Worry No More|5 Truths About God’s Provision For His Children

God is our loving Father who takes care of His children. This truth excites some Christians because they imagine God will fulfil all their wants, wishes and whims. They imagine He has given them a blank cheque but God knows what, how and when to meet the needs of His children.

While growing up, my family enjoyed the provision of God in miraculous ways many times.

While living in a village in Kenya, the Nyariki family hosted us for two years and a half, another family supplied us with milk for free and others shared food with us. When we returned to the city of Nairobi, different individuals paid the school fees of my siblings and me.

Many times, when there was little money in the house, God opened doors for work or God touched someone to send us money at the right times. We saw God as our Provider.

Truth #1: God Calls Us To Live By Faith

When soldiers go to battle, they don’t carry all the supplies at the start. The command-in-chief knows the enemy, the terrain they’ll fight on and the duration of the battle. The soldier must obey orders and expect the weapons and food to be provided at every step until the war is over.

As human beings, we often want the assurance of a big bank account, assets or a stable job to feel secure about the future. But that’s not the life of faith we’re called to live as Christians.

From experience, I know trusting God and living by faith is a hard lesson at first. We naturally believe what we see, feel, taste and touch but the life of faith demands believing the God we can’t see to accomplish purposes we don’t grasp fully.

Abraham the father of faith, obeyed God when He told him to move to a country he didn’t know.

Likewise, God calls us to walk into the future even when we don’t know what awaits us. Faith believes God is already in tomorrow, putting in place whatever we shall need there.

We live by faith, not by sight. Even when we don’t understand why, we obey His commands and leave the results to Him. We don’t do things only because of the opinions of experts on the economy or the job market but by the guidance of the Holy Spirit who knows all secrets. We need to be confident that God knows how best to open doors for us in His way and time!

Why is our faith so little sometimes?

Apostle Paul asks, “Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?” (Romans 8:32)

And when God seems to deny us what we think we need, do we dare question Him? If we believe He loves us, has a good plan for our lives and fulfils His promises, why then do we feel disappointed when He says no? Is He not the potter and we’re the clay? (Isaiah 45:9-10)

Truth #2: God Hates Worry & Grumbling

My mother used to worry about our future as her children to the extent of beginning to have signs of high blood pressure. God rebuked her strongly not to worry about us. She began learning not to worry.

You see, worry changes nothing for the better, instead, it paralyzes and sucks the energy we need to work and serve. That’s why Jesus says it’s pointless to worry about food, clothes and shelter. Now that He takes care of the birds, flowers and animals, how much more us, His children? (Matthew 6: 25-34)

God’s ability to provide for us is demonstrated in His provision for the Israelites in the desert. He took care of about three million people plus their animals when they left Egypt without enough food and water.

How were they going to survive?

When Pharoah and his army pursued them, God parted the Red Sea and they walked through the walls of water.

When they got hungry, God supplied them with manna from heaven and quail for meat.

When they were thirsty, God provided water from the rock. Their clothes and shoes did not wear out. (Deuteronomy 29:5-6)

Wasn’t God good to them? Has God ever treated a people like He did the Israelites? Didn’t they see and experience His miracles?

Yet they weren’t content.

They wanted fish, melons, leeks, onions, cucumber and other things they enjoyed in Egypt. They complained and grumbled when they didn’t have water. God was unhappy with them and brought their worries and complaints to pass. (Numbers 11, 14)

Unlike them, we should not complain or grumble in times of lack. (Philippians 2:14-15)

The difference between complaining and asking is that the former focuses on the problem while the latter focuses on the Provider. Complaining forgets who God is and what He has done while asking believes God remembers, cares and hears.

Worrying and complaining is a sign that we’re still in charge of our lives. We’ve not come to a place of letting God take control of our finances, livelihood and future.

My fellow brethren, let us cast our cares unto Jesus, rest in God and allow the joy, peace and patience of the Holy Spirit to reign in our lives.

Doubting God’s work in your life now will not only delay your progress but will also hinder your spiritual growth. We should express our gratitude to God for what He has done and endure our circumstances as we wait for His deliverance in His time and His way.

Read more about contentment in this article; 7 Wrong Ways We View Contentment|5 Signs You’re Content

Truth #3: God Provides According To His Purposes

Now that God is powerful and owns everything, some Christians expect to become the richest people in the world. It’s funny how some preachers compare us to the first families of presidents and claim God promises to make us wealthy, successful and healthy.

Given a chance, many of us would instruct God on what, how and when to meet our needs. We imagine He has given us blank cheques to write whatever we want to enjoy life. But that’s being forgetful of our identity as sojourners in a fallen world.

Money does not satisfy the true yearnings of a human being. Rich people can be unhappy and poor people can be joyful in Christ. Our sinful nature cannot allow us to be free and happy apart from God, whether rich or poor, educated or uneducated.

How about the inequality in the world?

Well, God doesn’t divide wealth equally. He distributes resources according to His purpose for a particular person and gives them the capacity to handle those resources. That’s why everyone needs to understand the purpose and assignment of their lives. God can never fail to provide for missions He has assigned to His servants.

Read more about finding your purpose and assignment in this article; WHY AM I HERE?|Know The Purpose & Assignment of Your Life

It’s also true that not every Christian has the capacity to handle great material wealth or a certain level of success.

My wife and I gave capital of one hundred and fifty dollars to two young men who invested it in the second-hand clothing business but within one month, they had lost all the money and went back to their usual life.

Jesus said there will always be poor people among us. No one wants to be among them but poor people are people too. What makes me sad about the plight of poor people is that the rich think them to be lazy and stupid, but fail to realize they’re rich by God’s grace. We should be careful as Christians not to despise the poor because God cares deeply about them and He uses them to test us.

Believe me, no one wishes to be poor just as no one wishes to be sick. Rather than find fault or try to figure out what led them to poverty, we should be quick to share, support and educate them. If it were not for God’s grace, we would be them.

In fact, the Bible says God is the maker of the poor. “The rich and poor have this in common: The Lord made them both.” (Proverbs 22:2). Elsewhere hasn’t God said the poor will always be among us, so we can be generous to them? (Deuteronomy 15:11)

The prosperity gospel preachers quote many wonderful promises of God for health, wealth and prosperity but miss the timing. They quote, “Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren, but the sinner’s wealth passes to the godly.” (Proverbs 13:22) Does that sound like a promise?

They teach about taking over the spheres of influence in the world and bringing the kingdom of God on earth, yet none of that has ever happened in any generation since Christ resurrected and ascended to heaven. And if it happened, it was soon lost because God has set His time for the dominion and manifestation of His sons and daughters.

The prosperity preachers want us to reign with Christ NOW and enjoy those things NOW yet the Bible points us to a time we shall reign with Christ in the Millennial Kingdom and also enjoy eternity in new bodies that will never get sick or die.

Here on earth, we must be ready for suffering, persecution, diseases and death. (Acts 14:22) That’s what sin brought through Adam but Christ redeemed us and will wipe away all our tears! We’re here to serve first not to lead. We’re here to be humiliated not lifted.

Read more about the burden and benefits of suffering in this article; Where is God When It Hurts?|The 6 SOURCES, 10 REASONS & 12 RESPONSES Of Suffering

I wonder what they say about righteous Abel who got killed for making the right sacrifice, the many true prophets who died because of saying what God wanted, the righteous men and women of God who died of diseases and persecution in the Bible and the early Christians who were poor and needed help. Are they aware that Paul, Timothy and Trophimus became sick despite being God’s servants? Did they lack faith for their healing, yet they prayed for the sick?

Our time to inherit the kingdoms and reign with Christ is drawing near. Rather than focus on taking over the current fleeting and failing countries, companies, economies and governments, we should focus on walking with the Lord, serving others and keeping our light bright and salt felt wherever God positions us.

Whether a Christian is a sweeper or supervisor, peasant or president, poor or rich, they can still please God and do His will. We don’t need big titles and positions to be the salt and light. And when God promotes us to high positions or gives us success, we give the glory back to Him and use the position as an opportunity to honour Him before people and represent His kingdom well.

Read more about overcoming covetousness and greed in this article; We’re Born Greedy|12 Dangers Of Desiring Riches First & Fast

Meanwhile here and now, let us;

+ Accept what God has pleased or purposed to give us. (John 3:27)

+ Thank God for the little or much He has provided for us. (Ecclesiastes 5:19)

+ Believe God is our loving Father who will not deny us what He knows we need. He already knows. (Matthew 6:8) and He is capable of supplying all our needs according to His riches. (Philippians 4:19)

+ Share with others in proportion to what God has provided for us. (Acts 20:25)

+ Ask God what we need and wait on Him to provide in His way and in His time. (Matthew 7:7, John 15:7)

+ Remember that to whom much is given, much will be required. (Luke 12:48)

Truth #4: God Uses Whatever & Whoever He Wants

He used foreign kings and princes to provide or bless materially many men and women of God in the Bible. Israelites departed Egypt with many treasures. A Philistine King hosted David and his family for several years when King Saul wanted to kill him. Nehemiah, Esther, Daniel and his friends lived and served foreign Kings that God used to sustain them.

God can use unexpected means to provide for His people. As long as God has ordained a brook, bird or business to provide for His people in a certain season, nothing will stop Him. He can even multiply the little we have to be enough for us!

Therefore, never despise whatever and whoever God uses. He can use strangers, friends, enemies, relatives and brethren to provide for us at different seasons of our lives.

I’m reminded of when God used the jaw of a donkey as a weapon for Samson to destroy the Philistines, ravens to feed Prophet Elijah and how Jesus used five loaves of bread and two fish to feed thousands of people!

We have to maintain a humble and grateful attitude lest we grumble or feel too proud to receive help from the hand God has ordained for us.

Truth #5: God Cares About The Whole Creation

I’ve talked to Christians who think God owes Christians better provision, protection and success in this world than nonbelievers because they are His children, they serve faithfully and give tithes and offerings in church.

They are like the entitled kids of some rich people in our cities who fume and threaten their parents when they don’t get what they want.

When such Christians see rich nonbelievers, they say they’ve sold their souls or got their riches from the devil. The irony is that those believers won’t hesitate to receive money or gifts from such people.

But God gives skills even to unbelievers to invent and produce goods and services that are helpful to all of us. He gives rain and sunshine to all people. Doesn’t He own the earth and everything in it?

Read more about stewardship in this article; Money Reveals True Self & Spiritual State|9 Resources You Must Steward

In fact, some nonbelievers are more concerned about the poor, vulnerable, and the environment than some Christians. If you were God, would you bless the selfish Christian who doesn’t care about the needy or the generous nonbeliever who donates to charities and orphanages?

All creation is groaning and awaits the redemption of all things. (Romans 8:22) God desires all men to know Him. But man has kept rejecting Him. That’s why this world will come to an end and God will make a new earth and a new heaven where Christ will reign and we shall reign with Him as coheirs. (Romans 8:17)

Until then, God is working and we too should be working. We’re co-labourers with Christ. In the next chapter, let’s talk about how to work smart and enjoy what we do.

Thank you for reading this article. I welcome your comments and questions below – as iron sharpens iron, let’s sharpen each other.

 “Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them. Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” (John 13:17, James 4:17)

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Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. (https://www.biblegateway.com)

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