Date: Friday,
July 17, 2015
Chapters: Proverbs
22-24
Message Title: True Riches

Hello My
Friend,

Money, it truly is the root of all evil, I hate
money because everyone wants yours. Some people, including
Christians, will do anything, and everything to get their hands on as
much of it as they can. God knows what we need, He knows we need
money to pay the bills, have a place to live, and the luxuries we
have, He just doesn't want it to be an idol in our lives. Ask any
faithful Christian how many times God has waited until the last
minute to give them the money they needed for something and they will
tell you quite a bit. You see, many Christians are not wealthy, it's
not that God cannot give us wealth, it's that God wants us to live by
faith in Him and not our stuff. “That the
trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that
perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise
and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having
not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing,
ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end
of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.” - 1 Peter
1:7-9.

When Solomon became king he inherited all his
fathers fortune, then God blessed Him with even more because when
followed Him as his father did. Later in life, he got caught up in a
mess of women that drew his heart away from God, it wasn't until he
was on his death bed that he realized that having a relationship with
God is the most valuable possession we will ever have. “A
good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour
rather than silver and gold. The rich and poor meet together: the
LORD is the maker of them all. A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and
hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished. By humility
and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life. Thorns and
snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul
shall be far from them. He that oppresseth the poor to increase his
riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.”
- Proverbs 22:1-5,16.

A good name, someone who is upright,
moral, and lives a godly life, that is hard to come by these days. So
many people willing to sell their soul for riches, and it causes much
shame to their name. While God can give us just as much money as
Solomon, He knows what will happen if He gave it to us. Those who put
their faith in God will find His favor and trust with all things,
including riches. “Charge them that are rich
in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain
riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to
enjoy;” - 1 Timothy 6:17.

God wants us to know
how we can live the best life there is here on earth, no matter where
we come from. The only way we can do that is by getting in His Word,
studying it, and applying it to our lives. Chrisitans make foolish
decisions because they become envious of those in the world. “When
thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before
thee: And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to
appetite. Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful
meat. Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou
set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make
themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven. Let not
thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the
day long. For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not
be cut off. Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in
the way.” - Proverbs 23:1-5,17-19.

Let me tell
you, envy gets you no where, and selling your soul for riches will
get you somewhere, but not where you want to be. There are times when
I look at someone and wonder why I do not have the success that they
have, then when I realize what they did to get what they got I become
ashamed of myself. I've been in the world and got caught up in the
money that can be made in it, but then God showed up and gave ma
glimpse of where I would be if I continued where I was. I do not know
about you, but I do not want to gain any kind of fortune by doing
things that are deceitful and wicked. I want to be known for the
honest, hard work that got me where I am and the God who brought me
there. “He that is faithful in that which
is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least
is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the
unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who
shall give you that which is your own?” - Luke
16:10-12.

It takes hard work, dedication, and faithfulness
to obtain and truly understand and appreciate the things we do
obtain. We are not to envy the wicked who got their riches
deceitfully, not should we be tempted to do what they did to have
what they have. They have no real happiness of heart, their
prosperity is only for the present and there is no good for them in
the world to come. “Be not thou envious
against evil men, neither desire to be with them. For their heart
studieth destruction, and their lips talk of mischief. Through wisdom
is an house builded; and by understanding it is established: And by
knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant
riches. So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou
hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation
shall not be cut off. Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the
dwelling of the righteous; spoil not his resting place: For a just
man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall
fall into mischief.” - Proverbs 24:1-4,14-16.

Faithful
Christians are going to fall on hard times, even if they are rich,
but they have God to help them get back up. Stop worrying about the
things that you do not have, take care of what you do have, the more
God trusts You with the little that you have the more He can trust
you with the much He has waiting for you. “Wherefore,
if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to
morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye
of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we
eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly
Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye
first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things
shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow:
for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” - Matthew
6:30-34.

Today's Prayer:
God, I may not be the wisest person on earth, but I know that without
You nothing lasts. No matter how much I learn, unless You are there
with me, it is vain, and I will never be satisfied. I tried to do
things my way and all I did was make a mess of things, I am trusting
You to guide me as I learn Your truths and apply them to my life.
Give me Your power to live in and through Christ, who makes
everything possible, and supplies me with all I need for Your glory.
In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for
you,
Christina

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