In God We Trust

Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will be also.

(Matthew 6:21 NLT)

Money isn't evil, money is what WE make of it - we can use it for good or for bad.  We recently started Dave Ramsey's 'The Total Money Makeover', I learned so much about biblical principles for paying debt off and building a nest egg (and really so much more), so if you have been like us and have struggled with finances - do yourself a HUGE favor and check out his book! I've always been a clinger when it comes to money, afraid to let it go, hoard it for my security, but that's the wrong attitude as well. I'm putting too much faith into a dollar bill when I need to be putting my faith into God - Jehovah Jireh is my provider, not my husband's paycheck.  

"Look what happens to mighty warriors who do not trust in God. They trust their wealth instead and grow more and more in their wickedness." (Psalm 52:7 NLT)

Today I was staring at the inscription on our money, "In God We Trust", and it all made perfect sense to me - our currency is nothing without God.  Money, wealth, and possessions will come and go, but if we put our trust in God, we won't have to worry about the next paycheck or the next bill that comes due.  If we're struggling with our finances we need to focus on what Jesus said...

"So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need." (Matthew 6:31-32 NLT)

Don't Drift Away

I know the Lord is always with me.
    I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice.
    My body rests in safety. (Psalm 16:8-9 NLT)

It seems my walk with God can be described as the ocean waves rolling onto the shore, there are ebbs and there are wanes but no matter the storms or calmness of the ocean, the waves always return to the shore - our rock and our God.  Sometimes we drift away from the shoreline, forgetting who we are and whose we are; then sometimes we crash upon the shore grasping, searching, thirsting for more of God.

We need to remember that no matter how we feel ~ God isn’t limited by our feelings. When we are distant and feel alone; God is in our presence. When we feel fearful and afraid; God is our fortress.  When we feel sad and brokenhearted; God is our peace. We live in these human bodies that are imperfect with their fleshly and emotional desires, but the Holy Spirit living within us is perfect and a reflection of God. With this in mind we need to yield to the spirit and reject the flesh.  Jesus warned his disciples while he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Now maybe you’re learning: the spirit is willing, but the body is weak. Watch and pray and take care that you are not pulled down during a time of testing.” (Matthew 26:41 Voice)

As we go through the ups and downs of this life, we must learn to accept our weakness by acknowledging that we can’t do this life on our own, we need God, we need Jesus.  Once we’ve made Jesus the Lord of our life, He becomes our oxygen, there is no life without Him; the further away we drift, the weaker we become. But the closer we draw near to Him, there is nothing we can not overcome or accomplish.

I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency]. (Philippians 4:13 AMP)