The inevitable struggle of finances continues to haunt those of you who, like me, find difficulties in money management. Often times, the bills outweigh the funding used to pay these bills. Various methods of strategic planning in how to stretch money that isn't there leads to a continuous dead end, and you continuously find yourself coming up short. With this feeling of defeat, comes the inevitable stress, worry, and the dreading question...What am I going to do? You have asked everyone you could think of for help, yet to no prevail, you are forced to once again, pay another bill late. The overwhelming need to take control of the situation by finding a solution by any means necessary to find money begins to take over. Just one question, have you ever wondered why it seems so impossible for YOU to solve your financial problems? God has a way of getting our attention. When we think that the world is coming to end and we just can't get a break, often times, this is God's way of getting our attention. Sometimes, God needs to remind us that we are NOT in control. Even so, sometimes God just wants to show us His glory, by showing off and displaying just how powerful He is. This is where our faith comes in. The Lord said " Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not to thy own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path" (Proverbs 3:5-6). Releasing the fragments used to control our every move, thought and very existence seems almost impossible. In order to achieve this, one must "die to self". In other words, we must be willing to detach ourselves from those very things that tend to lead us in our every day dealings; our social desires to be accepted, our egos, our selfish aspirations for pleasing our needs before the needs of others, etc. Believe it or not, all of these things tie into our co-existence between the fleshly realm and the spiritual realm. Understand when I say, faith is real. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen" (Hebrews 11:1). Let's break this scripture down. Faith in the form of substance refers to that initial yearning that acknowledges the desire for a need or want. As we ponder on the benefits of this need, want or desire, we begin to act on this desire. We begin to alphabetize our everyday patterns in search of this desire. We prophetically live as though we have already received our hearts desires. This is the evidence of our unseen desire. For example, when my husband and I were ready to find our own place, we struggled with the fear of failure. We often times, found ourselves deviating away from this in order to remain in our comfort zone. With time, our desires changed and our faith begin to strengthen. As our desire for our own home became more evident, we began to act by faith. While searching and taking the necessary steps to find our home, we began to pack our belongings. We began the packing process, without any knowledge of what would happen next. As we continued to act by faith, our confidence in our success grew. To no surprise, we were in our own home within three months. This leads me into our next segment, understanding that " faith without works is dead" (James 2: 17). Now please understand, having a strong level of faith does not apply only to those who are believers in Christ. Anyone can have a strong faith level. Successful icons of today's world did not succeed and become who they are today by knowing their every exact move. Many of those moves were made solely on the basis of strong faith that their needs, wants, dreams and desires would come to pass. This knowledge came from the comprehension that there is a higher being, in whom all things are possible. The understanding of this concept can be found on both ends of the spectrum; quite simple to understand, as well as, quite difficult. One bit of knowledge that is illustrated in its' simplest form is understanding this...
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
- Phillipians 4: 13
