Reaping in Recession

Recession, inflation, and economic hard times have been with mankind almost since the beginning of time. They are not new problems. The biblical answers to these conditions first appear early in the Book of Genesis.

And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham…Genesis 26:1 Famine could be any unanticipated disaster, tragedy, hardship or reversal of fortune that suddenly dries up your personal resources.

A famine could be just about anything: a death in the family, a devastating fire, job loss, a major health crisis, anything that puts a sudden drain on your financial resources. What do you do when famine comes?

God gave Isaac specific instructions to follow in order to prosper during those economic hard times.

Stay faithful to God’s commands. Don’t let circumstances ruin your good, Christian habits. Many believers become inconsistent in times of economic pressure. Fluctuation from your Christian principles will only weaken you further. The Lord blessed Isaac because of obedience (Isaiah 1:19).

Don’t follow the world’s philosophy. Because of the famine, everyone was leaving to go to Egypt, but the Lord had a different program for Isaac:

Go not down into Egypt…. Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee . Genesis 26:2, 3

Move to a new city or state only upon God’s command, not because of a rumor that there is prosperity there. Remember that God can bless you in any location.

Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Deuteronomy 28:3

Too many people in the world, either give up hope completely or they fall into the “someday syndrome” Someday things will get better; someday I’m going to have money; Someday I’m going to get out of debt. Someday, I’m going to start giving the way I really want to.

I have news for you….someday is TODAY….right now….this is the day. Sow generously during the famine.

Isaac went forth under the Lord’s instructions, and he “…sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him” (Genesis 26:12). God intended for Isaac to conquer the famine and gave him the prosperity principles to emerge victorious from it. These same biblical principles apply for you today. Begin to use them now in your own life.

Remember: Stay faithful to God’s commands. Don’t follow the world’s philosophy. Sow generously during the famine.

The God-Given Laws of Poverty and Prosperity

God has created spiritual laws that determine who has wealth, and who will remain poor. The laws of poverty and the laws of prosperity were created by the same God who created the law of gravity. All of His laws work every time.

An apple will always fall to the ground. That’s God’s law of gravity.

A person will become rich or poor by following God’s laws.

One law of poverty says if you are lazy, or if you don’t understand your task, your fields will not bring forth abundance. They will grow thorns and nettles. (Nettles are a symbol of the unproductive yield that causes insufficiency.)

I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. Proverbs 24:30, 31

One law of prosperity says if you are not lazy and can work without supervision, you will receive a bountiful supply.

Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.Proverbs 6:6-8

You may be saying, “I resent the implication that I’m lazy. I’m not, but I am always without the abundance I need.”Please understand that I have touched on only two factors in a poverty mentality today, laziness and the lack of understanding. There are many other laws. Just continue to study, and you will experience a gradual transformation of your thoughts into a prosperity mentality.

Do as the Bereans did in the first century: they received the gospel readily, and searched the Scripture daily to see if it was true (Acts 17:10, 11)

Things Happened Unto Them

In chapter two you gained the knowledge that God wants you to be debt free. You saw this truth in Deuteronomy 28 where you read that the obedient child of God lends and does not borrow. With this knowledge, you can expect to receive inner strength from God. The reason is that His callings are always accompanied by His enabling. You now know if He wants you to be debt free, God will also give you the power to become debt free. Now hear this powerful verse once again, and remember it.

For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment.

Luke 1:37, Amplified

This verse tells you that the very Word of God which revealed to you that He wanted you to be debt free, also contains within it sufficient power to accomplish this desire. If God’s Word says He wants you out of debt (Deuteronomy 28), God’s power will come with His Word to get you out of debt (Mark 1:27).

Now, please don’t let my statement about a biblical conclusion throw you. The Word of God clearly states that the saints were to be examples to us.

Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples [examples]….

1 Corinthians 10:11 God assures you that if He cancelled debts for others, He will surely cancel debt for you.

Testimony: We have had two miracles of debt cancellation, one for $8,000. M.B. – El Paso, TX

God Honors Memorial Prayer

Notice that when we mix a proper prayer with generous giving, it becomes, as the Amplified Bible says, “preserved before God [so that He…is about to help you.]” I can hear someone ask, “Brother John, this is the first time I have ever heard of mixing prayer with giving. Are you sure it’s really okay to do it?”

Please know I am not suggesting you make a memorial prayer on the strength of only one mention of it in Scripture. In fact, in many instances in the Word of God, people just like you mixed their giving and praying for the purpose of drawing God’s attention to their desires.

The Book of 1 Samuel tells about a godly woman named Hannah. She mixed her prayer with her gift and saw God’s hand move almost immediately to fulfill her request. Hear her prayer.

And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thin handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head. 1 Samuel 1:11

Hannah’s special prayer is for a child. Hear her heart’s cry as she desperately asks God to remember her. Then observe closely as she adds giving to her prayer. She adds a gift of significant value, for she offers her firstborn son to God. Please notice that she makes this new prayer after years of asking and not receiving. However, when she adds giving to her praying, only a few hours pass before God responds by granting her request.

And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the Lord remembered her. 1 Samuel 1:19

An Out-of-Debt Flow

Every informed child of God knows that forces flow through the spirit world. The Bible speaks about evil forces that war against the children of God in the heavenly realm.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Ephesians 6:12. One of these powers of darkness is the spirit of debt.

Let me be quick to say there are also good forces that flow through the spirit world. These forces give us the upper hand in fighting the powers of darkness.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh {flows} in us. Ephesians 3:20

Let’s take a moment and study one of these good spiritual forces. It is the power that enforces the golden rule. Please notice that no one ever refers to the golden rule as the “golden good-idea,” nor is it ever called “the golden suggestion.” It is, in fact, the golden rule, or better said, it is the golden law.

Everything that truly operates as a law must have a power (force) behind it to enforce it. For instance, the law of gravity functions only when the power of gravity is present to enforce it. If you go beyond the influence of the power of gravity, the law of gravity immediately stops working.

Tithing Opens Heaven

It takes only a brief look at Scripture to realize you must be a tither if you hope to have an open heaven. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven….
Malachi 3:10

Scripture clearly teaches that the tithe belongs totally to God. It is not the property of the person who pays it. It is the property of God. The person who pays it has only been entrusted with it for a short time.…all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree,
is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. Leviticus 27: 30

Notice that the writer of Hebrews does not refer to the act of tithing as giving tithes. He calls it “paying tithes.” …Levi…paid tithes in Abraham. Hebrews 7:9

Also notice he doesn’t say the Levites received the tithe. He says they took the tithe from the people. …the sons of Levi…take tithes of the people…. Hebrews 7:5

Jesus Himself spoke of the tithe as being paid instead of being given. …for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin…these ought ye to have done…. Matthew 23:23

Talk About It

Yes, it’s a fact. People do talk about where they are going. If you notice, people going on vacation talk about the places they will visit. People about to get married will be talking about their wedding. A family about to move to another part of the country will a have much to say about their new city.

If you really want to put another measure of biblical power behind your out-of-debt program, start talking about the debt-free life you are headed toward. Boldly begin to say, “We will soon be debt free.” You should start saying, “We will not take thirty years to pay off our mortgage. Our plan is to have it paid in full in six years.” God right ahead and boldly say, “The automobile we are now driving will be the last one we will ever buy on time payments. Our next car will be a new one, and we will be paying for it with cash.”

When you begin to state your intention of becoming debt free, it will do two definite things for you. You will be establishing a spiritual principle that will put the energy of God’s Word to work in your out-of-debt plan (Mark 11:23). Not only that, but you will also receive the constant, personal fortification that comes from hearing your heart’s desire (being out of debt) spoken out loud.

Please notice carefully that it takes more than just wishful words to operate the biblical principle of positive confession. Just constantly saying “I am going to be debt free” will not being about a debt-free life. The Bible says you must also believe the think you are saying will come to pass.

…whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Mark 11:23