Financial Discipleship @ Work Part 1预览

When the stream dries up …

Sometimes we get into situations where the cash flow starts to dry up, customers leave us or don’t pay on time; more money goes out than is coming in.

God can bless us just as much by withholding His provision, as well as He can by providing. He uses situations in which He withholds his provision to lead us, to form us, to warn or discipline us. A crisis is God’s way of teaching us how to deal with problems and is our opportunity to focus on Biblical truths and to experience God at work in overcoming such problems. Problems are opportunities for growth!

Why could God withhold his provision? He wants to take us to a higher level in trusting Him. Are we making business decisions based on what scripture tells us? Maybe we have been unfaithful with what he has entrusted to us. Faithfulness in handling money is, according to Jesus, a condition for being entrusted with more. Maybe He foresees that in allowing us what we ask for, we will be unfaithful or dishonest in our dealings, or He wants to protect us. Paul said that everything is permissible for us but not all things are helpful.

In all situations, whether in plenty or in want, we should give thanks to God, because this opens a door for Him to show us His solutions!

I remember the bank calling me to say that we were at the limit of a credit line which was completely financed by factoring our receivables. We needed more cash to finance a planned expansion, but this was not forthcoming, despite our prayers for His provision.

We decided to fast and ask God for an answer. It turned out that our market assessment for our planned expansion was incorrect and demand was decreasing. We were just too optimistic about the profitable sales we were expecting. Our focus was too much on money and not on business continuity. We realized that the Lord was protecting us by withholding His provision.

When cash is tight, and you have difficulty paying invoices or making investments, do you spend time asking the Lord for His reasons for withholding His provision so that you can learn from the situation?