Luke 15:31-32 ” `My son,’ the father said, `you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”

God does not spoil us, His children, but He is not stingy, either. So many people misunderstand Him in one direction or the other on that issue. In recent years we’ve heard a lot from Prosperity Gospel people who focus on the abundance of God’s supply, but the key that there is something wrong is that they seem almost entirely fixated on material wealth, and there’s a lot of “giving to get.” Some organizations (I don’t want to call them ministries) are essentially pyramid schemes, with the man or woman at the top raking in the money. I will leave it to God to settle those accounts. On the other hand, there are those who refuse the spiritual abundance God has for us, and turn their backs on all sorts of blessings. They malign God by saying that He changes, that He doesn’t do today the things described in the Bible. There too, God is the judge. Jesus had the father in this parable say, “Everything I have is yours,” and there is complete agreement that this is a picture of our heavenly Father. Paul echoed this in 1 Corinthians 3:21-23, keeping it in the context of God’s supremacy, yet by his own testimony he experienced times of lack in virtually every area. (Philippians 4:12) People tend to forget this when they quote Philippians 4:19! God never runs short of anything, and He is not at all stingy, but He is more interested in our character than our comfort, our maturity than our physical pleasure.

I have experienced this enough to have a good bit of peace with it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still have my panic moments. That should give me empathy and patience with those who are much less secure in God’s provision. The current situation is a case in point. I hesitate to tell some of the people that God’s plan isn’t what we thought it was, because I’m concerned what their reaction will be. However, I need to praise God that He has provided this training opportunity so that we may grow as His disciples. I am not to hesitate to ask God for my needs, or even for my wants, but I need to walk in complete trust that He knows my true needs better than I do, and He will supply those in gracious abundance. If I am not living that way, how can I train the believers to walk that way?

Father, thank You indeed for Your perfect plans for us. Help me grow in my submission, trust, and obedience, so that all of Your plans for me and for this church may be fulfilled, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!