With the state of the economy as it has been this week, I have to tell you it has been so amazing to see God show up so personally to me. We just wrote a check last week and spent a lot of our discretionary savings for a “new to us” minivan, which we love! Then the next day we watched the news and saw that the U.S. Treasury has been downgraded in status.
Will this hurt us financially?
Probably.
Should we worry?
No.
Why not? Well, because we serve a God who has His own economy. He is not tied to the events of this world. I want to encourage you to read over the verses below and memorize them. Meditate on them and say them out loud when you begin to feel anxious or worried about the state of your finances. Because we all know, unfortunately, it is our human nature to worry, right? 🙂
Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)
But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. I praise God for what He has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me? (Psalm 56:3-4)
Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. (1 Peter 3:13-14)
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7)
In a book I have been reading, The Power of a Positive Mom by Karol Ladd, there was a great tip that I’d like to share with you. Take an old shoe box, decorate it, and put a slit in the top, large enough to slide a piece paper into. (I’m planning on making a God Box with my kiddos this weekend, but if you aren’t creative or don’t want to make this an activity you do with your kids, any decorative box like the one pictured will do nicely!) Set it on your kitchen table with some index cards and a pen. Each time you begin to worry, write your worry down on the index card and slide it into the box. It is a physical expression of an inward action to turn all your worries over to God. Go ahead, put all your anxiety at the cross, give it to God. You no longer have to worry about it because you have handed it off to Him to take care of.
One of my favorite verses is the one that Faithful Provisions was founded upon…
“Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ” – Luke 12:22-24
What will be your plan to keep worry at bay when troubled times come around? Many people have already been experiencing financial hardship for some time now. The media will certainly not focus on a Christ-centered view of suffering, so I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas on ways we as a community of faith can encourage one another to look toward our Heavenly Father instead of things around us for our sources of comfort. Please share your thoughts.
wow, i love this idea, thank you for sharing it, kelly.
I like that idea, but want to put a twist on it. Sometimes we see God answer prayers but forget over time. I want our God box to be a collection of His past provisions, so we can remind ourselves how He has taken care of us in the past.
We just mailed off college tuition, so we know how you feel–at least it is deposited in a Christian institution which is a better investment 🙂
Isaiah 41:10 is one of my favorites! Thank you for the reminder, Kelly. The things of this world – economy, hardships, foreclosures, layoffs, are temporary. We serve an awesome God and will receive a royal inheritance that will make the “treasures” of this world seem insignificant!
I love this idea. I remember reading about this in Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. Which is an amazing book. I think I will do this as well, before my kiddos head back to school. Thank you
I have no where else to go but to the Lord. My husband and I have no family to turn to. We are both disabled (my husband is on 24/7 oxygen) and have our son, daughter-in-love, and our 2 y/o grandson living with us. We struggle every month to make ends meet, buy the medications we need, and eat. God has always been a part of our lives. We pray every night and praise Him for the blessings He has given to us and the blessings we KNOW He will bring to us. We pray and know that God will put us in touch with the right people, at the right time, and for the right reasons. We KNOW God will take care of us. He always has. We may not have what we want to eat, but we always have something to eat. God truly blesses us. For us, there is no where to turn but to God. He is an AWESOME GOD!
I love that you posted that. It’s absolutely true! I hear people talking negatively about the economy all the time. All that does is reinforce the negative and steal praise from our faithful provider, Jehovah Jirah. My response is always “I’m an alien in this world and part of God’s economy…” The enemy wants us to worry and keep talkin’ up how bad everything is. Why not praise God for what you do have and ask for what you need. He knows it anyway and never, never fails!!! But being part of God’s economy doesn’t mean we don’t pay attention to what’s going on and use the resources He’s given us wisely (Thank you, Faithful Provisions). We need to seek His wisdom in our finances and then turn it over to Him (the God box is a great idea).
Thank you – I needed this today!
I think we all have to love & encourage each other , as God loves us . I am always so glad to read your verses on your site . God is with us during the hard times & the good times .Keep up the good work you do . God Bless you .
Thank you for this! When I start to worry, I have to tell myself God is bigger than man’s economy. The last few years have been a struggle, I’m a stay at home mom, my husband is self employed in construction and we have 4 kids. We have seen God show up in big ways in that time. But there are times he keeps us desperate for him by not laying everything out for us so we know what to expect. Within the last month, things went from being pretty stable, financially speaking, to not having any work for a couple weeks and my husband’s back giving out. We recognize we have really been living by faith, and not putting our trust in our bank account. Persevering through our struggles grows us character and grows us closer to God. I’ll admit I have days when I can’t find my joy but I know I am better off having God on my side than not. One last thing, yesterday morning, hubby and I prayed together first thing in the morning, first time in a long time. Among many other things, we prayed for financial provision and more work for him. Ten minutes after we were done, we received an email from someone who was referred to us and my husband is meeting with him tomorrow about potential work. I know that’s no coincidence!
Thank you so much for sharing this idea. I will totally be doing this. I need some kind of physical reminder to give my worries up to God.
Thank you so very much for this at the right time. I really appreciate it!! I am going to share this. Everyone needs to be encouraged!!
I just have to say a word of encouragement to Beth!! I have been there and still am as I have had three stroke, divorced and raised two of my children by myself these last three years. We only know to trust the Lord every day!! It becomes second nature and I have seen the Lord bless us over and over and over! One day I told my daughter we need a financial miracle with money as we had none and bills were due(utility ones). Started praying and a check was in the mail that day…covered the bills…it came 1000 miles to be there that day!! Our heavenly father knew about our need before we even asked….”HE” is an awesome God we serve. He supplies our needs….we are to be frugal with what he gives us and in return he blesses “HIS” children. So many times I am blessed and I am sure you also. I will be praying for your family!! God bless you! Brenda
Thank you so much for this post. I needed the encouragement it provided. I think I am going to implement a God box at our house. Sometimes I need the physical action to go with the spiritual.
Thanks and God Bless your familiy.
Kristie
Thank you for this – it is so amazing!!! When my son was in college ( a few years ago) we started our own version of a “God box”. He was a long way from home, and being a single home this was hard. We were and still are very close. We came up with the idea of having our own box (in our imagination)) and we would put our troubles and worries in it and send it to Heaven – giving them to God! We reminded each other of it not long ago, and we both still do it! Thank you! You are a blessing!
I love this idea! Thanks for sharing it.