I was a highly motivated school-boy. I often finished my tests before the teacher had distributed them to the rest of the class.
I was in such a hurry that I seldom took the time to read the instructions – which is why I usually got a score of either 100% or 0%. You see sometimes I circled the right answers when I should have Xed out the wrong ones. Oh well!
Fortunately, when the Word of God is tested, it always passes with flying colors.
One promise is found in Matthew 6:33 which says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” – KJV.
This calls us to make God’s Kingdom business our highest priority. Jesus promised that God will provide all the necessities of life previously mentioned in chapter 6 such as food, clothing, shelter – as we prioritize His Kingdom each day.
We might paraphrase it in this way, “When we take care of God’s business – He takes care of ours.” OK, but how does this fare when tested? May I offer an example?
There was a time when a financial tornado swept into my house.
My pre-teen daughter was told by the orthodontist that she needed braces. The cost was $3,000 and he wanted half of it up front to get started. That same day my accountant called and said, “You owe the IRS $3,000 dollars in taxes!”
And then I went to start my car and it didn’t work. I would have to hire a mechanic to fix it. And then my wife threw a load in the clothes dryer, but it didn’t spin. Alas more money for an appliance repair man.
We were shocked, astonished and stunned. All of this happened in one day. Of course, financial problems occur. It’s a given in life. But they don’t usually come in a 4-pack. Was our sovereign God trying to communicate with us?
We had always been responsible with our money. We tithed and on top of that we provided financial support to three different missionary families.
But the $600 in our checking account was not enough to cover the $6,000 we owed. Where would we get all that money?
THEN to top it all off we came to realize that we were three months behind in the financial support that we had pledged to the missionaries.
Well, I guess we weren’t doing such a great job of taking care of God’s business.
My wife and I spent time in prayer. We decided that the first priority was to take care of God’s business. We had to send the money to the missionaries that we had promised. They might be hungry!
We could file an extension on the taxes, postpone the braces, let the dead car sit, and use the laundromat for our clothes – but we had to take care of God’s business. We must get the money to our missionaries. So, we did that, and it zeroed out our checking account.
BUT – the very next day the Orthodontist called and said, “Hey I understand you are a pastor. Well, we like to take care of our pastors so the braces will cost $1,500 instead of $3,000 and no downpayment is necessary.
Soon after the accountant called and said, “I worked through your taxes again, and found a way to reduce them. Instead of $3,000 you owe $300 dollars this year.
And then I popped the hood on my car. I found the problem and it was a cheap fix that even I could do. I was on a roll, so I tackled the dryer. Once again, I fixed it at very little cost. By the end of the week, we had a surplus in the bank.
When we take care of God’s business, He takes care of ours. It’s true. Even when tested, it stands. It gives me the confidence I need to rely on His Word in all things.
A PRAYER: Lord, help us to trust every detail of Your Word.
This had been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com
May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
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