I have posted several thoughts in this forum relating to financial prosperity. I guess one of my pet peeves is when people try to say that can't afford to tithe, give, think asking God to bless them is carnal, or they just have a poverty mentality when it comes to God and His Kingdom.
Anyway, I had a unique experience today I would like to share to hopefully stimulate people's faith and gain some comments on.
I live in California and out here we have fireworks booths. It's a great way to raise funds in a short period of time. Our church has a booth and the local UPC church has a booth also.
We actually both sale the same brand of fireworks and we are located in the same parking lot. The mall in which we are located is at the busiest corner in our county. We are west of the corner about 150 yards and they are north of the corner about 100 yards (details are going to be important so follow them).
The street that they are located on has probably about 30-50% more traffic than the street that we are on. They are located right against the side walk so their visibility from traffic is very easy. They are also located in front of a Mervyn's which has high traffic volume.
We are located about 40 yards away from the street in the parking lot. Therefore, someone has to look into the mall parking lot to see us. We both have sandwich signs on the street advertising our booths.
I gave all the details for this purpose. From a business standpoint they are MUCH better positioned than we are. We know the people in the church (they are friends) so we go over and talk with them and they come over to us.
We are both Spirit-filled believers, but our "faith position" is different.
When talking with them they are concerned with location, what the news is saying about how much people will buy this year, the high cost of everything, and all this natural circumstance.
We don't care about any of that. We are blessed. Luke 6:38 tells us that when we are givers that people will give to us. So I expect people to find us, come to us, spend more than they anticipated, and that our booth is blessed beyond measure.
In our town we can start selling on the first, which is typically a pretty slow day for all booths. They did $300 we did $1,500 and they had all the advantages in location and exposure.
We are all born again spirit-filled believers. God doesn't love us more than them and from a business standpoint they should do better. My contention is, because I am willing to believe for favor, blessings, and increase I experience it.
I believe that in God's Kingdom the law of sowing and reaping is indisputable. When you give, you receive, just as if you plant a fruit seed, you will grow a fruit tree.
When you sow spiritually in the lives of people, you will reap blessing in your own life.
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Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.
"You will be hated for my sake-Just remember that it should be for MY sake and not YOURS-
Do NOT act in such a way as to be offensive, and then blame it on me"
I believe that in God's Kingdom the law of sowing and reaping is indisputable. When you give, you receive, just as if you plant a fruit seed, you will grow a fruit tree.
When you sow spiritually in the lives of people, you will reap blessing in your own life.
Amen! Praise the Lord!
Glory... Congratulations.... I enjoyed your faith filled post so very much. I look forward to your Church having a record breaking season.
Yes, I believe we are moving in the direction of our words and thoughts.
I guard against the "what ifs" in life!
I quit tithing years ago. Started giving quite a bit less than a tenth. Within a couple of months, I received the biggest raise, both in dollars and as a percentage increase, in my entire career. And that was around the time somebody stood up in a testimony service and (among other things) said "God can't bless you if you're not tithing".
This year, after not giving much to church at all for the last several years (I give to cancer research and many other such charities, but not 10% of my income), I got no raise at all! Think it's because of my "unfaithfulness"?
We just sold our previous house, after almost two years of trying. Would it have sold quicker if we were tithers? How much quicker?
Every story of God's blessing because of faith is balanced with counterexamples. The rain (blessings) falls on the just and the unjust.
Faith works! Sometimes! Faith also fails, sometimes. When it "works", folks like to talk about it, and people remember it. When it doesn't, it's chalked up to God's better wisdom in the matter, or it just isn't noticed or quickly forgotten.
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Hebrews 13:23 Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty
the devil will allow what seems to be blessing to happen to cause folks to stop doin what the bible says to do. ive know folks that would get real blessed and quit church, tithing works , giving works ,its been proven, ur believeing or unbelieving in it wont change it at all timmy. I REALLY BELIEVE IN FAVOR SO LET THOSE FIREWORKS ROLL.
the devil will allow what seems to be blessing to happen to cause folks to stop doin what the bible says to do. ive know folks that would get real blessed and quit church, tithing works , giving works ,its been proven, ur believeing or unbelieving in it wont change it at all timmy. I REALLY BELIEVE IN FAVOR SO LET THOSE FIREWORKS ROLL.
If it were that simple, then faith would always be rewarded, and unfaithfullness would sometimes appear to be rewarded (that dirty devil!).
It's not.
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Hebrews 13:23 Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty
I quit tithing years ago. Started giving quite a bit less than a tenth. Within a couple of months, I received the biggest raise, both in dollars and as a percentage increase, in my entire career. And that was around the time somebody stood up in a testimony service and (among other things) said "God can't bless you if you're not tithing".
This year, after not giving much to church at all for the last several years (I give to cancer research and many other such charities, but not 10% of my income), I got no raise at all! Think it's because of my "unfaithfulness"?
We just sold our previous house, after almost two years of trying. Would it have sold quicker if we were tithers? How much quicker?
Every story of God's blessing because of faith is balanced with counterexamples. The rain (blessings) falls on the just and the unjust.
Faith works! Sometimes! Faith also fails, sometimes. When it "works", folks like to talk about it, and people remember it. When it doesn't, it's chalked up to God's better wisdom in the matter, or it just isn't noticed or quickly forgotten.
It would be a fools argument that you can't increase without God. Just look at some real heathens like Hugh Heafner, Larry Flynn and the likes.
There are two systems, the worlds and God's. If you are good (Bill Gates example) you can prosper from making the right moves and having good business sense.
If you want to prosper based on God's blessings then you have to do things God's way.
If it were that simple, then faith would always be rewarded, and unfaithfullness would sometimes appear to be rewarded (that dirty devil!).
It's not.
I think your statement above is where a lot of Christians get messed up...faith is always rewarded because faith never fails.
Now, having said that there are times that we are believing for things that we don't receive. Why? Either we asked for something that we had not been promised or we actually were not in faith. God's system works 100% of the time, no exceptions!
Praise the Lord that y'all were blessed. You implied the reason y'all outsold the other church is because they were concerned with the economy and so had less faith. So y'all received God's favor and blessings and they didn't.
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If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14 KJV
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? Micah 6:8 KJV
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3:2 KJV
Praise the Lord that y'all were blessed. You implied the reason y'all outsold the other church is because they were concerned with the economy and so had less faith. So y'all received God's favor and blessings and they didn't.
No, I implied that my faith was focused in a different direction. Their faith was directed toward the natural conditions mine was directed toward the promises of the Word no matter what the natural conditions looked like.
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