What I really want to say (but don’t)

I provide counsel to people. I am not a counsellor, in the sense of having formal training, but I do provide listening and direction and prayer and Scripture for people in conversations. Sometimes, though, I have a sense of wanting to say something more.

Today was one of those conversations. The family is struggling financially and I want to say, “Sell the truck.” I want to say, “What is your giving to God, even though you don’t have much to give.” I want to say, “Don’t knock on wood, because wood won’t help.”

What I probably should do is have a set of broadsides, tracks, which have those kinds of questions to just hand people after we talk and say, “read this.”

For example, after talking with someone about their financial struggles, they could read something like this:

No one ever has enough…of anything. Enough isn’t part of being human. We always lack a little of what we need to finally catch up on the bills, to finally feel loved, to have the status we always wanted.

Of course, when we are trying to pay the rent to avoid eviction, money isn’t status, it is survival. Even then, money isn’t the complete answer. WHY is the money short? Does God hate me? Is He punishing me? Is He testing my faith? Is there a God?

Let me suggest some things to think about when the money is short.

1. This shortfall MAY be “consequence pain” for past bad decisions. If we lost money by gambling 5 years ago, we may still be dealing with that shortfall now. Our addictions, our relationship failures, and/or our sins of the past have present consequences. If we have confessed the sin, we can be confident that there is forgiveness, but that doesn’t take away the child support responsibility or the credit card bills.

In fact, those things are likely to remain to be paid off through Biblical financial diligence as we trust in God to lead us and provide for us.

Part of that diligence may relate to a second “cause”.

2. This shortfall may be a consequence of trying to keep our money from God for ourselves.

Everyone who knows anything about church knows that churches always ask for money. And that is as it should be. Every church flock that is serious about growing fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ will teach those people to consistently, sacrificially, and joyously give of time, energy, attention, and money.

We often talk about the tithe, the tenth of what we make (gross, not net). And we often say that God established the tithe in the Old Testament, but never reasserted it in the New Testament and so we don’t need to follow it.

I would suggest that we still need to follow it, particularly becauseGod invites us to test His promise. In Malachi, God says to give Him the tithe and see if we don’t see blessing.

However, often we don’t give because we can’t afford it. “I run out of money before I run out of month already,” someone says. “How do I have enough to give to God?”

I believe that we need to give to God as an element of trusting Him, saying to God, “This is yours so I’ll give it to you, but I don’t know how we will survive.”  Our shortfall may be because we aren’t giving God what is His, living, in essence, on stolen money.

3. This shortfall may be allowed by God to teach us to trust Him rather than ourselves. Even if we are tithing and have made right decisions, God may allow us to have barely enough money so that we are forced to talk to Him. For some of us, this is because we would forget Him completely if we had great wealth.4. This shortfall may be allowed by God in answer to our prayer to give us direction. Often, we ask God to guide us as we are making a decision. And then, we find that we don’t have the money we need to follow through on our decision. God may be answering our prayer. The lack of money keeps us from doing or going or buying or whatever.

So, how do you know which situation is yours? ASK GOD. Ask God to show you any sin. Ask God to help you trust Him. Ask God to give you peace. Ask God to show you who to talk with.