Memorise: For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9
Read: 1 Chronicles 4:9-10
9 And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow.
10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.
Bible in one year: Daniel 5 – 6, John 9:13-34
AS REVEALED BY PASTOR E.A ADEBOYE IN TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL
I have tasted both poverty and a little of God’s blessing, and I can tell you that the difference is clear. I have concluded in my spirit that poverty is not a virtue; rather it is a vice. A vice is something evil. Poverty is evil and a root of iniquity which every child of God must pray against. No wonder Agur prayed in Proverbs 30:8-9, saying:
“Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”According to this scripture, a poor man is on the borderline between innocence and the crime of stealing.
Today’s Bible reading gives a classic example of someone who did not see poverty as virtue but rather as a vice, and he desperately prayed poverty out of his life. Jabez recognized poverty for what it is, and he asked God to enlarge his coast so that he could be kept from the evil that poverty brings. Every one of us needs to be like Jabez who acknowledged that the God of Israel was the one who could get him out of poverty. Promotion and increase comes from God, and He is the only one who can take away financial, mental and spiritual poverty all at once. Any other source will give you wealth but will take away your peace. For this reason, Deuteronomy 8:18 says:
“But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.”
Every believer needs to ask God for the power to create wealth. You need to ask God to open your eyes of understanding to see the opportunities He puts in front of you to produce wealth and move out of poverty. Our Lord Jesus Christ has already paid the price for us to be free from poverty. Our memory verse tells us that He became poor so that we can be rich. It is therefore a waste of God’s grace and a belittling of the price that Jesus paid for us to still live in poverty. You should however not that we are also expected to live a life of contentment (1 Timothy 6:6-8). Today, pray like Jabez for God to enlarge your coast and open your eyes of understanding to see the opportunities He brings your way to create wealth.
SHORT REFLECTION BY THE LIGHT POINTERS
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Prayer Point:
Father, deliver me from the shackles of poverty today and grant me all-round prosperity to the glory of Your Name.
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Joesphine Ehigie
TJ