Have you ever wondered what your life will look like if you achieve the success you are constantly working towards? Have you considered the pitfalls you will face as you continue to increase your financial prosperity and abundance? Have you bought into the idea that once you arrive everything in your life will be perfect?
I believe one of the greatest challenges we face in our lives is learning how to deal with financial prosperity and abundance. We see it again and again with celebrities in the media. On the outside, it seems like they have everything a person could ever want, but on the inside, everything is falling apart in their lives. The same is true for many others who are affluent. How often have you seen or known people in your life who seem like they have everything, only to later learn about the mess their family is dealing with?
We have all been sold on the idea of living the American Dream. In large part, the American Dream has become about acquiring more and more material things. This is something we are taught from the time we are young throughout the rest of our lives. This is a major catalyst for the reason we constantly compare ourselves to those around us.
There is nothing inherently wrong with material things and acquiring them. I think the problem we face is when the material things actually have us. For this reason, I think many of us have the idea that, as good Christians, we probably shouldn’t become very wealthy. After all Jesus told us in Matthew 19:24 that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.
In studying this story, however, I believe Jesus was speaking about those who had allowed riches to become the central focus of their life. I believe wealth is extremely useful in furthering the kingdom of God here on earth. The question is how do you increase your wealth and prosperity without letting it become the focal point of your life?
I believe Paul answers this question in Philippians 4:12-13. He says he has learned the secret of being content whether he was living in abundance or being in need. What is the secret? He says it is doing all things with the strength of Christ. It is being self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency. It is the ability to live in any circumstance because you have learned to live in total reliance on God.
In our pursuit of wealth, however, we tend to work towards it in our own strength. Often the success and abundance in our lives has come from our own strength. We believe the lie that once we achieve the success we are striving for, we will then have the freedom to make God a larger priority in our lives. The problem is when we strive for success in this way, we don’t learn to live in reliance on God.
Are you striving each day relying on your own strength or are you relying on God’s strength? It is easy to lean on God when times are tough and we are struggling. In good times, however, it is easy to forget about God and to lean on our own strength. This is especially true if the good times you are experiencing were born out of your own strength to begin with.
I believe there is a better way to find success in our lives which will allow us to enjoy wealth and abundance without our lives falling apart in the process. It starts with your reliance on God. It is waking up each day, cultivating your relationship with God, constantly recognizing your lack of self-sufficiency, and acknowledging your need for His strength in your life. It is continually reminding yourself that everything you are and everything you have are all because of God. It is seeking first the kingdom of God in your life and the righteousness of Christ and allowing God to provide for all your needs. If you can do this, I believe you will have learned the secret to living in abundance.
“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:12-13 NIV
