GOD'S STIMULUS PROGRAM

As I write this article, American news is filled with articles and comments regarding the “stimulus” bill that was signed by the President just days ago. While it will take time, perhaps even years, before we can really know what this particular piece of legislation has accomplished, the initial response from Wall Street and the world financial markets has not been very positive. It has already begun, but in the days ahead we will hear a great deal of “explaining” by both sides of the issue attempting to help us understand why the stimulus has or has not worked. I know this is cynical, but the lawmakers in Washington treat the general public like we are mushrooms—they keep us in the dark and spread manure on us.

God has a stimulus program that does work and it works in good times and bad.

Genesis 26:1-3, 12 says: “There was a famine in the land…. Then the LORD appeared to him (Isaac) and said: “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you. Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father…. Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him.”

When the economy tightens, our natural tendency is to respond by tightening our belts. We tighten things up financially by cutting down on discretionary spending, and that’s not bad. For the believer, however, giving needs to be separated out of our discretionary file. I don’t give to my church or to the work of the Lord using the same consideration as I do when I am considering buying an extra pair of socks or taking my wife out to dinner. When it comes to giving, I do not weigh the positives and the negatives and see which one carries the most weight. If you do that when considering your giving, you will never give. I give because it is a part of my worship and I understand that God blesses a giving and generous spirit. I refuse to allow any taint of legalism or legalistic principles to get into my giving. I give because I want to, I have purposed to, and it is a joy!

Isaac sowed in the midst of a famine because he understood the law of sowing and reaping. “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7b) and, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6).

So what do we do as the economy continues to falter and inflation begins to show its ugly face? What were God’s instructions to Isaac? “Don’t go back to Egypt.” Don’t allow worldly principles to guide your decisions. “Live in the land of which I shall tell you.” Stay firm in the faith and in the truth of God’s unwavering care for His children.

God’s promise to His children was really quite simple:

• Don’t stop living as a Kingdom dweller; don’t stop giving because we are in a famine. If we give into that line of thinking, there will always be a famine of one thing or another to stop you from giving to the Lord’s work. If you are not a giver then you need to start, right now, because you are missing the blessing of the Lord. Giving is not going to affect your salvation and you are not cursed if you don’t give, but you will miss out on a lot of the blessing that God promises to the generous!

• Listen for the voice of the Lord and He will speak to you. God has been very precious in speaking to Carol and me in the last few months about our lifestyle and some adjustments He has asked us to make. If God can talk to a hardhead like me, He can certainly talk to you—and He will.

• God promises to be with you. In a way, this is the best promise of all…to know that God is with us, right here, right now! God is with us! If that’s not security, then nothing can be!

• God promises to bless His obedient children. I believe in the law of sowing and reaping. In the natural, if you sow carrot seeds you don’t reap pumpkins. In the spiritual world, when we sow our financial gifts as an act of worship, it is foolish to think that the only way we are going to reap is to reap monetarily. When we give and release it to the Lord, then He promises to bless us and He will do it in the way that He knows will meet our needs and circumstances the best.

So, do you want to “stimulate your harvest?” Plant more seed!