A Bible Devotion : God Gives You Ability To Get Rich

DEUTERONOMY 8:18 ICB
8 But remember the Lord your God! It is he who gives you the power to become rich. He keeps the agreement he promised to your ancestors. So it is today.

I don't want to be critical, but so many preach, using this verse, that God wants to prosper people for one sole purpose: to give the money to God so He can afford to proclaim the Gospel to all the world. But I just don't buy it.

I do believe God desires His people to be givers. And clearly we should proclaim the Gospel to everyone. Being selfish is the worst thing you can do. And usually the biggest enjoyment you can get from something is to give it away to someone who is thrilled with it.

But surely God is not waiting around till we get enough money to finance Him. And surely God is not worse than normal earthly parents. What earthly parent would give their children toys on Christmas, then tell them the ONLY reason they were given those gifts is so they could give them away to the neighbor kids?

I already said selfishness is wrong. If you are not a giver, you are not in God's will. But God does not give you things only for the purpose of giving them all to someone else.

Deuteronomy 8:18 is simple: it says God is the One making you rich, and He is doing it because He said He would -- not because we deserve it!

I especially like:

1 TIMOTHY 6:17 NKJ
17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.

God is not the kind of being who will make you just barely scrape by -- He gives us RICHLY all things to ENJOY. God gives to us because He enjoys it and because He keeps His word!

SAY THIS: I trust in the living God, Who gives me richly all things to enjoy. He gives me the power to prosper because He said He would.

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