You Cannot Be Shaken Because You Cannot Be Forsaken
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” - Heb 13:5
One of the most beautiful revelations in life I have is God as My Provider. I'm not talking about head knowledge. I used to preach it so often that God is our Provider. Six years plus in full-time church ministry. So I preached it for six years plus. It did not sink in fully into my heart.
Growing up, I came from a family that wasn't well to do. We didn't have much. Most of the time, I saw what my classmates had and I could only envy. They could eat what they wanted during recess and after school, but I had to be very prudent. They could eat Mac Donald but I couldn't. When I became a believer in my 20s, the revelation of God as My Provider was information, but not incarnation.
Yes, I did encounter Him powerfully after I left a missions organisation and got married with almost zero balance in my savings. He provided.
Though my salary dropped quite a fair bit while working in the church, I still had a stable income every single month. I didn't need faith to believe in God as My Provider. Though I didn't have much, I didn't need to think much about finances. In fact, I spoke to some full-time church staff and I realised that some are afraid of stepping out of that line of work, because of the fear of not having a regular income. Some stepped out for a while and went back to church ministry work so that they could get back a stable income. The fear is real and it can cripple you from making God-led decisions.
Others in certain organisations say that they trust in God as their Provider, but they continually sent out newsletters and updates asking for finances. I'm not against anyone doing that. I understand about partnership in the kingdom. Please understand my heart. It is just my own personal conviction that if I trust Him to provide, I don't go around asking for finances. That's just me.
When I first left a stable income job, I struggled for the first few months. There was NO income whatsoever. Zero. Yet it was the time I got to know Him much deeper as My Father who Provides. He told me to soak in His Love and rest in Him everyday. So I did it. It was so beautiful to soak in the Father's Love and rest in His arms.
Then He gave me this verse in Heb 13:5. The context of "I will never leave you nor forsake you" is especially in the area of finances! He's saying, "My abiding Presence is the confirmation that you will never be in lack." It impacted my heart deeply.
I am convinced that while money is not everything, the love of money has the power to hinder a person from fulfilling his destiny.
We often regard "the love of money" as one who desires and pursues wealth. That is the common interpretation. The word studies also reveals that "the love of money" means "dominated by money." In other words, if we are afraid that we will be in lack and it stops us from stepping out of regular monthly income, we are dominated by money - that in itself, is also the love of money. If we are not greedy but we are driven by the fear of lack, that is the same as the love of money. It means that money has a hold on us. If money stops us from making a God-prompted decision, money has a hold on us.
Most of us Singaporeans probably have this issue. This is why the revelation of God as our Provider is the weakest, though we can quote Scriptures, preach it and tell others about it. You will know if one really knows Him as the Provider if you remove his account balance to zero and remove his regular income job. Then you will see how he truly responds to money and God.
It was at the point of nothing that the enemy sent me a test. The enemy tests you to fail you. But God tests you to promote you. It was a deal that involved a large sum of money. I could have justified myself and said, "God, you know. I need money. Besides, I'm not harming any single one." But God forbade that I would lower my integrity for the sake of money. It was an "unclean" deal. My conscience said "No." My God said, "No." And I said "No". I remember calling my wife to share. She said, "We will walk in integrity." I thank God for her. Job's wife would say, "Curse God and die." I pulled myself out of this unclean deal, live a squeaky clean conscience and the fruit of this ----- a lady property agent who accused me relentlessly got born again. Jesus!
When you have nothing, it is either God is your everything or money becomes your everything. You can only choose One.
Note: Business people, when you hold on to integrity, you are trusting in God's ability to provide. But when you let go of your integrity (even white lies), you are trusting in your own ability to provide.
I'm still growing in the revelation of Him as My Provider. I want more and more of that. I'm hungry for that. I hunger to pursue after Him. In these two years plus, He showed Himself faithful even when I doubted in the area of finances. He has given me many assuring words of His love. There were times when finances literally dropped from heaven (I'm not joking) and it could only be Him. I wouldn't trade this season for any other thing. He has built so much confidence in me to trust Him in finances. I don't have much possessions. But it's not about what I possess. It's about what possesses me. I want all of Him to possess me.
And I believe that we all must grow in knowing Him as our Provider, so that money can never hinder us from fulfilling our assignment on earth.
He indeed will never leave you nor forsake you. Therefore, you cannot be shaken because you cannot be forsaken. #Provider #Father #Daddy #Papa
