Listening For God’s Voice

So you want to get out of debt. Wouldn’t it be beneficial if there was someone to accompany you everywhere and provide guidance whenever you need it most? God specifically made that provision for you, by His precious Holy Spirit.

Jesus said “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever—“ (John 14:16) There are numerous accounts in the Bible of God’s people overcoming famines, making wise choices and prospering when they listened to His voice and obeyed the direction given.

God can provide His direction for us in a moment’s notice in the marketplace, in times of reading and meditating on His Word, when we spend time alone with Him. What is important is that we are actively listening for Him – for He is always there. John 14:17 concludes about the Holy Spirit “But you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you [constantly] and will be in you.”

You may question “what if I don’t understand His voice?”, or respond that “I hear different voices at times”. If your cell phone has poor reception, you try to get outside or up higher, right? That’s to get closer to the transmitter’s signal, it’s the same action here. As we read and absorb God’s Word on a regular basis, our ability to recognize God’s voice will grow because what He says will always line up with what is written in His Word.

Psalm 119:105 tells us “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path”. What a beautiful and accurate description! Stop and consider that God has created the whole universe and knows all in the past, present and future. God loves you and wants to light your way in each and every path of your life, with this area of debt and finances one of those paths.

God will speak to us – as will the enemy. The enemy says “you can have this now”, God says “wait for it”. The enemy says “you deserve this”, God says “I will satisfy all of your needs”. I encourage you to pause and listen for God’s direction on purchases in the marketplace and especially major decisions with finances. Many times He will lead you to something better in His timing and also strengthen your confidence when you do make that purchase.

God bless you and me He show Himself greatly you

Paul

Steps Towards Freedom

We know the account in God’s Word of David slaying Goliath (1 Samuel 17), a monumental victory for God’s people. It is important to understand how David’s faith in God grew to be vividly demonstrated at this point. He states in the middle of the chapter that when he kept his father’s sheep, and a lion or bear took a lamb from the flock, that he went after it, smote it and delivered the lamb out its mouth. He also declares the Lord delivered him from the paw of the lion and bear.

David’s early victories in these and other situations gave him the confidence the Lord was with him. Our battle towards freedom from debt can trace these same steps. We first need to be strengthened by recognizing it is the Lord’s will for us to be free of debt. Romans 13:8 instructs us to “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another…” You may have a stack of bills that seem daunting, but recognize that David did not slay Goliath without first increasing his faith.

First, recognize that your current debt load resulted from spending more than you make, and decide some changes are needed to turn it around. Place your household on a spending “diet” or even a “fast” towards discretionary spending for the next month or two. This will allow you some breathing room, resulting in available funds to reduce your debt load.

Now target the funds available to your smallest debt while only making the minimum payment required on your other debts. Stay focused on this first debt through to its pay-off, this is like slaying that first lion as David did. Then the next month you now have both the extra amount you were paying that debt down with and the minimum payment available you previously had to use—go and take these funds and use them to pay-off the next smallest debt. You will be slaying that second bear just like David.

Your faith in God will strengthen in this process, as He blesses your faithfulness to reduce these debts. By paying off one car, you will have the funds available to eliminate the payments of the second car and when those are gone you will be able to retire that last Goliath—your mortgage. This has been proven to be possible in a relatively short amount of years if you stay with it.

The most important thing is to start… now. Not next week, not next month. The enemy will provide a thousand excuses why now is not the time to address this, because the enemy knows what a difference it makes in a believer’s life to be progressing out of debt and the result of when they achieve it. They are able to be a greater blessing to God’s Kingdom and are a testimony to those around them.

God bless you and may He show Himself greatly to you,

Paul

The Truth About Our Finances

The Word tells us that God is Truth, and how He desires for us to live in truth, “Behold, You desire truth in the inner being; make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart” (Psalm 51:6). Have we considered how this relates to our finances?

The tools of the marketplace scream to us that we can have it all now, but then what happens when those bills become due? How is your financial condition today compared with a year ago? Are you deeper in debt… with less savings? Sometimes an emergency with our car, home, or medical need can trip us up, but is our normal spending at a rate that if any wrinkle occurs we end up deeper in debt?

The solution is found in Proverbs 21:20, “There are precious treasures and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a self-confident and foolish man swallows it up and wastes it”. God’s Word is simply telling us to spend less than what we make, that is the truth speaking to us. We frequently deceive ourselves that we can have many discretionary purchases now with no consequences ahead. That is a lie which becomes more visible when the bills arrive each month.

Visible – review your recent credit card and other bills, look for the purchases made that were optional or excessive, and what affect they had on your ability to be ahead at the end of the month, to spend less than what you made. Make a truthful assessment of how important it is for you to have that item instead of the peace knowing you can meet your obligations and even emergencies that could arise.

Invisible – Ask the Lord to provide wisdom for you the next time you are confronted with making a discretionary purchase, whether large or small. We can expect His direction continually – “You will guide me with Your counsel, and afterward receive me to honor and glory” (Psalm 73:24). By starting to listen for and respond to His guidance in this area, we can also more clearly hear His voice in other areas as well.

God bless you and may He show Himself greatly to you,

Paul