Most of us earn money by holding down at least one job, or sometimes more than one. We’re accustomed to working hard for our paycheck and doing our best to make the money stretch as far as it can. Sometimes we struggle when we can’t make ends meet or unexpected expenses arise, and it may seem as if we’re always living in lack or insufficiency. This may appear normal to us, but God wants abundant prosperity for us.

Prosperity can seem impossible when we’re struggling to live day-to-day, but God’s will for us is much more than that. Trying to improve our financial state through our own self-effort can seem hopeless, but He can easily turn things around. “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). Jesus said this to His disciples after a conversation with a rich man who trusted his wealth more than God; it holds true regardless of how much or how little money we have. God is willing and able to prospere can turn things ahE CA us, but only if we trust in Him more than money.

To trust someone is to completely rely on them and have faith in them; this can seem scary if we’re not accustomed to it. We show our trust in God by acknowledging Him, not ourselves, as our true source of prosperity. “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today” (Deuteronomy 8:17, 18, NIV). This way of thinking runs contrary to what we see around us, so this is a step of faith for us.

Money no doubt means a lot to us, and there’s nothing wrong with having it, yet God blesses us with it to use as a tool to help others. The natural tendency is to have a self-centered attitude about money and put our own needs before others’ needs. Valuing money before all else indicates a wrong relationship with money. “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Timothy 6:10, NIV). When we make the mistake of thinking like that, we only hurt ourselves.

Instead of seeking money for itself, it’s wiser to seek direction and counsel from God in our finances. He knows just what we need, and He’s more than willing to provide it when we ask Him for His input. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). God is a God of abundance, and He wants to give us all the good things in life with none of the bad. When He blesses us, there will not be painful consequences. “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22).

One of the reasons Jesus went to the cross was so we would never have to suffer financially. He did this out of love for us. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Believing this radically changes our finances.