Devotionals

Scripture Reading: Psalms 50:10

Do you know someone who has lost their job or has been drastically affected by the economic recession the United States is in? Perhaps you have been the victim of this recession and have faced foreclosure, job loss, or other financial distress. We can relate to what you are experiencing.

In April, 2009, we suffered the loss of Angie’s job which provided 60% of our family’s household income. It was a devastating circumstance in my life.

My family has also experienced financial hardships due to physical sickness that has left us owing doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies. All of the thousands of dollars we once held in a savings account is now completely exhausted. We wonder from day to day if we will be able to pay our next bill or buy groceries.

In the midst of financial devastation and physical ailments, when about to make a decision, I prayed and asked God how things could work with the nation in such a time of economic recession. God spoke to me in a still small voice and said, “I am not in a recession.”

As I began to think on what He said to me, God has assured me that He is not in a recession. Scripture after Scripture has confirmed to me that He is able to supply our every need. In Psalm 50:10 we are told that every beast of the field and the cattle upon a thousand hills are His. We are also told in verse 12 of that chapter that the world is His.

Revelation 21 gives us the details of God’s wealth as it describes to us the features of Heaven. Verse 18 tells us that the wall of the city is 216 feet and is made of jasper, and the city is pure gold, so pure that is “like unto clear glass.”  Verses 19-20 describes to us the wall of the city. They tell us that “The foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones.  “The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topazp; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.”

Verse 21 tells us that the wall of the city has 12 gates, and the gates are of one pearl. It says, “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl.” Verse 21 also tells us that the street of the city is “pure gold, as it were transparent glass.”

Can you imagine a wall with foundations made of precious stone? Can you imagine gates of the wall that are made of pearl? When I think of a pearl, I think of a pearl necklace made up of several small pearls. I do not own a necklace of real pearls because genuine pearls are expensive to buy. But my mind cannot comprehend a gate for a 216 foot wall made of a single pearl. I cannot imagine the size of the pearl or its beauty.

Listen friend, no matter our circumstances or the toll the economy has taken on our life, we serve a recession-proof God! There is no mortgage due on any of the features of heaven. God does not fear the day He will receive a call from the Bank of Heaven telling Him the property of that city is being foreclosed on. He owns it all, and it has all been paid for in full.

Our economy may be in a recession, but God is not. His demand level is not so high that His supply level can’t fulfill or meet the needs of His children. In Matthew 6, God tells us not to worry but rather to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and our needs will be supplied. Again in Philippians 4:19 the Bible tells us that “My God shall supply all my need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

“As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” in spite of financial destruction. My family may lose every material possession we have on this earth, but I would much rather lose it all and be found in the will of God and faithful to Him, than to prosper according to the world’s definition of success.

To be BLESSED by God in this time of economic turmoil, we must:

Be born again (John 3:7)

Love God and others (Matthew 22:37-39)

Exalt Him (lift Him up) in all things, good and bad (John 12:32)

Surrender to His call on our life (John 12:26; 2 Timothy 1:9; Philippians 2:13)

Serve Him, no matter the cost (Galatians 1:10)

Endure hardness as a soldier of Christ (Romans 8:28; Romans 8:18; 2 Timothy 2:3; 1 Peter 1:7)

Demonstrate your faith in Him (put it into action) (Hebrews 10:23; Hebrews 11:6; James 1:6; James 2; Colossians 2:7)

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• Tags: economic, recession, serve, victim

• Posted by: Craig Gentry