Daily Devotional
               Betty Miller shares her daily devotionals which are based on the book of Proverbs in the Bible.   

  The Wisdom of God

Verses for the Day:

Proverbs 8:18-21:(KJV): "Riches and honour are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness.
19 My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver.
20 I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment:
21 That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures."

Thoughts for the Day:

The book of Proverbs continues to talk about how the possessor of God's wisdom will not only receive honor, but will also be blessed materially. Portions of the church today are divided on the issue of God's people expecting God to bless them in a material way. However, the Bible is very clear that poverty does not come from God, as He is a God of abundance. God has never been against His people receiving riches.  What He is against are the things that many people embrace along with the world's wealth, these things being greed, materialism, lust, and the heaping up of riches for selfish indulgence.

Notice in the first verse above, in the list of things that wisdom will bring, is not only durable goods, but also righteousness. The wealth that comes from God will produce righteousness with it. Men who God honors with wealth, will also be those who seek  God as to how He wants their accumulation of gold and silver spent. Godly men will be looking for ways to bless others, and they will give to workers and ministers who are getting the gospel out. They will not be concentrating on what new thing they can purchase that will bring them pleasure.  They will be satisfied with a modest lifestyle and not seek one of hedonistic extravagance.

The man whom God shall make rich, will be a different kind of person than a rich man in the world.  His trust will not be in His riches, but in His God.  He is the kind who continually listens to the Holy Spirit as to where the Lord wants his money to go.  He will not consider his wealth as a treasure of his own, but will acknowledge God's ownership over not only his pocket book, but also that God owns his very life.  He will be ready to give it all away, and follow His Master, should the Lord ask him to do so. This kind of rich man is not troubled about losing his money, as he knows he is only a steward over it to begin with, and without God he would own nothing anyway. He understands where his wealth comes from, and that it could quickly leave, if he turns away from God.

Deuteronomy 8:18: "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. 19 And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the LORD thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish."

God desires to bless His people and because He is generous and a giving Father. He wants us, as His children, to have the same kind of heart. How much should we give?  The Lord tells us we should keep some money for seed for bread, but that we should also give some of our seed back to Him for the work of the gospel.  In the Bible, we find that he required His people to give a tithe (10%) of all their increase. That is a good starting place; however, the truly wealthy man will desire to give God more and more, as he is entrusted with increase.  One testimony I read of a very wealthy man whom God blessed and used to give huge sums of money into to the work of the kingdom, reversed God's requirement and gave 90% to God and lived on 10%.

Some of us may be struggling today to just make a living, but we can get out of financial bondage, by following the wisdom of the Bible in the area of finances. The Bible has much to say about finances and giving. When we give of what we have -- time, faith, prayers, and our money, God has a way of multiplying it back to us, meeting our needs, and giving us more, so we can give again. As we help one another, and go about doing good as Jesus did, we will find our treasures being filled. As God's children, we will receive our inheritance, and it is not only the material things we need, but also the treasures of heaven that money can not buy.  Only Jesus can give us faith, peace, love, joy, health and eternal life.

Prayer for the Day:

Dear Father in Heaven,  How grateful I am for all you have given me.  Lord, I have never lacked.  Yes, I have waited before certain things have arrived that I have prayed for. They did not come in my time, but Yours.  I trust You, Lord, that You truly have made us wealthy. I have a home, an automobile, clothes, and those wonderful appliances that wash and dry our clothes and do my dishes.  This gives me more time to seek You and reach out to others.  Thank you for these material blessings, Lord.  I am also grateful for all the wonderful friends you have given me and my husband.  Thank you for the people who pray for us and help us get the gospel out.  Most of all, I am thankful for You and Your love and that my name is written in the Book of Life. I pray in the wonderful name of Jesus. Amen.

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