorses.
  • Tax-free utilities.
  • Certificates of Deposit.
  • Real estate (you pay cash for) or REITs.
  • Mobile home parks
  • Farmland or harvestable forests
  • Annuities
  • Gold and silver
  • Car washes
  • Oil and gas leases
  • Government bonds

The list could be endless. I have known people who bought and sold golf courses, people who bought companies that the IRS took over for nonpayment of taxes, made them profitable and then sold them, and companies like the investors of Shark Tank.

One of the builders I work for explained to me that one of the reasons so many houses are being built is that some folks have the money, but the banks won’t pay any interest, so they build houses and sell them to see a return on their funds. If they don’t know how to build houses themselves, they work together with an experienced builder and pay him or split the profit with them.

I have read that some mutual funds go broke because of bad stock picks. In the book, The Simple Path to Wealth, the author, J. L. Collins, recommends investing in index funds. That would be a fund that buys some of each stock in an index like the S&P 500. These index funds generally average about 11½ % per year over the long term. This is probably one of the safest ways to invest if you don’t have the time or inclination to study. But remember, I am not recommending this.  This is just for information only.

One of the greatest investments you can make is in yourself — reading or listening to good books on personal development. Read books on different types of investments — their pros and cons.  Expand your understanding of the financial world. Don’t fall for the trick that you are too old to learn and invest. You have a whole lifetime of experience to draw from. Some great businesses were started by people of retirement age. Do an internet search for people that started businesses late in life.

But don’t just find something you like and jump in.  You may need to spend a couple of years learning about the field. Read books, join local groups that are like-minded, etc. Jumping in to anything on the advice of a friend or on an impulse is a great way to lose your money. Send yourself to school!!

I have known people who bought into a group of restaurants just as investors because someone in the group wanted to sell their interest. If you consider this or anything like it, learn about the business, hire an accountant and a lawyer, look at the books, the legal documents, perhaps a real estate agent to look at surrounding real estate. With empty land nearby, someone could build a bigger, fancier car wash across the street from the one you just bought. Send yourself to school.

There are many types of “investment incomes” including: interest, rents, royalties, dividends, capital gains, and other income derived from an asset.

Remember that most financial advisement businesses charge a percentage of your account like 1% to 2% per year or they charge fees to get in an investment and or fees to get out. Mutual funds are like that. Front end loaded or back end loaded. There may be a penalty for early withdrawal. These funds make money no matter what the market does. The fund manager makes money no matter what happens to your money. These fees can really cut into your account and your profits over time.

A good place to start may be to put money into CDs while you learn or put it in index funds. Then study a field you think you might be interested in. I am not recommending this, just throwing it out there for your consideration.

Find a good program that will help you keep track of your money.

Once you have started to become wealthy, remember this verse.

1Timothy 6:17-19  Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

God reminds us here not to become prideful, and He tells us He gives us this wealth to enjoy as well to be able to give and to invest or save.

All this learning is part of our duty, our privilege, and our heritage as stewards/managers of God’s wealth. As we are willing to obey His Word and love Him above all else, He is willing to fill our storehouses. This is all part of The Prosperous Life.

The Day That Turns Your Life Around!

Once I learned that the concept of saving money was Biblical and that it was what God said to do in His Word, it was a struggle to really incorporate that into our lives. There was so much I did not understand.

A great man once said, “If you want your life to change, you have to change.”

I am reminded of the verse in Romans 12:2 that states “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

This idea of changing our lives is very interesting. You have the popular stories of rags to riches. Then you have the stories of people that completely changed their way of eating and gained great benefits. You can find contractors that have had people walk on them and take advantage of them and then change to no longer being intimidated and standing up for themselves. All these changing processes take time and cause great changes in a person’s life. The person that participates in these changes cannot see or imagine the great benefits that will result down the road.

There were two events that really helped us change the way we saw and managed our finances. As we changed our thinking, our lives began to change financially.

Some of the changes that took place in our lives were:

The anxiety over day-to-day bills disappeared.

We were able to put a buffer in all our accounts so there was always money in there to protect us from overdraft fees.

We used to have to look at our bills and pay them one at a time as they came up. Now we pay this week’s bills on Monday or put them on autopay. We did not do this in the past out of fear that there would not be enough money in the account when it was deducted from the account.

We were able to put extra money on our loans to pay them off early.

It was a great relief not to be fearful all the time of overdrawing the account or being late on bills.

As we built our emergency fund up, there was less fear and anxiety as emergencies came up because now, we could pay for the event.

Our biggest change was the loss of fear and anxiety when it came to money.

Changing your thinking, your believing, and what is living in your heart can be difficult. If God’s Word directs your changes, you will see the results God has promised.

In one of the Martin Luther movies, his priest/father asked if Martin had found the answer he was looking for. Martin Luther said that he knew it in his head, but it was not yet in his heart. It takes a while to change our knowledge, our thinking, and eventually what lives in our hearts.

This is true when it comes to putting on the mind of Christ as well as when it comes to putting on the right thinking about money that God shows us in His word. It takes work and time.

The first event that really helped us turn our financial lives around was:  I had been saving my change in quart jars for quite a while. I had seen many people save their change in those 5-gallon water jugs with the small tops and always wanted to do that. Not having a five-gallon jug, I settled for quart jars. I had seen that God encouraged us to save money, so quart jars were where I started. Then one day, we needed money to pay a certain bill, so my wife asked if she could take the jars to the bank and cash in the change. I said, “No.” I told her that this is what we had always done. We would save some money and then spend it to pay a bill or put a down payment on a car. It always went to pay something. Then we had nothing, and we had to start over.

That day I said, “NO!” was a day that began to turn our lives around. I said, “This cannot be what God intended when He asked us to save.”  I decided God would have to figure out another way to pay that bill, but I would no longer have this cycle of “save and use it to pay a bill – save and use it to pay a bill.” I had just had enough! From that point on, we would save a portion with no intention of EVER spending it.

That day was a turning point.

The second event was:  We started to save a small amount of money in a savings account, and I felt good about myself. We were saving money. Then as I was telling someone about a teaching I did where I told people to save some money, and as the words “save some money” came out of my mouth, it was like God shouted them in my ears. “SAVE SOME MONEY!!” This was another turning point. Apparently, the small amount I was saving was just a token, so I could say I was obeying. It was like mental assent. From that day forward, we dramatically increased the amount we saved each month.

One thing we noticed as we looked back was that as we became committed to saving, our ability to save increased. We were able to put increasingly more away. As God has said, “To those that have, more shall be given.”

Can we as God’s children change? Obviously, we can, or God would not ask us to renew our minds or change once we are born again.

If you want your life to change, you have to change which can be difficult. This process involves changing your thinking, your habits, and what lives in your heart.

However, change requires hard work and opening yourself to new experiences. But we realize people don’t change instantly. I heard someone once say that when the great ocean-going ships come into a harbor, you don’t just whip them around to send them back out to sea. They attach tug boats to the hulls and turn them about very slowly. That is the way most of us change. We change very slowly. Unless you are like the Apostle Paul and get a great vision on the road to Damascus. He changed right then and there,

Speaking of the Apostle Paul, he helped many people become children of God. Did all these new converts to Christianity immediately operate all nine manifestations? No! This is why, to meet the needs of those new people, Paul performed special miracles. It takes a while to grow up into a new way of thinking and living our lives. Just as Paul took a few years to grow into his newfound understanding of Christ the Messiah, it was many years of study, learning, and thinking before Paul went on his preaching tours.

Why don’t we change then if there are great benefits?

The most common reason is fear of uncertainty or fear of new things. We can be afraid of the outcomes because they are unknown. We fear being outside our comfort zone of handling money the way we always have. We fear the loss of our sense of connection with others. (They are all broke, and we have a sense of belonging to that group.) All our friends and family live basically paycheck to paycheck, and we would become the odd man out. We could be afraid they would reject us, or that they would think we are now greedy because we save money. We fear being different. So, a lesson here is that as you begin to change and save and see more prosperity, keep your mouth shut. This is between you and God.

Romans says that if you have believing, have it between yourself and God.

Jesus Christ did not avoid people outside his group of disciples. He taught them, healed them, and offered them the way to eternal life. But he did not adopt their modes of thinking. We are to become Christ-like in our minds. Poverty thinking should be a thing of the past. We do not avoid others, but we can outgrow the old habits, and the old thought patterns, and enter a new level of understanding of God’s will and outline for our prosperity.

We may have to learn bookkeeping and learn how to invest that saved money. All of which can lead to a sense of uncertainty.

Some scientists suggest that uncertainty registers as an error message in our brains and needs to be corrected before we can feel comfortable again. So, we practice the new ways of understanding prosperity over and over until this new pattern becomes more comfortable than the old.

Anyone can have a day that turns their life around. It is a decision. If we change, our lives will change. The familiar and traditional ways of handling money will begin to disappear. Eventually, if we stay the course, the new way of thinking will become so real we will never go back. This is another piece of The Prosperous Life.