Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another. By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Love is a verb”

 

Of all the lessons we will learn in our study of finding freedom from the fear of not having enough, one of the most important is the lesson we began to consider yesterday, “If God gives you more than you already have what will you do with it?” That question certainly pertains to money and material possessions, but it also pertains to everything else in life, including talents, abilities, skills, education, job, health, and virtually anything else. If God acts on your behalf to improve your situation in this area how will you use the blessing? Will it be exclusively for your own benefit, or will you also use it for kingdom purposes and to bless others?

 

In yesterday’s study we read about Jesus urging us to engage in acts of mercy and compassion towards those in need. He stressed that such actions on our part are so important to Him that when we do them, He considers it as having been done directly for Him personally. In today’s passage we read of Him urging us to love others. He is certainly talking about loving other Christians, but yesterday’s passage in Matthew 25:40 helped us to understand that His concern is for all people, not just for Christians. We also learned yesterday that God is looking for us to stop focusing so much on ourselves and on our own issues, and to focus instead on blessing others.

 

It is often said that love is a verb. It is an action word. More than being an emotion you feel, it is a decision you make and an action you take. You can take an action to express love whether you feel like it or not – simply because you know it is the right thing to do. This is love in action and it is what Jesus calls for from us. When it comes to blessing others in need Jesus doesn’t tell us to do it if we feel like it, He simply tells us to do it.

 

This is a key element in finding freedom from the fear of not having enough. Take your eyes off of yourself and focus instead on blessing others. When you do that you discover that your own problems and issues fade into the background and in many cases, God simply resolves them for you, quietly, while you were focused on blessing others in His name. Jack Alexander writes, “The more we love, the less our circumstances can be driven by fear and isolation.” And, “There is no limit to what God can provide when we let go and love with everything we have.”

 

Amen. Stop worrying so much about your own issues and the things you don’t have. Just go out and help others, bless others, and trust that God has your back. Here’s a promise from Scripture to take with you into the day:

 

“For God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them.” Hebrews 6:10 (NIV)

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.” Matthew 25:40 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Take your eyes off of yourself and focus on helping others.”

 

So far in our study of finding freedom from the fear of not having enough, we have learned that although we are limited in our capacity and abilities, God is unlimited. We have also learned that God wants to add His unlimited capacity to what we are capable of, and thereby produce results that would otherwise be impossible. Additionally, we must have faith in God’s willingness to do so. Finally, we now know that in addition to all God can and will do on His part, we have a role in this too. We have a responsibility to do what we can to solve our own problems. It’s not all on God.

 

This morning we come to another essential element from God’s perspective, and that is our willingness to use what He gives us to be a blessing to others.

 

In his book “The God Guarantee: Finding Freedom from the Fear of Not Having Enough”, author Jack Alexander points out an interesting progression and simplification that takes place as the Bible unfolds. The Old Testament originally put forward 613 laws that God’s people were supposed to follow. Moses simplified and codified them into The Ten Commandments. The Old Testament prophet Micah further reduces them to just three: do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8). Then Jesus reduced them down to two: love God with all your heart, soul, and strength (Matthew 22:37), and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:39).

 

Then in Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus taught a powerful about what that looks like in actual practice. There He taught us to put feet to our faith and go out and bless others in need. As examples He referred to things like feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, caring for the sick, visiting those in prison, and other acts of mercy and compassion. He said that when we do those things, as far as He is concerned we have done it as a direct blessing to Him personally.

 

That’s the focus God is looking for in us. The more we care about the needs of others and the more we are willing to use what He gives us as a source of blessing for others, the more inclined God is to bless us to begin with. Why do you want more money? Is it just so you can buy more stuff for yourself, or do you long to be able to do even more for others? Why do you want a promotion at work? Is it just so you can feel important, or will you use your new position of authority and leadership to improve the workplace and make it better for everyone? What would you do if God did give you relief from that crippling and debilitating arthritis? Would you go out dancing, or would you go on a mission trip?

 

God’s economy is an economy that is based in abundance and power and unlimited potential, because God Himself is unlimited in all those ways. But God does not want that capacity frittered away by us on silly things and for meaningless purposes.

 

There is no limit to what God can do in and through us and to what He might provide for us, when we shift our focus off of ourselves and focus instead on being a blessing to others in His name.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.” Hebrews 11:1 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Faith and action are often the missing ingredients.”

 

Yesterday we began considering the role that personal responsibility plays when it comes to us experiencing the fullness of what God wants to accomplish in and through us. God will do His part but we also have to do our part. Very rarely will God force anything on anyone. We have to cooperate with Him. We have to be willing and we have to do our part. We also have to have faith.

 

God’s miraculous work of providing for us in ways we cannot provide for ourselves, and empowering us to do things we could not do on our own, depends a lot on our willingness to trust in Him, and then we must get busy doing our part as well. This is a faith that recognizes that even though I cannot do this thing, God can and He will if He wants to. Its then up to me to do everything I can within my own power, ability, and resources, trusting that God can and will cover the deficit if it is His will to do so.

 

If the issue is personal finances and you’re asking God to help you, your part in this may be to attend Dave Ramsey’s “Financial Peace University” and learn better money management habits. If you’re asking God for a better job, your part might be to go back to school at night to learn a new trade or skill. If the problem is an illness and you’re asking God for healing, your role might be to start taking better care of yourself. You can trust that God will do His part, but He’s also looking for our willingness to be a part of solving our own problems.

 

Also, when the Bible calls us to have faith in God it is actually very realistic. Moses wasn’t expected to believe that getting a couple of million people out of slavery in Egypt and then leading them through a brutal desert to a new land was going to be a walk in the park. It wasn’t going to be. He was just supposed to realize that with God’s help it was doable. Likewise, the disciples weren’t expected to believe that five small loaves and two fish could feed twenty thousand people. The truth was that it was impossible to do such a thing- without God’s help. A mature faith acknowledges the reality of situations as they really are, but also knows that with God nothing is impossible and therefore everything is potentially doable.

 

The situation you are facing today might be extremely difficult – maybe even impossible in your own power. Don’t deny it and don’t pretend it’s any different than it really is. Just have the faith that with God all things are possible. Do what you can and then trust that in God’s way, in God’s time, and with God’s help, your situation can be dealt with.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Now go!” Exodus 4:12 (HCSB)

 

This morning we’re still thinking about the example of Moses and how timid and hesitant he was at first to follow God’s plan for his life. Moses was acutely aware of his own limited abilities, and he didn’t yet have faith that God would add to and make up the deficit, so Moses was fearful of the future. In his case his “fear of not having enough” was not about money or material possessions but about ability. Moses was afraid he wasn’t up to the task of leading Israel. In verse 12 of chapter 4 God finally told him to knock off the whining and the excuse-making and just get busy. God said, “Now Go!” Moses finally obeyed and you know the rest of the story.

 

Once God added His unlimited capacity to Moses’ limited capacity Moses became a phenomenal leader who accomplished great things – but he still had to work for it. He still had to endure the sufferings and the hardships that came with leading millions of grumbling people through a hot desert for forty years. Also, God’s plan for Moses, God’s miraculous interventions in Moses’ life, and the type and timing of the provisions God sent, ended up being much different than what Moses wanted or expected. God’s plan was perfect, but it was different than what Moses thought he was signing up for. That will probably end up being true in your life too.

 

So where does this leave us now as we consider “the fear of not having enough”? Let’s take a minute to summarize. So far in our study we have learned that the fear of not having enough is pervasive in our society and it spans the spectrum of income brackets. Even millionaires tend to worry about their financial future and they tend to want more than what they have. Also, even those who are talented and who have great abilities still tend to doubt themselves and wonder if they’re really up to the challenges they face.

 

We have also spent a good deal of time considering the story of the Loaves and the Fish, and we have learned that when God adds His unlimited potential to our limited potential, the possibilities are limitless.

 

Finally we have learned about the importance of consecration – offering all that we have and all that we are to God to be used for His purposes. That includes your five small loaves of bread and your two fish; it includes your money, your job, your family; it includes your skills and abilities; it includes your entire life. Offer it all to God and then let Him use it to accomplish His purposes.

 

And so now we turn to the issue of personal responsibility. Like Moses the time comes to, “Now go!” You have to simply do it. Just start walking it out. What will that look like in your life? I’m not sure. Perhaps the place to start in your thinking is to consider the thing that you are most concerned you don’t have enough of. Ask yourself what role you should be playing in solving your own problem. Maybe your perceived shortfall is money, or education, or ability, or health, or …

 

Whatever it is, take what you have, offer it to God, and start walking it forward in faith. Trust more in Him than you trust in yourself and just get moving. God will do His part but you also have to do your part. “Just go!”

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “For I know the plans I have for you” – this is the Lord’s declaration – “plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “God unlocks doors that are invisible to human eyes.”

 

In recent days we’ve been considering the great truth about how it is that God has created all things (including you and me) with natural capacity to produce and accomplish things. But when He adds His unlimited divine capacity to our natural but limited capacity, the results can be exponential and explosive.

 

In his book “The God Guarantee: Finding Freedom from the Fear of Not Having Enough”, author Jack Alexander has been helping us to understand that finding freedom from the fear of not having enough begins with trusting in God rather than in ourselves. This is thinking that is rooted in faith in God and in all that He makes possible as He works in and through us. Jack writes,

 

“And when we take everything we have and all we are and look to God, with faith in His provision and a commitment to His plan, He will provide for us. He will show us something new – or something familiar in a new, redemptive way – over and beyond what we can see with our human eyes. Our faith unlocks and unleashes this capacity.”

 

This is what Jeremiah wrote about to in Jeremiah 29:11. God’s plan is good, we just need to trust Him and follow His plan rather than our own. And that thought right there leads us to what we will focus on for most of the rest of the month – God’s plan rather than our own plan. We will also think a lot about the individual responsibility each of us has to be a part of our own solution.

 

We are to have faith in God, but we must also work in conjunction with God.

In order to accomplish His plan in our lives God will unlock doors of opportunity that we can’t see and don’t even know exist. But God’s plan and provisions don’t excuse us from personal responsibility. We have to be good stewards. We have to engage in reality-based thinking rather than in starry-eyed wishful thinking. And we have to do our part. God is not a genie in a bottle and there are no magic incantations you can recite to instantly solve your problems. We will talk more about this in the days to come.

 

Yesterday we thought about the importance of consecration. The lesson was that the starting place for getting into synch with what God wants to do in you, through you, and for you, is to offer to God all that you are and all that you have, to be used for His purposes. That would be an excellent commitment to make in church this Sunday.

Perhaps a trip to the altar at the end of the worship service would be a good next step for each of us.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “I raise my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Consecrating all that we are and all that we have to God changes everything.”

 

Yesterday we began considering the concept of “capacity”. Every created thing naturally has within it some God-given capacity. That includes you. God has created you with the potential to accomplish wonderful things in life. But as great as your skills and abilities may be, and as much as you might be able to accomplish in your own power, it’s nothing compared to what God can and will do in you and through you when He adds His capacity to yours to accomplish what He wants done.

 

When God adds His capacity to ours everything changes. When He added His capacity to the natural capacity that was already within the five loaves of bread and the two fish, twenty thousand people were fed. When He added His capacity to that which already existed in Moses, a nation was led out of captivity. And when He adds His capacity to whatever exists within you there is no limit to what He can do in and through you.

 

So the question becomes, “What does it take for God to add His power and capacity to my abilities in order to accomplish His purposes?” The answer is “consecration”. You have to take all that you have and all that you are and offer it to God to be used for His purposes. The five loaves and the two fish didn’t become a great feast for thousands of people until they were turned over to God for His purposes. Moses didn’t become a great leader until He surrendered his life – all that he was and all that he had to God.

 

There is something in your life right now – some skill, ability, talent, latent potential, that could be more, that could lead to more, if you would just give it to God, no strings attached.

 

In Psalm 121:1-2 we read that the Psalmist (presumably King David) understood where his help and power came from. He kept his focus where it needed to be, on the Lord. That needs to be true of us too. When we take all that we are and all that we have and consecrate it to the Lord, looking always to Him for strength and power and ability and direction, there is no limit to what can happen.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord said to him, ‘Who made the human mouth? Who makes him mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go! I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say.” Exodus 4:11-12 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “To accomplish His purposes in our lives God uses the capacity that is within us, but then He multiplies it.”

 

One of the most profound lessons we can draw from the story of the Loaves and Fish (which we have been considering the last two days), is that of “capacity”. Who would have guessed that those five small loaves of bread and those two fish had the potential capacity to feed twenty thousand people? Of course that capacity didn’t exist just within the five loaves and two fish alone, but when combined with what God wanted to add, their capacity multiplied exponentially.

 

We see a similar example in the story of Moses. At the time God called Moses to become the leader of the nation of Israel, and to lead them out of captivity in Egypt, Moses had been tending sheep in a remote corner of the desert for forty years. He had little confidence in himself as a leader of anything other than sheep, and evidently he was not a good public speaker either. That’s the argument he was making to God in Exodus chapter four, and that’s what God was responding to in verses 11-12. But when God took Moses’ limited abilities, and added His great capacity to it, the nation of Israel ended up with one of the greatest leaders in world history and they were brought out of captivity.

 

When God takes our limited capacity and combines it with His unlimited capacity, amazing things can happen. In his book, “The God Guarantee: Finding Freedom from the Fear of Not Having Enough” author Jack Alexander writes of how we as doubting humans tend to live in the land of “what is” rather than in the land of “what could be”. In the land of “what is” we, like Moses, consider what we believe ourselves to be capable of and then we proceed accordingly. But in the land of “what could be”, a person has learned to ask God to add His unlimited capacity to our limited abilities. When that happens, there’s no limit to what can be accomplished.

 

As Jack points out in his book, it’s easy for us to fall for Satan’s trap of limiting what we believe to be possible by basing our thinking on what we believe we are capable of accomplishing on our own. That’s the problem both Moses and Philip had.

 

It’s true that within each person God has created great capacity to accomplish wonderful things, but that capacity in and of itself is limited. However, God is also willing to add into the mix varying degrees of His capacity in order to accomplish His purposes in the life of each person.  When that happens, there’s no limit to what can be accomplished.

 

Part of our task this month, as we continue to devotionally consider how we get over the fear of not having enough, will be to learn how to live in the land of “what could be”, if we would only rely on God, rather than in the land of “what is”, when we continue to rely on ourselves.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Then He commanded the crowds to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them. He broke the loaves and gave them to His disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. Everyone ate and was filled. Then they picked up 12 baskets full of leftover pieces!” Matthew 14:19-20 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “There is a pattern of thinking and acting that God will bless.”

 

Yesterday we began considering the story of the Loaves and the Fish as it appears in all four Gospels. In that story Jesus miraculously fed 5000 men, plus the women and children who were with them – maybe as many as twenty thousand people.

 

To set-up the lesson He wanted to teach, Jesus began by asking His disciple Philip to consider how the problem of feeding all those people could potentially be solved. Philip quickly concluded (correctly) that it was impossible (by human standards). Jesus then went on to perform a miracle. He multiplied the little bit of food that was available and miraculously turned it into a great feast that fed thousands of people. The lesson is that God is not limited by what is possible in the physical realm. That includes in terms of material provisions and even finances.

 

In his book “The God Guarantee: Finding Freedom from the Fear of Not Having Enough”, Jack Alexander notes that Philip was standing right next to the Son of God but he was still thinking according to the rules of human economics. Even though by that time Philip had already come to know Jesus as the Messiah, and even though Philip had witnessed and experienced multiple miracles by Jesus, he still viewed his current situation in terms of what he could do, not in terms of what God could do (proving once again that doubts can crowd out memories).

 

In this lesson Jack sees a pattern that God honors, and which we can copy, when dealing with seemingly impossible situations in our lives. It’s a way of thinking and acting that demonstrates our faith in God and in what He can do. First we have to offer God what is already available. In this case it was the five loaves and the two fish. (In your life it will be something different, but you do have to be part of solving your own problem.) Second we need to bless it or consecrate it to Him. Jesus prayed over the bread and fish, consecrating it to God. Third we need to let the Lord reorder or rearrange things. In this scene the bread was broken into many pieces before it was miraculously multiplied. And fourth we need to be prepared to share and distribute the results of God’s provision. If our thoughts are to keep it all for ourselves rather than using it to bless others, we’re probably not in synch with God’s thinking about the situation.

 

The practical application here is that when you’re faced with a seemingly impossible situation that clearly will fail without God’s intervention, don’t let your doubts about it crowd out your memories of all the ways God has protected you and provided for you in the past. Then resolve that you are ready to be a part of your own solution in the current situation. Be prepared to work with God, doing your part and offering whatever you have to bring to bear on the situation. Pray about it, and then be ready to use your blessing from God to be a blessing to others. Be ready to pay it forward. This is a pattern of thinking and acting that God honors and blesses.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

 

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “… when Jesus looked up and noticed a huge crowd coming toward Him, He asked Philip, ‘Where will we buy bread so these people can eat?’ He asked this to test him, for He knew what He was going to do. Philip answered, ‘Two hundred denarii worth of bread wouldn’t be enough for each of them to have a little.” John 6:5-7 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “God has all the resources He needs to achieve what He wants.”

 

Are you familiar with the story of “The Fish and the Loaves”? It appears in all four Gospels. In this scene a huge crowd has gathered to listen to Jesus. As the day wore on the massive crowd grew hungry. But since they were in a remote region, there were no provisions available. The nearest McDonald’s was many miles away.

 

To test the depth of faith and understanding his disciples had of Him at that point, and to teach them a valuable lesson, Jesus asked Philip where they were going to get enough food to feed all these hungry people. As we see in John 6:5-7, Philip essentially said that it was impossible, they couldn’t do it.

 

As the story unfolds, Andrew, another of the disciples, brings to Jesus a young boy who happened to have five small loaves of bread and two fish. That’s all the food the disciples were able to round up in that big crowd. Undaunted, Jesus blesses the food and then miraculously turns it into a feast that fed twenty thousand, with baskets full of leftovers.

 

The moral of the story? Jesus isn’t restricted by physical limitations. Jesus can take a little and turn it into a lot. Jesus can take nothing and turn it into everything. Jesus can provide breakfast, lunch, and supper, along with a midnight snack, and then He can pay your rent for you too. Jesus is really cool and He can do anything.

 

When Philip answered Jesus’ question he was thinking in terms of the economy of the world, not the economy of God. Philip was thinking about what men could do, not what God could do. But Jesus wanted His followers to begin thinking in terms of God’s rules of economics rather than in man’s rules of economics. Had the outcome depended on what Philip and his buddies could do, everyone would have gone home hungry. But with God, all things are possible.

 

This is a lesson we need to learn too. We tend to look at our physical circumstances (especially our financial circumstances), in terms of what’s possible and achievable in the physical realm. But God doesn’t operate based upon what’s possible in the physical realm. God’s kingdom operates based upon what’s possible in His power and with His resources. That’s a game-changer. With God nothing is impossible. Everything is achievable.

 

That doesn’t mean that God will suddenly shower you with piles of money for your own use and personal enjoyment. But it does mean that God has all the resources He needs in order to achieve any outcome He desires. And if you and I are in the center of His will, doing the things that He wants us to do, He is fully able to provide the things needed in order to accomplish what He has ordained.

 

God’s economy is different from man’s economy. God has all the resources He needs to accomplish whatever He wants done. We will spend the rest of the month exploring this great truth and learning how it plays out in the daily lives of God’s people.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “The one who loves money will never have enough money to make him happy. It is the same for the one who loves to get many things. This also is for nothing.” Ecclesiastes 5:10 (NLV)

 

Our thought for today: “Our focus is wrong.”

 

In the days to come we will begin to consider God’s answer to our fear of not having enough. But before we move on to that, I want to be sure we’ve truly understood and acknowledged the problem we’re faced with.

 

A big problem for Christians is that we often claim things to be true of ourselves which are not really true. This issue of who or what we truly put our trust in is a case in point. Most of us say that God is our Provider and that we trust Him to take care of us. We say that, but we don’t really believe it. Or at least, we don’t live as if we really believe it. We say we trust in God for our daily bread, but then we allow ourselves to be a workaholic as we strive to earn as much as we can. We say we trust in God for our financial future, but then we obsess about savings accounts and retirement plans and how we’re going to afford the latest gidget or gadget, a new car and a bigger house. We say we trust in God, but our focus is usually on jobs and incomes and savings accounts and possessions.

 

Now don’t get me wrong, working hard, earning as much as we can, building up savings, and having a plan for retirement are all good things – we should do them. But we are not to trust in them. And therein lies the problem for most of us. Truth-be-told, in actual practice, we do trust in them more than we trust in God. We just don’t admit it.

 

So let’s set aside the God-talk, the religious clichés, and the false piety and admit how much of a hold money and possessions really do have on our hearts. It’s only when we honestly admit a problem that we can then begin to deal with it.

 

King Solomon was honest about it. He was the richest man in the world in his day. For most of his adult life he indulged himself in every conceivable pleasure and denied himself no creature comfort. But he finally came to the point of realizing how empty such a life was and how misplaced his focus had been. That’s what we’re reading not just in Ecclesiastes 5:10, but in the entire book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon learned that it didn’t matter how much he had because it was never enough. Deep inside there was always the nagging concern that regardless of what he already had, he still needed something more.

 

The fear of not having enough, and the doubts and anxiety that come with it, can be suffocating. It leaves us feeling dissatisfied, unhappy, and worried about the future. Worse, at a very deep level, it takes our focus off of God and onto the things of this world.

 

Despite what we claim to be true about our faith and about our focus if we’re honest we have to admit that our concern for the things of this life, and our obsessive focus on them, is a big problem that has to be dealt with.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim