World Christian Leadership And Training Ministry

Prepare To Prosper

"Let all things be done decently and in order" (I Corinthians 14:40)

I cannot believe it, another year gone by. It seems that I was just writing the January 2005 message the other day. I am so blessed to have the opportunity to share these messages with you. I know from the feedback that they do make a difference in peoples lives. I hope to hear more from you by email at (wcltm@hawaii.rr.com) as the year moves on.

I just want to share this short message to help you set the tone or pace for the year. The Lord gave me this word for 2005, "Get Your House In Order" so that we can be in position to receive His exceedingly abundantly great harvest that would surely come. The message was "Prepare To Prosper in 2004" and I believe that most of you did. I also believe that there are seeds in the ground from your previous sowing that have not yet brought forth a harvest. Well 2006 is the year of "Ready Expectation." Be ready to receive the harvest that you have been sowing for so faithfully. Have a "Ready Expectation" of an immediate harvest in the future as well.

If you are prepared to prosper and have your house in order, then you should have a ready expectation to receive God's blessings at any time. Everything you receive from God requires a seed, some time, and then the harvest. Let me go over the preparation, the order, and the expectation process. Remember, everything also takes Faith on your part, not hope, but faith that it is so.

I pray that those of you who did not believe in the tithe have seen the error of your ways and now look forward, with a joyful expectation, to every opportunity to tithe on everything that you earn. The tithe is the key and it is the key this year and every year hereafter. You cannot get your house in order without first being a tither (I am speaking to Christians). Being a good steward of your finances is paramount to maximizing your blessings. If you cannot trust God with the tithe (which He has already given to you), then how can you trust Him in any other area of your life.

Being a generous giver is next. You cannot earn your way out of debt, you have to give your way out of debt. If you get a pay raise and you are not a good steward of your finances, then you will only increase your debt. If you give freely, then God will increase your finances. God brings increase to givers and sowers some 30, some 60, and some a 100 fold return on their giving. If someone sows money into your life, then you might say that they blessed you, and they did. However, they blessed themselves even more by their giving because the 30, 60, 100 fold increase will come to them for their giving not to you for receiving. It is better to give than to receive. It is also important to receive from others so that they can be blessed by their giving.

Get in the habit of blessing your Pastor(s) by sowing money (your seed) into their lives. You want to receive from their message or teaching, but you do not sow into their ministry. Never give more to other ministries than you give to your home church. God placed you in your home church, so take great care of it and its ministers. When you hear a minister of the Lord give a message and you believe you are blessed by that message, then always sow directly into that person's ministry. Receive the full benefit of their message by sowing into their ministry. Don't just take from them, but give to them so that it may be given to you. "Give and it (the thing you are sowing for) will be given to you..." "with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you" - Luke 6:38.

Getting your house in order also involves having the right order in your relation-ships. Of course, God is first and that means you spend time with Him daily in His Word, in prayer, and fasting when led to do that. Here is the order that I believe God has ordained:

God first - You are next (take care of yourself, health conscious) - Your family (your spouse is always first, then the children) - Your job (you must earn seed to sow) - Your ministry (this is the "fivefold" calling) - Your church (be a member not just a visitor or observer; everyone must be pastored) - Your church ministry (volunteering in the church to meet all of its needs). Is your house in order? (visit the Personal Awareness/Culture of Christianity section of this website for an expanded explanation of God's order)

God is an orderly God. Everything that God does He does on purpose. There are no accidents with God. All we have to do as disciples of Jesus Christ is get in alignment with His Word. God is also a good Father. He sends gifts to His children all the time. However, we are not always ready or in position to receive His gifts when they arrive. Did you know that God does not take them back? No, He says in Deuteronomy 28:2, that His blessings will "overtake you" (catch up with you). Can you imagine the angels that are following you around carrying these gifts just waiting for you to "Get Your House In Order" so that he can shower you with God's blessings. Get in position to receive in . Let people say about you, what happened to the _________ they were struggling, or doing okay, or just making it; but now every area of their life is prospering. What happened to them? The blessings of God are "overtaking" them.

Get right with God. Check yourself mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially to see if you are aligned with God's plan for your life. Read your Bible more often this year; read other books that edify you in the Word; attend Christian conferences and workshops; get involved in ministry at your church; keep God's order in your life and see what great things God has in store for you in 2006.

Remember that God does everything decently and in order. Stop the confusion and chaos in your life. "Trust in the Lord with all you heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths" (or make your paths straight) - Proverbs 3:5-6.

Are you ready to prosper? If you are then have a "Ready Expectation" to receive (Now) whatever it is you have been asking for from the Lord. God is "El Sha-Dad"-- "Daddy" and He loves to see his children prosper.

PRAISE THE LORD! *****

"Prepare To Prosper"

"I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; 20 that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days" -(Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

"And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. - (Deuteronomy 8:18)

"Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him. 13 The man began to prosper , and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; 14 for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants." - (Deuteronomy 26:12-14)

2 "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." - (3 John 2) Are you just waiting?
What are your expectations for the year? Do you have expectations or do you have resolutions? There is a difference. A resolution is based on something that is intended to happen or to be accomplished in the future. An expectation is based on something that has already happened. In other words, do not expect to receive anything from a source that is not already established.

Far too many Christians live year to year in expectation for God do great things in their lives, but nothing ever seems to change or get any better. They love to use the phrase; "I'm just waiting on God." The most unfortunate part about that is they are totally closed to hearing, let alone, believing the truth of what God desires to do in their lives.

If you are waiting on God to show up in order to do something in your life, you are wasting your time. If you have not done your part, or even started to do your part, then I have some bad news for you, God is not coming. God is not coming because He has already come. He has already done everything He can do on His part. Now it is up to you to do your part.

I know the Bible says " wait on the Lord " (Psalm 27:14; Isaiah 40:31), but do not take that out of context. There is a requirement on your part before you can wait on the Lord. This is the part that always seems to be missing. The requirement is a continual pursuit of the things you desire and have asked for. The Lord's blessings will overtake you (Deuteronomy 28:2) in your pursuit of His will in your life.

The requirement of a continual pursuit demands that you do not allow doubt, fear, or other people's insecurity to stop you. It requires reading the Word, prayer (also in tongues) and fasting, being a member of the Body of Christ in a church, fellowshipping with other believers, telling someone about your Jesus, being a disciple, and to not be moved by what you see around you regardless of what it looks like. The requirement is to freefall with Jesus, trusting in Him at all times. There are many dream killers out there looking for idle people who are waiting on the Lord. They won't support you or even believe God's Call on your life. God does not use people to validate you, He uses His Word to validate. God uses people to support you, as you pursue Him. So, do not wait idly by, but get involved personally. If there is an area of your life that needs healing, God will heal it on the road of your pursuit. God does not need to heal you before He can use you. He will heal you while He uses you.

God is already here. He has already sent His most Holy Spirit . What is it you want Him to help you accomplish? The Holy Spirit is standing by waiting on you to take the first step.

Where do you plant your seeds?
I believe there is going to be a worldwide outpouring of God's blessings on His Church. However, it will not show up in every church that says they are God's church. The harvest will come forth to churches that have already sown into God's Kingdom. This harvest will not only be the Hundredfold return, but many times greater than that to those who have prepared to receive in the coming year. They have prepared themselves to receive through their tithes and offering seed. They understand to laws and principles of God and actively participate in them.

There are many Christians that do not believe in the tithe. These non-believing, "believers," are waiting on God to do miracles in their lives, but they have no means to receive from God. It is almost as if they think that God is running a lottery in Heaven. Each day God has His angels draw numbers assigned to people and He then, blesses those whose numbers are drawn. I guess the idea is to "wait on the Lord" until your number is finally drawn.

If you have not been a tither as an individual, as well as, a church or organization, then you are disobeying God's command to tithe on your increase. If you are not a tither, you might as well keep your offering because God cannot bless your offering until you are an obedient tither. It is your offering seed that brings forth the Hundredfold return and more.

If you plant your good seed on a sandy beach (dead churches that deny Jesus as Lord and Savior) would you expect a great harvest for your return? If you plant your good seed on rocky ground (churches that teach false doctrine) would you expect a great harvest for your return? If you plant your good seed on ground overgrown with weeds and thorns (churches that tolerate the sinful lifestyles of its members) would you expect a great harvest for your return? God does not receive from disobedient, unrepentant, and/or rebellious people. Again, if you are not a tither, then you should know that there is no harvest coming.

God desires to bless and prosper ALL of His children. However, God is no respecter of people. He cannot bless one and not the other, randomly, as in a lottery drawing. Psalm 35:27 says, " God is magnified and takes pleasure in the prosperity of His people." God put laws in place and anyone who follows His laws will benefit from them. His laws for sowing and reaping were written over 4,000 years ago and they are not going to change today.

Genesis 8:22
"As long as the earth remains, seed - time and harvest cold and heat winter and summer day and night shall not cease."

If you do not have seed in the ground, then stop expecting a harvest from God. It takes FAITH to believe God's Word. You will never be able to understand this in your Head or mind. It must enter you Heart before it can be received. Ecclesiastes 11:4 says, "He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap." Galatians 6:7 says: "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." If you have sown nothing, then nothing will certainly be your harvest.

To those Christians that are obedient tithers and cheerful givers, but are not receiving their Hundredfold return (or anything even resembling it), you should consider where your seeds are being sown. The seed that is sown is the same for all of us; seeds may be words, actions, clothes, cars, money, time, etc., but the ground may differ greatly. It is up to us to determine if we are sowing on good ground. It is not difficult to determine. All you have to do is look at your harvest. If you are sowing financial seeds and your debt is only increasing, then consider the ground you are sowing into. The harvest does not lie.

Are you growing closer to God?
I am just describing some of the things that I had to go through before I was able to break free of my poverty mentality. I hoped and prayed and begged and waited for God to do something to change my life. I wanted to do things my way and I thought that if I stood fast to my beliefs that God would finally give in and bless me like other people I heard about. I say heard about because I did not personally know very many people who God was blessing with a tenfold return, let alone a hundredfold return. I even knew many people who were already blessed financially when I met them, but many of them were decreasing not increasing.

I often wondered how someone could be drawing closer to God and not be blessed in all the areas of their lives that I read about in the Bible. I could not understand how that could be possible. Actually, it is not possible to grow closer to God and not prosper in all areas of your life. The closer we all get to God, the more we have to surrender our beliefs. The same old beliefs that got us all into the messes we are in will in no way, get us out. I began to understand that every area of my belief system that I tried to hold on to from my past, would block God from bringing increase into my life.

God tells us the Book of Deuteronomy 30:19, "to choose life." In order to choose life we must surrender those things that bring death and block God's blessings from flowing. We may even have victory in a few areas and experience decrease in others. God tells us also in Galatians 6:7, "you will reap what you sow." The decision was mine to make, I could believe God or believe the world. I could choose life or defend death in my life. It was not up to God, it was up to me alone.

I did struggle initially. I was reading chapters of the Bible daily, meditating on the Word, praying for long periods many times a day, reading books and listening to tapes, and I was even attending church as often as the doors were open. I must say that I was growing spiritually by leaps and bounds, but financially I was heading for disaster. I knew in my heart that I was growing closer to God, but in the natural, in my finances, I felt as though I was growing away from God.

If you look around the world, the one thing that you can see as a sign that marks people who are not close to God is poverty. People and even nations that do not know God, the Father of Jesus, often worship idols. These people and nations have one glaring thing in common and that is their abject poverty. They have very little value for life and even less concern or respect for life. I understand that some of these people have never heard of Jesus and others have openly rejected Him, all the same, poverty is their badge.

Poverty is not debt. Poverty is below or a lower state of existence than being in debt. Debt is caused by spending more than you bring in, but in poverty there is nothing to spend. Poverty is a sign of a total lack of Relationships with Jesus. If you do not have a Relationships with Jesus, then you certainly do not have a Relationships the Father. Poverty is a " curse " and it is never a blessing. Poverty is a lack of life, of fertility to produce anything good. It is a sign of a Godless people.

If all of the above is true, then how can we as Christians, not prosper? I know there are many people who pursue a Relationships with Jesus daily, but struggle financially, I was one of them. I know if you are one of them and you are reading this message, then you are probably a little upset, but don't be. Jesus is the burden removing and yoke destroying, Son of God. It costs us as individuals to break the curse of poverty and trap of debt. We all have to give up strongly held beliefs about "our" money. I can tell you this, it is not about the money you possess, but it is about the money that possesses you.

If you want to grow closer to God, then you must do the things that He says to do. I Timothy 6:10 says, "For the LOVE of money is a root of all kinds of evil…" If you refuse to tithe, it is because you love money more than you love God and Jesus. Don't defend it, just surrender it to Jesus. If giving money brings fear and doubt, then know that money is still you lord, not Jesus. It is up to you to receive every-thing that God has prepared for you. Do not let pride, self-righteous, or fear stand between you and the blessings that your Father in Heaven desires to bestow on you. Repent and surrender, then trust God to do what He says He'll do.

God wants to prosper you. All of the seed that you have sown is about to arrive in a harvest that you won't be able to store up. God does not want you to store it up because that will cause it to stop. He wants you to enjoy it, give it for the preaching of Gospel of Jesus Christ and give it to others as a blessing. He wants you to be a blessing in someone else's life daily. How much prosperity can you handle? You can only handle as much as you are willing to enjoy and give away in the name of the Lord.

Remember, God wants to give you at least a hundredfold return on your giving (sowing); and He wants to prosper you , and continued prospering you, until you have become very prosperous.