Prosperity or Poverty – The Choice is Yours!

Expand Your World Magazine –  Archived Issue

A long time ago, my wife and I decided that poverty was no longer an option. We decided that we were going to find out everything we could about God’s plan to prosper us. There have been many prosperity battles since then, but we have experienced many victories and breakthroughs. The main thing we discovered over the years is that prosperity is a choice that has be made. In any given circumstance, we found that we could either give up or make a choice to prosper no matter how bleak things looked. We first made that choice over 20 years ago and we have found that the decision to prosper according to God’s Word changed our destiny forever. Instead of living a mundane life going from one battle to another, we have grown from victory to victory. Poverty is built into the corrupt world system. If you do nothing, it will come into your life and drain your health, resources and peace of mind. Poverty is a curse and no one likes a curse. Prosperity is a Covenant blessing and the Blessing has been promised by God to those who believe His Word.

The Power of Choice

Deuteronomy 30:15 – See, I set before you today life and prosperity,(or) death and destruction. (NIV-paraphrase mine)

Proverbs 10:15  – The wealth of the rich is their fortress;  the poverty of the poor is their destruction. (NIV)

If you understand the two passages, life and prosperity go together; secondly, that death (poverty) and destruction also go together. God gave to us the power to choose. That started in the Garden of Eden and God never changes. Eve was deceived, but she still chose to sin. Adam was not tricked at all, but he chose to sin also and God let them. He respected the power He put inside of them and He will do the same thing with you. He has given you the power to choose heaven or hell, life or death, grace or punishment and so on. The choice is entirely up to you. You can release your power right now and choose life and prosperity and no one can stop you. Not even the devil. Think about it. If God can’t stop you from choosing, then how can the devil?

It Starts with a Decision

First, you make the decision. Now that by itself won’t change your situation, but it will open the door. Secondly, research the behavioral aspects to go along with your decision. Just as when you got born again, you started finding out how to live a saved and holy lifestyle. You need to start researching how to live a prosperous lifestyle. Thirdly, you need to begin adjusting your attitudes and habits in line with the new information you have discovered, by meditation and prayer. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the areas of your life that need to be adjusted and do whatever He tells you to do. Finally, practice your new walk. If you fail, repent quickly, get up and start over again until you become consistent. When the results start showing up, give God the glory and testify to the goodness and power of God in your life so that others can be encouraged also.

God wants His people to experience life and prosperity instead of the poverty and destruction that is in the world. Another thing we need to realize is that life and prosperity is more than money which means poverty and destruction are more than a lack of money.

Let me explain: One can have a lot of money, but live a lonely life with no friends or family to enjoy. This person is poor where relationships are concerned and may be experiencing emotional destruction as a result of that kind of poverty. They wind up being financially prosperous, but emotionally bankrupt. Another person may be financially impoverished, but have great relationships with their children, family and friends. They are relationally rich, but experiencing financial destruction. Both people need the wisdom of God to help them to ‘see’ as stated in Deuteronomy chapter 30, verse 15.

To ‘see’, means to have God’s light shined on the subject. God’s light is God’s Word. Once you have light (wisdom) on that issue, you will have life and prosperity in that area and the darkness (poverty and destruction) will be removed like darkness leaves a room when the light switch is turned on. That darkness will depart out of your life forever. All you need is a Word from God.

Psalm 56:13 – For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (NIV)

Proverbs 6:23 – For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life, (NIV)

John 8:12 – [ The Validity of Jesus’ Testimony ] When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (NIV)

Darkness is a Human problem. It came as the result of the fall of man. Adam and Eve fell from a place of light into a place of darkness. Death came in and starting destroying areas of people’s lives as well as their physical lives. Sickness and relational problems came in along with jealousy, envy and hate. Now, we see those results in full bloom throughout our society. Now we see marriages, families, health, finances and so on destroyed by the works of darkness, but praise be to God, there is Good News. The Good News from God is that whatever the devil has stolen through darkness, God’s light can restore! Whatever has been broken, God’s life can repair. All you have to do is make the decision to hear God’s Word and give it first place in your life. Allow your thinking to be immersed into God’s Word and seek His light on the subject, until it becomes more real to you than your situation. Talk the Word and talk about the Word instead of the problem and you will begin to see that light breakthrough and remove the works of darkness in your life. That’s that power of God.

Matthew 6:33 – “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. (The Message)

See the word ‘steep’ there? That’s what you do when you make tea. You take the tea bag and immerse it in the hot water until the flavor of the tea permeates the water. The tea and the water become one. Then you no longer have a tea bag and water. Now you have tea. The two together create a new thing. Do you need a new thing created in your life today? Do you need something new in your relationships, health or finances? Then ‘steep’ yourself in God’s reality (God’s Word) and immerse your thinking in it until you are one with it- totally and completely convinced of its reality, ability and power. Then your life will take one a new reality and new things will begin to happen.

Isaiah 43:19 – Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. (KJV)

Until now, you may have had a desolate area in your life where good things just would not happen. They may even seem as though you will live out all your days in bad condition until you die, HOWEVER…

Repeat this after me, BUT GOD! You see God has made a way for you to escape the corruption that is in the world. He loves you and knew these days would come. He made provision for the hard times people are experiencing. You can rise up and begin to declare with confidence that the hard times are over for you and your family beginning right now. Lay hold by faith of the promises God placed in his Word. They belong to you as a child of God.

2 Corinthians 1:20  – For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us. (KJV)

We glorify God when we are receiving the promises and are prosperous as the result. God is not completely glorified by himself. Part of His glory depends completely on us. In other words, will people be able to ‘see’ who God is from looking at the results in your life? I am not talking about your “church going” life. I am not talking about the “Christianese” lingo that you talk. I am not trying to insult you or hurt your feelings by asking that. I am trying to get you to examine your life and determine whether the Word is producing what it is capable of producing in your life or not. If not, then start dressing up the impoverished areas with God’s Word. Start putting it first, ahead of the old things you normally put first.

Final Authority

I learned a long time ago that I needed to give the Word of God final authority in my life. I will never forget how bad off I was when I heard the Word taught by Kenneth Copeland that God’s Word is the highest authority available and that if I put it in that place of honor, it  would exalt my life to the level that God promised. Well, at that time my life was in the lowest place. I had nothing and was going nowhere fast. I desperately needed answers to my problems. It seemed that even my problems were having problems, but I took that advice.

I had nothing but God’s Word, but I soon found out, it was more than enough. I would listen to teaching tapes 40 or 50 times. I would watch videos of teachings daily and then repeat them in the evenings. The next day I would tape the next day’s teachings over that because I only had one or two tapes, but it was enough to get me started. My faith grew and so did my results. From then on, no matter what the financial advisor said, no matter what the doctor said and even no matter what the backwards preachers around town said, the Word of God became my personal final authority. If a circumstance or person did not agree with the Word of God on that particular subject, I would dismiss their opinion as quickly as I would an outright lie.

Thank God, the results began to come. Healing began to break out in my life. Impossibilities became possibilities. Defeats became miraculous victories. Rejections became opportunities. Everything the devil did was turned around to help me instead of hurt me. The Word was turning evil around and making it all good. People who once sneered and abandoned me, were now showing honor and respect because of what God’s Word was producing in my life and relationships.

God wants us to triumph to make Himself known to the world around us. That is what He has chosen to do. He desires to express His capabilities to mankind through Blood-washed, Born-again, Spirit-filled men, women and children who will dare to believe His Word. Why? I don’t fully know, but I know a good deal when I see one and this Covenant is some kind of good. That’s what we used to call my Momma’s homemade blackberry cobbler. After we picked blackberries and got stuck full of stinging briers in the berry patch to get those precious berries, we knew the reward was coming soon. We knew the smell of fresh blackberry pie would fill the house on a Sunday afternoon after church. When that cobbler showed up, so sweet and savory  with that flakey crust, we could hardly wait for our personal hunk. Then, once we were slicing into that hunk of berry heaven, we plum forgot about those stinging briers in the berry patch. We’d look at Momma and each other and say, “This is some kind of good”!

That’s how good God’s Word should be in your life. You should be experiencing God’s best in every area of your life until all of the stinging problems are long forgotten. It belongs to you. Why not make a brand new commitment today to seek God concerning your life. Ask Him to shine His light on your life and reveal the areas that lack the influence of His Word. Then pray, meditate and declare His Word over that area of your life. If things are going well, then don’t wait until they get rough to start. Start putting His Word first as a matter of practice. That way, if you are ever challenged, you will already have the answer.

Move Over Jesus

After you have given God’s Word the rightful place in your life, then rest in Him. Trust God that  things will turn out just like He said they would, and don’t get anxious about the timing. He knows the perfect timing and he will not let you down. Remember when Jesus and His disciples were on a ship heading for the other side of the lake?

Mark 4:35-41  – That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” (NIV)

Jesus who is God’s direct representation said they were going to the other side before the storm rose up. If God said something, we can bank on it! Just because a problem came up between the let’s go and the here we are, does not mean we need to get all upset and start worrying about it. God keeps His Word. How many times have you been in a situation like the disciples where a problem came up between the let’s go and the here we are?

I will never forget the first time God used me to speak to a storm. We were traveling with a church group on a trip and a tremendous rainstorm came up right in the middle of that ride. That downpour was so intense, we could not even see two inches beyond the window. The driver immediately pulled over off the road as best he could without being able to see the edge of the road or the ditch beyond it. The pastor who was in charge of that group asked me to pray, so I stood in the isle of that bus and simply said what Jesus said. I declared peace to that storm and it heard me. Inside of thirty seconds, that torrential downpour totally stopped and the sun came out along with a beautiful rainbow. Everyone clapped and shouted praises to God that day. God’s Word had prevailed. For many years that stayed in my heart and mind as the standard of how faith should respond to a storm of problems.

Some years after that, a great financial storm rose up in my life. Here I was between the let’s go and the here we are. This time, the Holy Spirit did not lead me to speak to that storm as he had so many times before. This time he opened my eyes to the most powerful principle I have ever learned.

As I meditated on this passage one evening, I saw something I had never seen. The Holy Spirit revealed to me another scripture to place alongside Mark 4:35-41 in my thinking.

Hebrews 1:2-3  – Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high: (KJV)

Jesus is the “express image of his person” or exact personal image of the Father. I realized that when Jesus was on that boat, he was the acting in the exact image of the Father. What was the exact image of the Father doing in that storm? He was sleeping on a pillow. The storm raged and he didn’t budge. He was going to just snore right through that storm; that’s what the disciples were so upset about. They were terrified, but He was not moved at all. That’s when I found out that the highest form of faith in that story was not the faith to speak to the storm, but the faith to sleep right through it! That is where God is trying to get us to. I believe the disciples were rebuked for not sleeping too; for not resting while their Master was resting in that storm. When I saw this, I immediately said, “Move over Jesus, you are hogging the pillow”!  It was the most valuable revelations of my life. Every since that day, I have been learning to measure myself by the God-level of operation. If it works for God, it will work for me. It is your turn as well. You can overcome anything you are experiencing by expressing your faith that same way God expresses His faith. Now when there is a storm, I can choose to rest. I can declare that no storm formed against me will prosper and rest in God.

1 John 5:4 – For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. (NIV)

Today is your day to begin to prosper in God. Today is your day to choose the Word as your source and final authority.  Make the decision that you are no longer going to live without God’s promises manifested in your life. Make today a new and exciting day for God’s glory to be made known though you as you prosper in the light of God’s Word.

Poverty: A Reversible Result

Poverty is a reversible condition. One can fall into it or even be born into it, but none the less, break out of it. Poverty in itself can be the result of a series of actions or inactions. Solomon ministered on the subject of poverty. Though he was never poor, he had seen some become poor in the time of Israel’s greatest wealth and peace. He offered advice to the poor as to how to come out of poverty. He also offered advice on how to avoid poverty. Here are seven among a number of verses Solomon offered in the book of Proverbs to help us gain insight.

– Dealing Deceitfully, Idleness. Proverbs 10:4
He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.

. – Laziness, Loving to sleep.  Proverbs 24:32-34   
Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.

– Being a Drunkard or Glutton (undisciplined living). Proverbs 23:21
For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

Proverbs 28:19 – Following worthless, down and out people.
He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough.

Proverbs 28:22 – Using get rich quick schemes.
He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.

Proverbs 11:24 – Being Greedy, Keeping too much for yourself.
There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

In most of these verses, the opposite of the cause of poverty is either implied or mentioned. For instance, you can get out of poverty by becoming diligent instead. Someone who is diligent at something can create their living doing so. In another instance, being lazy, loving to sleep produces poverty then again, being attentive and working hard can reverse that. The fact of the matter is, diligent people are not lazy. They sleep as a matter of necessity, but usually look forward to getting up each day and getting things under control and achieving their goals. That’s what satisfies them. They are not content to lay around and wait for something good to happen. They are determined to make things happen!

As you can see, you can choose which part of those verses you want to live on. You should be able to reflect on them and see where you are now and what you may have to do to change your status. If you already know Jesus as your Savior, then all you have to do is find out the direction God would have you to go in and become diligent at what you are doing. If you do not know Jesus, then now is the perfect time to make a change in your life. Make him the Lord of your life and accept the forgiveness Jesus is offering to you. Then start making decisions that are consistent with being diligent and it won’t be long before you are experiencing God’s best in your life.

We are in a time where it will be particularly to your advantage to come to Jesus. Jesus is our Joseph. He is THE ADMINISTRATOR of ALL that The Father has! Joseph’s story is told in the Old Testament Book of Genesis. Joseph is a type of Christ. He was positioned by God to save many people’s lives during a very harsh and deadly famine, but his family was not just kept alive by rations during the famine. They were given Egypt’s best.

Joseph Said:

Genesis 45:4-11 (KJV)
And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not: And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast: And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.

What Jesus Said:

Matthew 11:28
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

John 10:10 (KJV)
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Matthew 24:45-47 (KJV)
Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

Joseph saw to it personally that his family was well taken care of. Now that job belongs to Jesus. He is before the Father of Heaven as our High Priest and Intercessor making sure that the Family of God in the earth is well taken care of, especially during these tough economic times in the world. He is also our elder brother – we are his family. All we have to do is draw near to him and live near to him. We can do that by praying, reading our Bibles and praising God as often as possible. This is not the time to worry, but the time to expect God to move like never before. This is no time to be fearful, but the time to come boldly before God and ask for whatever you need for your life!

The Father Said:

Isaiah 1:18-20
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

The Father has chimed in on this deal too. He has planned to use your obedience as a key to release the goods of the area and nation you live in. Somewhere, not far from you, someone is living the good life. Why not you? It’s time to stop dwelling on you old sin life. You have been completely pardoned and accepted into God’s own family in the earth and destined for blessings, but God will not go against your will. If you prefer to live the low life, He will respect your wishes. If you refuse to accept His best and prefer to complain and struggle through your life’s miseries, then have at it!

God’s will is for you to enjoy the good of the land even if others are not, but you have to make the decision to follow His plan for your life and obey His commands to you. Then you will see favor on your life increasing beyond human ability. You will have impossible doors open for you. You will see limitations and curses on your life completely dissolved and your life rising into the fullness of God’s divine purpose for your life!

You have to make a conscious decision to prosper. You may even have to make it every day for awhile until it is no longer a decision, but a lifestyle. Once prosperity becomes a lifestyle, your can just flow with it. It will run like a river and if the devil tries to dam up your flow, you can do like the Jordan river did in Joshua 3:5 and overflow your banks! In other words, rise up until there is no more opposition. Rise up until they give up, praise God!

Joshua 3:15
And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,)

God has a prosperity program built just for your life, just as he did with Joseph. Start by spending time with Him and finding out what His word says about the matter rather than listening to the world complain about their problems. You will soon find yourself on a divine track of prosperity.

Have you ever been to one of those car washes where the valet takes your car through the wash while you wait? You have to turn over the keys and go into a safe place away from the machinery, mess and mayhem of the cleaning process. You get out of the way while someone else gets in and guides your car though the process. You go into a waiting area where you pay the price of the wash while the workers whom you have never met clean your car inside and out. Then when the price has been paid and the job is done, they call to you and put you back in the driver’s seat of your sparkling clean car. Now that takes a degree of trust doesn’t it? It’s a beautiful thing. It is a picture of how the Kingdom of God works. You need to get out of the driver’s seat of your own prosperity and let God clean up your life and your thinking, inside and out through the revelation of His word. You need to go into the place of trust and pay the price of prayer, worship and sowing seed while God repositions your life.

Once you have patiently waited, God will call you up to another level. Think about that carwash. You go in at one spot, but you come out at another place, further than where you went in. Glory to God!  God has another place for you, but you cannot circumvent the process or, like your car, you won’t come through clean (John 15:3 – Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.). God wants you to come through pure and holy. Let God finish what He started with you and when all is ready, no one will be able to keep you from your blessings. Just like Joseph was put in the driver’s seat of Egypt and Jesus in the driver’s seat of heaven and earth, you too will be placed in the driver’s seat of your own prosperity. Then whatever you say will become law and it will have to come to pass! I tell you what, if this isn’t helping you, it’s helping me!

Amen.