Devotion: Is Money Your God?

Most of us have heard the phrase, “Money is the root of all evil.”  Stated this way, this phrase leads us to believe that “money” itself is “the root or cause of all evil.”

“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Timothy 6:10).

According to scripture, it “the love of money” that is “the root or cause of all evil.”  The actual wording brings to light a slightly different interpretation where “the love of money” is the root cause of all kinds of evil and not money itself.  It is this “love of money,” this desire in people to be rich that is the first step of a downward spiral that causes all kinds of wrongdoings just to acquire this money.  Those who covet after money, fall into temptation, and do all kinds of unwise, destructive, and malicious things that eventually hurts them, all to satisfy this desire to gain access to money.  Because of their “love of money,” these same people have turned away from God, have been led astray from the faith, and have inflicted themselves with countless sorrows that eventually lead to their ruin and destruction.

Devotion: Magnify God

The Bible says, “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17), but most believers do not live there, that is to say that they do not “live by faith.”  What we do instead is, we visit there from time to time.  Yes, we live by faith on occasion, but we never dwell there, nor do we take up residency there.  And though we see things that causes us to believe that anything is possible with God many times over, we fail to constantly maintain that belief, that level of faith that the scriptures say, “we should live by.”  Because we fail to live there, to take residency, we tend to be “carnally minded,” which the scripture says is “death” (Romans 8:6).  Carnally mindedness is being focused on the things of this world from a human emotional standpoint.  Carnally minded people fail to focus on God, fail to focus on his word, and fail to focus on the things of God.

“Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks.  But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened” (Romans 1:21 AMPC).

Devotion: God Gave Us Dominion

One of the most misunderstood gifts that God has ever given to mankind was “the original dominion” he gave to the first man.  When man was created, God gave man authority or “dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth” (Genesis 1:26-28).  God told man to subdue the earth and have dominion over everything.  He was to reign over God’s creation.

“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor.  Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:  all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas” (Psalm 8:3-8).

Devotion: Train Your Children

Scripture tells us “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).  We kind of like the way “The Living Bible”translates this verse.

“Teach a child to choose the right path, and when he is older, he will remain upon it” (Proverbs 22:6 TLB).

We see here that not only are we to train up a child in the way he or she should go, but we are to teach a child to choose the right path and when the child is older, the child will not depart from that right path but will remain or stay on that path.  “The Amplified Bible” translates the passage this way:

“Train up a child in the way he should go [teaching him to seek God’s wisdom and will for his abilities and talents], even when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6 AMP).

Devotion: God Gives Seed

Most of you are familiar with “The Parable Of The Sower.”  Jesus explains the parable to his disciples this way.

“And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?  And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.  Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.  Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.  And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.  But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience” (Luke 8:9-15).

Devotion: Prosperity God’s Way

Here we go once again, talking about prosperity and how it is God’s will for his children to prosper.  In the past, we have shared several passages of scripture that show it is God’s will for his children to prosper.

“But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day” (Deuteronomy 8:18).

We have continually used Deuteronomy 8:18 as the anchor to our message to make clear the specific purpose for this wealth, which is “that he may establish his covenant,” a covenant “which he sware unto thy fathers.”  God gives us the power to get wealth to fulfill his promise, that agreement he made with our ancestors.

“Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant” (Psalm 35:27)

Devotion: God Sees Ahead

Throughout the scriptures, we see where God has always provided for man.  Nowhere is this more evident than in the beginning, when God first created the heavens and the earth.

“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.  And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.  And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.  And the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:3-5).  “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:  and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.  And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.  And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness:  and God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:14-18).