Skip to main content

Devotional Sermon #94: THE CHRISTIAN PROSPERITY GOSPEL & SECRETS - Christian blogs for today


I could do with more wealth, with more money. I should and would be better off with lots of it. I am not the only one in this condition; you too could do with more money.

I know several people who are seeking  improvement in the status of their wealth. They are frantically looking in various places for it.

Yet when I look at it, I sometimes feel as though people generally take the lead when it comes to wealth creation, leaving God behind, leading to a lot of debris all over the place, as people blunder their way.

And Moses said unto the people, ‘Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD’” (Ex 14:13, KJV). God is wonderful. He says, “As far as your life and wealth creation are concerned, do not panic.” What comfort! Stand still. Be at peace. Praise God!

Consider this as well: “So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them” (Matt 6:31-32, NIV). Your Father, the unlimited provider, knows that you need these things.

Because He knows you need these things and because He is your provider, He will “satisfy you fully” (Joel 2:19, NIV).

So, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Phil 4:6, NIV).

I have noticed some misfiring in a number of believers - they desire more wealth to the extent of negating all that God has already done for them. They don't seem to appreciate what they already have! They are always anxious, edgy and sullen, simply because they have not got that which they seek.

Consider this: Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:16-18, NIV).

Believers should be joyful always; they should give thanks in all circumstances. This is something! Whatever situation you might be in, you've got to give thanks to God, with joyous hymns, because life is good!

There should be no room for anxiety in a Christian’s life. Jesus’ instruction on anxiety is clear enough. He says, “Do not be anxious about anything.”

If you find yourself in a closed box with regard to wealth, you now know what to do. Don't get angry or restless. Instead, present your requests to God, keeping in mind that you should ever be joyful and thankful. Thank Him for what you possess. Thank Him also for what you hope for.

If you have the basics of life, then you are in a good state. God will take you from there to yonder places if you dedicate yourself to living in accordance with His teachings. Just listen to this: “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that” (1 Tim 6:7-8, NIV).

Do you have food? Do you have clothing? Do you have shelter, even if rented? If so, then you should be ashamed of yourself if you are living a miserable life! Timothy said, “ … we will be content with that.” We will be satisfied with that.

You should be content with that. You ought to be thankful and your gratitude should beam right into the throne room.

Of course, you should always take steps to create new and more wealth, but your starting point ought to be different from the starting point of non-believers. While non-believers might start from a point of dissatisfaction, believers should make it a point to start from a point of satisfaction, a position of gratitude.

I have learnt some valuable lessons. Here they are:

  • God delights in the prosperity of His children.
  • God is willing and able to take His children to spacious places in terms of wealth. He can enrich us exceedingly above even the wildest of our imaginations.
  • However, God wants Christians to begin their journey from a point of satisfaction, not dissatisfaction, acknowledging every good thing that He has already done for them.
A satisfied life is a life well-lived. It is a full life, without any regrets. With God, the past, present, and future belong to you. You can reclaim, with compound interest, everything that was meant for you, but which had somehow eluded you.

So, while you work towards more wealth, you need to do so calmly, peacefully, with God each step of the way.

Wealth is on my mind, and life is good!

DEVOTIONAL PRAYER

Prayer Point for Today: That I may be grateful for the wealth that God has already given me, even as I work towards multiplying it.

Heavenly Father, I come before You in the name of Jesus Christ.

Your Word has taught me to be grateful for everything You give me. I now realize that I have all along been taking some of Your precious gifts for granted.

The basics of life that You have given, and that You continue to give me, have sustained me and my family to this point. I should have shown more gratitude than I did for this.

Today, heavenly Father, I come to thank You not for the 'big' gifts, but for the 'small' gifts that have had a huge impact for me and my family. I should thank You not only for the 'big' gifts, but also for the 'small' ones.

Father, I thank You for the food available to my family each day. I thank You for shelter; our home is not a mansion, but it serves it's purpose well. Some live on the streets and You have spared me that. For this I am so grateful.

Father, I thank You for the clothing and the blankets. They cover us, for the sake of decency, and keep us warm during cold weather.

I can pay for my children's education, heavenly Father, even though I sometimes fall behind and have to enter into a payment plan with the educational institutions. But the fact that my children are getting an education makes me feel like a responsible parent.

I know, Father, that You can guide my steps towards more wealth; You can bless the work of my hand; You can reveal opportunities for me to earn more from my sweat. I know that You are willing to do all this for me.

But I start from a point of gratitude, heavenly Father, not from a point dissatisfaction or restlessness.

In conclusion, Father, I repeat, THANK YOU.

In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray.

Amen.

View our Christian living books here.

CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING ONLINE OPPORTUNITIES:

Planning a vacation? Consider these packages.

Learn to speak a new language. Right from the comfort of your home!

Online tools for students and professionals keen to elevate and perfect their writing.

Attention students: don't pay full price for textbooks. See your options here.

Popular posts from this blog

Devotional Sermon #116: WALKING IN OBEDIENCE TO GOD - One of our most powerful sermons of all time

Do whatever He tells you to do. His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he [Jesus] tells you.” John 2 Verse 5 [NIV] Do you struggle with obeying God? Or do you question why you need to obey God at all? "What's the point?" some wonder. This message discusses one good example of obedience to God from the Bible, to inspire the believer. Christians should strive to obey God always and to keep their will aligned to God's will and purpose for their lives. The Holy Spirit is our ever-present helper in this regard. This message demonstrates the power of walking in obedience to God and of living a life that is fully surrendered to Him. Your plans and your decisions should always align to God's will. Oh, how important obedience to God is! How blessed they are those who live in the perfect will of God! But what does it mean to obey God, in our context? What does it take to obey Him? In my view, obeying God means hearing His voice (through reading the written Word, o

Devotional Sermon #115: SETTING A GOOD CHRISTIAN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS - Short daily devotions and prayers

Philip found Nathanael and told him,  “ We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote - Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. ” “ Nazareth! Can anything good come from there? ”  Nathanael asked. “ Come and see. ”  said Philip. John 1 Verses 45-46 [NIV] Nazareth was a despised town. That is why Nathanael was taken by surprise that Jesus could have come from there. Nazareth was regarded as a desert, where nothing useful was expected to grow. Nathanael's surprise was quite revealing;  "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked.     What a viewpoint! People could be viewing your country, city, or village in a similar light. "Can anything good come from there?" they may be wondering. Yours might be a locality that is expected to produce nothing good. Despite this, I encourage you to surprise people like Jesus did Nathanael by originating from Nazareth. I urge you to surprise people, for the glory of God

Devotional Sermon #60: DEATH & BEREAVEMENT - Message of hope after losing a loved one

The death of a loved one is always a tragic incident  to the family. The sorrow normally is so powerful that it casts a dense and dark shadow over the bereaved. Time appears to freeze. Nothing seems to matter anymore. It is a time of mourning - an episode that none of us can get accustomed to no matter how many times one might have experienced death in the family. Help is desperately and urgently required if those affected are to quickly find the strength to cope with their loss. This sermon attempts to offer hope and comfort to the grieving. I hope you will find encouragement after you are done reading it. You may understand, from past experiences, the message that I am trying to convey here. The distress and emptiness caused by the death of a family member or any other loved one are normally very difficult to imagine and absorb; sometimes the loss comes suddenly, and thus totally unexpected.    It is hard to cope with the death of a mother, father, sister, brother, child, or fri

Devotional Sermon #114: SHOW THEM JESUS - Powerful daily devotions

“The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’ When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.” John 1  Verses  35-37 [NIV] This is an excellent example of, and lesson on, how to lead people to salvation; a good example of how to win souls for Christ. This was a very effective method, in my view, judging by the results achieved.  Soul winning is probably the most important activity that the Christian should undertake for the sake of both the Lord and mankind - bringing souls into God's Kingdom. Tell somebody about Christ before the day ends; win them over to Christ! This is the spirit of the above-cited bible scripture. You are a Christian, and are now enjoying the benefits of salvation, because somebody took it upon themselves to win you over to Christ. They might not have shared the Word with you; instead, they might just have invited you to a place where the Word was shared, as happen

Devotional Sermon #113: THE VOICE CALLING IN THE WILDERNESS - Free daily devotionals

“ Finally,  they said, ‘Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself? ”   John 1: Verse 22 "I am the voice calling in the desert."  "I am the voice crying out in the wilderness." That was John's answer. That is what Christians should say about themselves; that's what Christians should be in this life. That is what you should say about yourself, and honestly so. You should be seen to be calling out, to be truly crying out for the salvation of mankind. It would be unfair of you to claim that you call out or cry out when you never do. But then why should you act dumb when you can speak? God expects the Christian to be ever calling out, ever crying out, for noble reasons. While John cried out to prepare people for the first coming of Jesus, we should of necessity also cry out because Jesus is coming for the second time, this time not as a baby in a manger, but as a roaring lion, the King of Kings! That's wh

Devotional Sermon #112: THE SECRET OF GOD'S BLESSING AND FAVOR - Our most inspiring sermons of all time

"From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another." John 1  Verse  16 [NIV] I am going to share with you a personal perspective on God's blessings, the way that I have decided to approach the issue for myself. Some Christians probably take the same view, but I believe there are many who hold a different view, and that's perfectly acceptable. There are many things that a Christian is required to do, consistent with their Christian faith. Giving in church is one of them, sacrificial giving for that matter. We should give because we are supposed to behave exactly as our Lord did as He walked the earth. We are only good to the extent that we are like Him. If you give, you walk in the likeness of Christ. If you don't, you walk in the unlikeness of Christ. That's as simple as it can get. I give because my mission is to be like Christ in the world. I give to make a contribution towards the Ministry of the Holy Spirit which has made me st

Devotional Sermon #102: RAISING HOPE IN DIFFICULT TIMES - Daily devotions for women’s encouragement

I have observed and have become convinced that there are just two kinds of people in this world. The lives of these two kinds of people are as different as day is to night. Only two kinds, not more, not less. That is the message of this textual sermon. There are various difficulties, challenges, trials, and tribulations in this world, but only two kinds of people. There are various levels of poverty, but only two kinds of people. There are various forms of sickness and disease, but only two kinds of people. You put the two groups under the same kind and level of difficulty or pressure, and they react differently. It's amazing. Whatever challenging situation you face today, you are either hopeful or hopeless about it. These are the two kinds of people that I have been referring to - one kind is of the hopeful,  the other is of the hopeless , regarding a specific challenge that they might be facing in their lives at any particular time.   You are either hopeful or hopeless about y

Devotional Sermon #110: LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE BEFORE GOD AND MANKIND - Short powerful devotions

"The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it." John 1  Verse  5 [NIV ] This bible verse refers to Jesus Christ, the One who was in existence in the beginning. It refers to Jesus as 'the light'. According to the Bible, the life of Christ is the light of mankind. This is remarkable; it means that those who have His life have this kind of light in them - the light of mankind. And it's not just about having this light in you, you must let that light show through you, for there would be no point in lighting a candle if you go on to hide it under a bushel! This is probably the greatest lesson you will ever learn about how to be a light that shines in the darkness. You must first accept Christ, the light, so that you may be saved. The life of Jesus Christ is the source of light. In other words, Jesus Christ is the light of mankind. He shines in the darkness and confounds it; not only that, but the darkness has not and cannot overcome this li

Devotional Sermon #101: YES, YOU CAN DO IT - Daily devotions for today

I remember the time when I was still a teenager. I kept grudges; real grudges, I mean. I did not know how to forgive; neither did I have the willingness to do so. If somebody did me wrong, they were supposed to pay for it! I was a stranger to God back then - I had never experienced the transforming power of the Holy Spirit in my life. Any talk about God actually had a jarring effect to my ears; it still does to some folks. I also would tremble in anger, sometimes to the point of shedding tears - even against an elder! I recall a day I got so angry at an elder that he almost fell off the chair on which he was sitting. The elder was evidently wrong; I could not tolerate it anymore - but seething in anger did not make me right either - it's only that I did not know at the time and actually felt justified in my actions. But since then the Lord has re-molded me. Praise to His Holy Name!  If you see me now, you see a totally different person. Simple. I now can forgive and do forgive. I

Devotional Sermon #111: I AM NOT THE CHRIST - Short easy sermons

"He (John) himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light." John 1  Verse  8 [NIV] I think we are in some kind of problem as the body of Christ. The problem, in my view, is that an increasing numbe r of men and women, even teens and senior citizens are, whether by word or deed, trying to take the place of Christ. Haven't you ever come across church denominations in which congregants seem to, or actually, worship the leader? That's idolatry! The congregants appear not to acknowledge Christ, and by their actions, neither do they seem to have anything to do with Him. All they are eager to do is please their leader, with the leader becoming an idol in God's sight. Never worship other gods. Never worship false gods. Never worship idols. Never worship your pastor. That is what God expects each one of us never to do!  I have earlier claimed that a Christian, because of their relationship with Christ, is actually a light. Jesus is 'the source light