Oh what a week! The financial news is bleak. What will happen to our national economy if the debt ceiling isn’t raised by next week? Is another major economic catastrophe on the horizon? The global market’s climate is questionable at best. The U.S. unemployment rate continues to rise. Taking partisan politics out of this picture, there are many individual families here in the U.S. who are seriously struggling to make ends meet.
Credit cards may be maxed out, meeting the monthly obligations seem impossible, and then a medical emergency gets thrown into the mix! Unexpected expenses, unexpected emergencies or poor money management can devastate a family’s finances.
Living through these times many may be wondering, where is God in all of this mess?
The Bible reminds us that God promises to take care of us–no matter what. He has a way of meeting urgent needs in ways that seem truly amazing. Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus”
Our job is to pray for God’s providence while trusting His faithfulness! The lesson we can give our kids is that we DO trust God to meet our needs! Go to scripture as a family, perhaps even letting your kids share in your prayers asking God to help your family’s needs, so then they can then witness first-hand His blessings of provision.
2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
I realize that there is a lot of debate among Christians whether or not tithing is just an Old Testament Law, I still really like this verse: Malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
My old pastor in California was known to say, “You can’t out-give God”. Some people loved that saying, others…not so much! I liked it because when we’d get a little greedy about giving that 10% off the top, it was a good reminder that everything we had was a blessing of provision from God.
My prayer this week is for each of you out there who may be struggling financially. That you will find reassurance in God’s provision for all your needs to be met!
