Devotional Time with God

It’s better to enjoy what we have than to always want something else, because that makes no more sense than chasing the wind.

Ecclesiastes 6:9

Enjoying what I have is something I’ve known to do for a while. I am happy to admit that I don’t have a grand ambition to own bigger, better, or shinier things. I have learned to be happy with what I have, as long as it’s not broken or unusable. It’s not say that I’ve not yearn more than my earning. I had thoughts about earning more money to buy more stuff. I even have been depressed and irritable when I don’t get what other people have. The bible warns me about wanting more money because I’m unsatisfied, in Ecclesiastes 5:10,

If you love money and wealth, you will never be satisfied with what you have. This doesn’t make sense either.

I must choose to love people. I must slow down on my wants and worldly desires. It is my choice.

In conclusion, this is the order that God blesses:

1. Dedicate money to God
2. Tithe it
3. Save it
4. Repay it
5. Enjoy it

If you plan and work hard, you will have plenty; if you get in a hurry, you will end up poor.

Proverbs 21:5

Earning my money slowly is a discipline. It teaches me good things come to those who wait. God always try to instill patience in me and in money matters, it’s no different. I have a bad habit of seeing something, and when I like it I make an effort to buy it. With things like Amazon 1-click purchase, that’s a dangerous thing. Impulse buying is really acting too quickly with my spending and it will get out of control – fast. The bible warns me about this in Proverbs 10:16

The earnings of the godly enhance their lives, but evil people squander their money on sin.

and in Proverbs 21:20

The wise have wealth and luxury, but fools spend whatever they get.

I am an educated person, but for some reason I tend to spend more. My wisdom must include budgeting, planning my spending, and not squander everything that I have on things that are “On Sale”.

Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other.

Romans 13:8

To owe money is not fun. I constantly think how much time I have before I can repay it. Can I repay it? Being in debt is a lonely feeling because the burden is on me to pay that money back. I am glad that God wants to help. If I just trust my finances to Him, He’ll enable me to repay my debts.

In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.

Proverbs 21:20

Saving money is God’s IQ test for me. Am I smart and wise enough to save money for rainy days? The idea of getting out of debt is first to give to God, then I have to give to myself. The rule is: 80-10-10, or 10% to God, 10% to savings, 80% to paying the bills.

I also have to watch out that I don’t fall into “Get Rich Quick” schemes. Money quickly gained is quickly lost. The love of money is the root of all evil. If I love money, I will use people. If I love people, I will use money.

I’ve been bitten by the envy monster several times in my life. Not only in the workplace for position of power, but also in material things. The “Gotta Have it!” attitude is raging in the media these days, and it’s more apparent here in United States. Americans are more in debt than the Europeans and Asians. It’s no wonder that we’re in debt because we seldom ask ourselves, “Do I really have to have this?” When I hold the envy monster, I will not go crazy on spending my savings.

I must learn the lesson from ants as they constantly store food. When the going get tough in the future, I will be ready when I have savings.

Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.

Proverbs 27:23-24

I must know the condition of my finances.  I do that by keeping a good record of of what I:

1. Own
2. Owe
3. Earn
4. Spend

Four steps that is necessary for me to know exactly what to prioritize today and plan for tomorrow.  Being ignorant of the state of my finances, plus the lure of easy credit, is a recipe for disaster!

Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Proverbs 3:9-10

This is God’s promise: He will overflow me with blessing if I give my first offering to Him. This is the concept of Tithe. It’s one of the most difficult concept in the bible because it requires a giant leap of faith to give 10% of my gross income to the Church. It’s a subject of controversy because people have concerns about giving that much money to a church that might abuse it. Of course, not all church will misuse it. I know for certain that Saddleback Church will not because Pastor Rick just offered the congregation a challenge: tithe for the next 3 months – if I’m not blessed, closer to God, and my life enriched, Rick will refund the money out of his own pocket! He strongly believe tithing works, and I do too. It happened in my life and I learned God’s blessing thru tithing.

Another important note is that tithing is for God. That means it’s an act of worship, in a house of worship. Tithing is for the church, not a third party charity or organization.

Tithing is a test of my trust in God. I trust my future in God with my faith in Him.

This weekend’s sermon by Pastor Rick and Tom Holladay is a very important one to me. It deals with money. It’s always been a problem in our family when it comes to dealing with the issues relating to money. It’s a cause for division, cause for arguments, cause for insecurities, cause of pain. In the message, the lack of money, or being in debt, is the focus of his sermon. God has a lot to say about managing my money. First and foremost, I must look to God when I have issues with money. I must trust God to provide for my needs. He gave me everything, in the first place, to glorify His name, as written in Romans 11:36

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever!

Then Paul wrote in Philippians 4:19

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

God will meet all of my needs! Not wants, not desires, not indulgence. Needs! He never lets me astray. He never lets me down. If He does take things away from me, it’s because He’s testing my character.

I have to ask myself: who should I look for to get more money? Everything on this earth belongs to God. It’s not by my own talent or luck that I get more money. It all comes from God because it’s His to give in the first place. He is trusting His riches on earth to me so I may use it to help others. Money is a tool to do good.  As long as I use money to do God’s work, He will always provide for me.

Everyday I go to work, I ask myself what can I do to help others? But I have a confession to make. I also tell myself that I will get a reward for it, such as my salary, or recognition from my peers and manager. What I seem to quite often take for granted is that I am doing this for God. It’s not enough that I give my time and resources to help others, but I also have to give myself. I have to be available, and I have to have a willing heart. The bible says in Philippians 2:14-16,

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.

I don’t sacrifice myself for others, for nothing. I do it for God. I don’t stop on a work day either, it has to be every day. Even during my rest day, as Jesus did when He healed during sabbath.

Lord Jesus, I thank you for giving yourself up on the cross for me. I thank you for the saving my life, so I may save others. Please give me the strength and discernment to serve others without complaining or expecting earthly rewards. I am weak and you are strong. Please accept my sacrifice. Amen.

And [Jesus] will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6b (NIV)

The holiday is over. I’m back to work in my usual mundane office, doing the same stuff as I did for the past 10 years or so, and dealing with the same office politics and red tape. During small talk with co-workers and vendors, we always talked about how we need more vacations, more time away from busy and hectic office life, more peace and quiet. So I asked myself, how can I preserve that “peace”? Is it really the peace I’m looking for?

Jesus reminds me that He is the Prince of peace. I just have to look for Him whenever I’m experiencing stress, despair, or worry. He gives me hope when I don’t feel I have any. He gives me the presence of security. He wants me to live my life and continuously be sanctified in truth: living out my purpose. Nothing is greater than serving God, relying on God, and serve others.

It’s a new year. It sure doesn’t feel like a new year. It’s helpful to look back and learn from my mistakes, but it is more important for me to look forward. When I set my sights on eternity, the new years and birthdays are just not as scary anymore. The bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

My old self is gone indeed! I have to look forward to what I can accomplish, what I can learn, and what I can do for others. From last Sunday, we learned to do these to look forward to the new year:

1. Let go of my worries.
   I look forward to get rid of my logical self who always try to get in the way of God’s will. I must pray about everything, I tell God what I need, and I must thank Him at all times. (See Philippians 4:6-7) I must let go of my past, enjoy the present, and look forward to the future.
2. Adjust my expectations.
   I must expect the best. I must realize God works even in the worse situations. I must focus on the greatest things that God has given me, such as His goodness, His faithfulness, and His son, Jesus Christ.
3. Take a step of faith.
   James 2:17 says,

   In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

   I must go through all of the doors. If God wanted me to go through it, He will open it for me. If it is God’s will, then nothing will be impossible for me.

4. Hold on to God’s love.
   I must not let work, busy-ness, world issues, or people’s opinions stop me from holding on to God’s promises and love. He’s always there for me and will always be. Paul said in Romans 8:38-39,

   For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.