It took me a very long time to let go of my worries about money and learn to place it all in the hands of the Lord God.
It was the fear of falling short, of not having enough to live on. Due to major changes in my life, I was, more or less, forced to take a close look at myself and get to work on this. I realized that it wasn’t so much about money, but about the ‘worries’ I had in life anyway. I discovered that I was actually quite anxious about life… I had to stay in control, otherwise everything would go ‘wrong’!
Through Bible study, I discovered that I needed to let go of precisely this part: worrying about my life, about other people, about myself…
As a Christian, I knew I had to do this, but I didn’t. Not out of stubbornness or obstinacy, but out of unbelief. I realized that I didn’t truly believe God would provide for me: for my daily food and drink, clothing, housing costs, gas, etc. I thought I had all of this under my control and that, by working hard and doing my best, I would manage it myself….
That is not the case.
But the world around me is structured that way, and even some Christians in the church think this way: you have to do it all yourself. Work hard. Be smart with money. Time is money. Money opens doors. That is how we are raised, and that is what others tell us every day.
Until I lost everything and stood alone before the Lord Jesus with empty hands. At that moment, I realized that I could only continue living in complete dependence on Him.
The Lord Jesus explains to us that we have a Father who knows exactly what we need. Needing something is different from ‘wanting things’. The world around us pours an abundance of advertising over us, causing us to keep buying constantly. And to be able to buy a lot, we have to accumulate a lot of money.
The moment you really start thinking about what you, as a human being, need to be able to live, completely different things come to the fore. I now know that the Lord God provides me every day with what I need to be able to serve Him: in my daily life, my work as a Christian expert by experience…. Every time I marvel at the fact that I am provided for by Him. But it did require a clear choice from me:
I want to dedicate my life to You, Lord, and I believe that You will take care of me in the way You deem best, so that I can serve You in Your kingdom.
My decision to want to follow the Lord Jesus means that all my days revolve around Him. By writing about the Lord God, talking about Him, and putting my heart into my art. By studying the Bible, through prayer, and by lighting a candle daily: Lord, have mercy on us…
Workbook
Would you like to grab a pen and paper?
Then sit down and look around at all your possessions. Your home and its surroundings are likely full of items that, to a greater or lesser extent, hold emotional value for you. Then make a first list of the possessions that are worth the most in monetary terms. Next, make a second list of the possessions that hold the most emotional value for you.
Which list is longer?
How hard did you have to work for these possessions, and approximately how much money and time did it cost you?
Now make a third list of the things you truly need to survive in this world….
Making these lists can help you realize that God wants to take care of you, but that He wants to provide you with the things you truly need. It is not about status, pleasure, entertainment, or wealth. It is about understanding that God wants to take away your worries by showing you that He cares for you, but according to His standards.
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