“‘Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep'well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers.” 3 john 2
I believe it is important to develop what I call an abundant mindset-one that-believes God will always provide whatever we need in every situation. This is God’s promise throughout Scripture, and part of His nature is to provide for His children. In fact, in the Old Testament, one of the Hebrew names of God is “Jehovah-Judi,” which means, “The Lord Our Provider.”
You and I are God’s children. He is our Father, and He delights in providing for us just as natural parents delight in helping their children. Dave and I have four children. They love us; we love them; and so we share all we have with them. We could not even imagine leaving them in need while we enjoy abundance-and God is certainly much better at parenting than we are.
God owns everything and is able to do anything. Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness of it” and in Psalm 50:10-42, He-Himself says, “For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills or upon the mountains when thousands are. I know and am acquainted with all the birds of the mountains, and the wild animals of the field are Mine...If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are Mine.” Clearly, all the resources of heaven and earth are at His disposal so there is nothing we need that He cannot provide. He loves us and wants to take care of us. If we love Him and do our best to progressively learn and obey His ways, He will make sure our needs are met. In fact, there is no one He would rather share‘ His blessings with than His children.
My Question
do you believe God loves you and want to provide for you?
MORE THAN MONEY
Paul promised the believers who were partners in his ministry that God would liberally supply all of their needs. according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus (see Philippians 4:19). He didn’t promise God would give them everything they wanted, but he did assure them God would meet their every need.
Many times, we think of needs in terms of the basic necessities of life--food, shelter, clothing, and finances to purchase these things. These represent our physical needs, but I believe God created us timed more than these essentials. Our needs are varied. We don’t simply need money, nourishment, a roof over our heads, and clothes to wear we also need wisdom, strength, health, friends, and loved ones; and we need the gifts and talents and abilities to help us do what we are supposed to do in life. We need many things, and God is willing to meet all of our needs as we obey and trust Him. We must believe that He wants to provide for us. We should develop an expectant mind-set in this area.
The people Paul wrote to in Philippians were partners in his ministry and they helped him financially. They were obeying the law of sowing and reaping (see Galatians 6:7). We cannot expect to reap where we have not sown, but when we do sow good seeds, we should indeed expect good results. This is true in every area of our lives, including health, finances, abilities, relationships, and everything else that pertains to our well-being.
If we sow good seeds by respecting our physical bodies, feeding it nutritious food and drinking ample water, giving it plenty of sleep, and eliminating excessive stress, we can expect to reap a harvest of good health. If we sow mercy, we will reap mercy; if we sow judgment, we will reap judgment. If we forgive, we will be forgiven. If we are friendly, we will have friends. If we are generous, we will experience generosity returned. The law of sowing and reaping is one of the most simple to understand and one that produces great power in our lives. Just think about it. . .if you need friends all you have to do is be friendly!
