Success According To God's Design...

I'm wondering, has it become the case that you so want things to be a certain way that you're starting to become impatient and frustrated?

Even worse, is your over-anxiousness starting to move you towards wrong choices and decisions...in an effort to MAKE the good you want come to you faster?

My friend, you don't "make" good come to you. Rather, you DO the right things that LET good MATERIALIZE in your life.

Maybe, after you finish reading this article, it would be a good time for you to open up your Bible to the story of Abraham and Sara and the mistakes they made...the pain they cost themselves...the trouble they caused themselves and others...trouble that's still going on today...all because they were over-anxious to have the child God had told them He would give them.

Now, permit me to remind you of something...

God's primary mode of operation is the Law of Sowing and Reaping...the Law of Seasons...the Law of Process...

YOUR business is sowing right thoughts and right actions so that you reap the good you desire.

And here's the deal...there is ALWAYS an interval of time between the sowing and reaping. No person has ever planted something good and immediately harvested the fruits and rewards...never!

What is that period in the middle between planting and harvesting?

It's the period of GROWTH, right?

It's YOUR time for growth...it's YOUR time to increase your capacity to provide value to mankind and your ability to bring glory to God.

So, when you ACCEPT God's design of sowing...GROWTH...reaping, THEN life becomes much easier, happier, and enjoyable. There's far less stress and frustration. You can just relax into knowing that your good is on its way...that it is materializing.

And besides...right now...during this period when YOU GET TO GROW...everything really is ok. Is it perfect and ideal? Probably not...but overall, you really are ok.

Now, let me make a slight shift...the sooner a person gets focused on sowing their OWN good, the sooner they can start reaping their OWN good.

Why am I saying this?

There are those people who both sow "bad stuff" in their own garden of life and they neglect taking care of it. But, when harvest time comes, they don't want the LACK that their "LACK of good sowing" has produced.

So then, they look around and want some "neighbor" who has sowed "goodness and blessings"...one who harnessed and directed his/her mind and activities for goodness and blessings...one who put a lot of hard work into taking care of his/her garden of life...to give of his/her good harvest to them...even though they've done nothing to deserve or earn the good that the "neighbor" has worked so hard to produce.

In Matthew 25 we read about 10 virgins...all of them were good people...but five of them were wise ones who took care of their OWN good...and the other five were foolish because they "wanted" the wise ones to give them of their "good"...and they were instructed to go get their own good for themselves.

We each have to take care of our own harvest by first sowing and then growing into the harvest we want.

That's the model the Bible gives us.

Peace, love, and blessings,
Lane

Copyright © 2010 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

God's Gift That Gives You Everything You Want

Are you aware that God has given you a special gift that has unfathomable potential?

Do you realize this gift God has given you is everything you need to get and enjoy all that you want to get and enjoy...this gift is everything you need to be able to help the people God wants you to help?

Did you know that when you accept and embrace this gift it brings you unending joy, happiness, and satisfaction?

Oddly enough, there are some people who have not accepted this gift from God...some have even went so far as to refuse this gift.

What is this gift I'm speaking of?

The gift of work...the gift of achieving and accomplishing...the gift of producing and providing.

Now, consider this...

Anything that a wealthy person does to create wealth a non-wealthy person can do too.

Anything that a person with money is doing to create money...well, a person without money could do the same thing to create money too.

But, they don't.

It has to do with their perspective, their focus, their attention...and their willingness.

For example, wealthy people are concerned about being valuable...about creating and delivering value to other people.

That's something that anyone can do.

But, non-wealthy people aren't concerned about value...they're concerned about just getting by. Or, they're concerned about WHO is going to GIVE them what they want...and those are the people who are really suffering financially.

Wealthy people TALK to other people to FIND OUT what they would pay money for.

That's something that anyone can do.

Wealthy people take what they LEARN from people and they creatively come up with a way to PROVIDE people with what they will pay for.

That's something that anyone can do.

Wealthy people MARKET and SELL whatever it is that they've come up with that people want and will pay for.

That's something that anyone can do.

Really, it is!

Right now, if you really put your mind to it, you could begin doing all of these things that wealthy people do. And, if you wanted to be smart about it, you could go to your local library, check out an armload of books and in a week or two, you'd have enough knowledge on these subjects to get started.

Literally, one to two weeks of study and research is all you need...the rest of what you need to learn you can learn AFTER you GET STARTED.

Getting started...that too is something that anyone can do.

But only successful, wealthy people actually do.

It's interesting...successful, wealthy people became that way because they were willing to get started right where they were at with whatever resources they had. And, if you track back to the roots of MOST successful, wealthy people you'll invariably find that that "where they were at" wasn't exactly the greatest of circumstances...and the "resources they had" were quite limited...and THEY STARTED ANYWAY.

They started SMALL and through the GIFT OF WORK, their circumstances improved and their resources increased.

But strangely, non-wealthy people don't want to start small. They want somebody to GIVE them several million dollars so they can start BIG!

Non-wealthy people want to go from a non-existent enterprise to an internationally recognized enterprise...they want to go from no resources to unlimited resources...and they want this to happen almost instantly...without any pain, embarrassment, or abasement on their part.

Thousands and thousands of people have told me that God called them to a ministry...and even though God "called" them, they are ready to give up and abandon their calling because they don't know how to go from nothing to international...they don't know how to go from nothing to unlimited resources...so they do little to nothing...except complain to people and God about how God called them but He won't give them the resources they need...

But, He did! He already gave you what you needed. He gave you...

The gift of work!

STARTING HUGE is NOT God's model of ministry or business. Go read your Bible...you'll find that God's model is ALWAYS about starting SMALL.

God's model is always about YOU starting small...humbling yourself down...abasing yourself...so that God can make you great.

It's in your Bible...from front to back!

We could use any great person from the Bible but let's use King David. God "called" him to be King of Israel...David was literally anointed by God's prophet to be the King of Israel and yet it was years before he actually reached that position. And, before he reached that position, the Bible recounts what a lowly, humble, and in several cases humiliating and embarrassing lifestyle David lived.

How many people do you know that are willing to humble themselves down to a small and lowly lifestyle so that God can bless and exalt them?

What about you?

There's more...

In the case of David, the whole time he was small and lowly, he was busy WORKING, doing the best that he knew how to do before God and man.

This mindset that David had is revealed to us by his son in Ecclesiastes 2:14... "The wise man's eyes are in his head".

In other words, a wise person...a successful person isn't looking around at what's OUTSIDE of them and letting what's OUTSIDE of them dictate what they can or cannot do. Rather, they are using their IMAGINATION to "see" good things and then they WORK accordingly to the best of their ability.

Maybe, that's a shift in perspective that you need to make?

The gift of God...

Everything you want is dependent upon YOU embracing this gift.

All your hopes and dreams...

Ecclesiastes 5:3 says, "For a dream cometh through the multitude of business [much work]"

Notice, the Bible doesn't say your dreams will come to you through some person giving you a gift out of their bounty.

A person can continue to want someone else to give them their good...a person can keep looping on that strategy...but I don't advise that approach because it only serves to keep your good pushed away from you. What brings your good to you is WORK.

But, don't take my advice...take God's...

Ecclesiastes 3:13 tells us... "that every man should...enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God."

What "good" is your labor producing?

Consider that question carefully because all the good that which you wish to enjoy is dependent upon YOUR labor.

Work...it's God's gift...it's God's design...it's God's model...

Ecclesiastes 2:24 says, "There is nothing better for a man, than...that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God."

Peace, love, and blessings,
Lane

Copyright © 2009 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

When God Gets To Know YOU

Today's message is unusual.

It's what the Lord has laid on my heart to share with you today.

I trust that you'll gain strength from it.

Forewarned is forearmed.

Let's start with a few scriptures...

"Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is." 1 Corinthians 3:13

"for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins." Psalm 7:9

"O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest the reins and the heart" Jeremiah 11:20

"I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings." Jeremiah 17:10

"and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works." Revelation 2:23

Now, with these scriptures in mind, here's the message...

Anyone can stand tall and "think" they are strong when nobody is withstanding them or resisting them.

It's easy to feel righteous, holy, and "powerful" when your spouse, children, family, friends, church, colleagues, etc are passively LETTING you be the "Big Boss".

But, when these people begin to resist you...

When they begin to go against you...

When they begin to defy you...

When they begin to go away from you and away from what you want...

When they begin to let you down and fail you...

When they begin to turn on you...

When they begin to try to tear you down...

When they begin to find fault with you...

When they begin to criticize and belittle you...

When they begin to defame your name...

When they laugh and make fun of you...

That's when you can really see of "what sort" you are.

That's when you "learn" how your reins lie.

That's when you find out what's really in your heart.

And, while you're battling with all this resistance and opposition...while you're struggling to keep a smile on your face in spite of all the hurt and pain you feel, that's USUALLY when others who "think" they are "standing tall" start JUDGING you.

While you're being withstood, they start comparing how good things are for them and how "messed up" you and your situation is...and they judge themselves as better than you...they judge themselves as righteous and you as a sinner...they judge themselves as blessed of God and you cursed of God.

And, I CAN PROMISE YOU, if you wish to be a child of God, there WILL come a time in your life when this happens!

When that time comes, when you're facing that pressure, LET nothing but LOVE AND THE LIGHT OF CHRIST come out of you.

When your carnal flesh wants to be angry and to hate, go ahead and just forgive them – just like Christ did.

And, for YOUR sake, I want you to do this too...

Come out of the experience more loving towards God and people than ever before!

Would you do that for YOU?

Now, I wish I could tell you that was all there was to God trying your reins and heart.

But, unfortunately, that was the EASY test. If you make it through that one, then comes the HARD test...

WHEN YOU'RE ASKING GOD FOR SOMETHING GOOD AND YOU'RE NOT GETTING IT – BUT OTHERS AROUND YOU ARE!

THAT'S when God REALLY finds out whether or not you love Him above all else.

THIS is when God gives YOU the chance to PROVE that you WILL have FAITH in Him, His love, His providence, and His desire to do YOU good NO MATTER WHAT.

And, it's during this time that the devil talks the loudest in your ear. It's during this time that the devil is telling you that God doesn't care about you because if He did, He wouldn't be letting this happen to you...that a "loving" God wouldn't do this to you.

As this is going on, I want YOU to proclaim God's certain blessings in YOUR life.

I want you to testify of God's sure answers to YOUR prayers.

I want you to TELL YOURSELF about the inevitable fulfillment of God's Word and promises FOR YOU.

I want you to WORSHIP and PRAISE God with your loving, positive thoughts and words towards Him and others.

And, know that you're NOT the only person that this has happened to. It has happened to EVERY true child of God. In fact, we have the Biblical account of this happening to the man who introduced Christ to the world...

"Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me." Matthew 11:2-6

My friend, don't be OFFENDED in Christ when your time of testing comes. Instead, be CONFIDENT that after the time of testing God will raise you up, God will exalt you. You will be made triumphant and victorious and you will HAVE a POWERFUL testimony that comes from your heart that touches the heart of those you'll tell it to.

Brother and Sister in Christ, be encouraged. Be strengthened in the Lord. He really does want to do you good. He just wants to know that you value your relationship with Him, that you will be faithful, loving, and true to Him regardless of circumstances and conditions.

And, once you've proven that, WATCH OUT! The blessings WILL FLOW into your life beyond your wildest imagination.

And, here's scripture to prove the truth of what I just said...

"For I [The Lord] KNOW him [Abraham], that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him." Genesis 18:19

Bottom line...

"Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But REJOICE..." 1 Peter 4:12-13

When the things I'm talking about come your way, don't think it strange or bad. Rather, think of it this way: God is showing special attention to YOU because He wants to get to KNOW the REAL YOU.

Now, gain strength for your journey with this POWERFUL prayer...

"I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." Ephesians 3:14-21

Peace, love, and blessings,
Lane

Copyright © 2009 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

Satan's Oldest, Most Common, Most Reliable Trick...

This trick was first performed in a place you're familiar with...The Garden of Eden.

This trick is still being performed in a place you're very familiar with...INSIDE YOUR MIND!

Here are Satan's specific steps:

1. Bring to your awareness what you DON'T have
2. Suggest that others are AGAINST you

That's it. Those two little steps don't look like much, do they? And yet, they work with almost unbelievable effectiveness.

They work so well because IF a person ALLOWS these two notions into their mind, then that person will also LET their mental faculties – faculties such as the imagination and selective recall – work against them...often until it literally destroys them.

Let me make this personal for you...

Specifically, if you permit these two notions to lodge in your mind (rather than outright rejecting them) then YOU will tend to blank out all the blessings and goodness they already have and possess to the point YOU start feeling as if YOU have been deprived of everything that’s good...that others have all the good but YOU'VE been cheated, short-changed, and treated unfairly.

Then, combine that with YOUR ability to "prove" whatever it is that YOU are thinking about...

So, if you are wondering if others really are against you...well, if you walk into a room and people look at you with a smile on their face, then "obviously", they were talking "bad" about you and you "caught" them...

Or, if they don't look up at you, then "obviously" they don't care enough about you to even bother acknowledging you..."clearly", to these people, not only are you unimportant to them, but they really don't like you.

Do you see how this trick of Satan's works?

Satan makes a couple of suggestions and if you aren't actively managing, disciplining, and keeping your mind spiritual, YOU will begin to distort, generalize, and delete information...and it will eat on you and eat on you...and if you don't get a grip on yourself, YOU will walk out of relationship and fellowship with God and YOU will destroy YOURSELF.

Let's consider the Garden of Eden example... (you can read the full account in Genesis chapter 3)

First, Satan merely points out to Eve that she doesn't get to eat of EVERY tree in the garden...

And with that one point, it doesn't matter that they are living in a perfect paradise, it doesn't matter that God himself comes to visit them every evening, it doesn't even matter how many trees she has to eat from...

There's that ONE tree that she doesn't have!

And now, Satan ramps the NEGATIVE BENT that Eve is already on by pointing out something else that she doesn't have...

She doesn't have the same position, the same knowledge, the same power, the same wealth as God has...

Now, that just isn't fair, is it?

And then Satan introduces the second element of his trick...

God is against you Eve...

God doesn't want you to have everything that He has...

He doesn't want you to have the benefits and privileges that He as...

He doesn't want you to have the same glory that He has...

That's why He doesn't want you to eat from that ONE tree, Eve.

Eve, God isn't being fair to you. He's withholding good from you...

Now, we know good and well that God wasn't thinking any such thing. We know that God wanted only the very best for Adam and Eve. We know for a fact that God GREATLY loved Adam and Eve. But that didn't matter because in Eve's mind, the ONE tree obviously "proved" that God was against her – that God was withholding the very best from her.

And with these suggestions firmly implanted in her mind, Eve did everything else necessary to destroy HERSELF. Unfortunately, she was persuasive enough to also destroy her family.

By accepting, dwelling upon, and ultimately acting upon these two suggestions from Satan – that there was something good she didn't have and that others were against her – Eve moved herself OUT OF RELATIONSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD and brought great pain, hardship, and harm to herself.

Brother or Sister in Christ, Satan seeks to kill, steal, and destroy in YOUR life.

He seeks to give you these same suggestions too – so that YOU too will move YOURSELF out of relationship and fellowship with God and bring pain, hardship, and harm to yourself.

And so, I admonish you...don't fall for Satan's oldest, most common, most reliable trick.

Sure there are things you wish were different right now...

Sure there are things you'd like to have in your possession right now...

And at the same time, right now, at this very moment, you really are ok.

Any problems that you're facing, God really WILL help you...things really will work out ok...even if you can't see any possible way right now.

So, whatever you do, don't let these things you desire come between you and God such that you end up moving out of relationship and fellowship with Him.

God IS for you!

God IS leading you in the way that you should go to profit!

Your good WILL come to you with perfect timing!

Peace, love, and blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2009 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

The Two Things That ALWAYS Precede God-Given Wealth, Riches, And Success…

Today, I hope to really encourage you…

Today, I hope to help you understand what’s really going on…

Today, I’m going to give you some of the most important advice that ANYONE could ever give you…

Let me start by quoting an email – and I get emails similar to this by the boatload which tells me that there are a lot of people struggling with this same issue. Here’s the email…

“I asked from the Lord to make me a millionaire this year.

The pastor of our church prayed on December 31st 2007 that 3 people will become potentially millionaires in the church congregation because we realized that Jesus made himself poor for us to be rich. And also because he considers us as his spouse, so a spouse can't be poor as we are nowadays.

After this prayer I believed in my heart that this prophecy was for me. My heart beats all the time since that day. Few months after the lord showed his faithfulness and I was receiving money I never expected to get. But I realized that the money I was receiving disappeared as soon as I was using the money.

I was faithful to God and paid my tithes and offerings. The Lord connected me to business venture and I even started to get involved in a multimillionaire company. I knew it was from God, but now I feel as if it is all going astray.

I’m stuck financially and still believe that God can make a millionaire in a miraculous way by the end of the year. My faith is strong as solid stone.

I never fainted but I am always positive although the circumstances. I believe in my heart I deserve to have that amount of money because I fear the Lord with all my heart. I pray for God to keep me under his wings. I hope you have a response to my prayers.

Sincerely,
Ms. B”

Now, the specifics of your situation are probably quite different than Ms. B’s but can you relate to things just not working out the way you want them to?

Well, if you can, here’s what you need to know…

All is well…all is right on track…the good you desire is coming – if you faint not.

All these things that are happening and then seem to not work out are God’s way of educating you, of building you up, of “trying” you to see if you’ll hold to faith.

The Bible is given to us for an example and when we study it, we learn that there’s always an “Egypt” experience followed by a “Wilderness” experience. And, it’s only after both of these experiences that we get the “Promised Land” experience.

As you well know, God came to Moses in a burning bush and personally told him to go tell Pharaoh to let God’s people go.

That’s a pretty direct calling, wouldn’t you say?

And yet, Moses shows up in Egypt, does what the Lord tells him, and EVERYTHING GOES FROM BAD TO WORSE!

Have you ever had that experience?

Well, in Moses's case, he does what God tells him to do and NOW he has all of Egypt hating him AND all of Israel hating him.

Then, after Moses and the Children of Israel finally do get out of Egypt, they find themselves wandering in the desert…wearing the same pair of clothes and shoes way longer than they wanted to…eating the same kind of food until they were sick of it…often wondering where their next drink of water was going to come from…

That's a pretty serious thing...go without water for a few days and you'll soon enough be dead.

Can you relate to being in an experience where you're not even sure how you're going to survive?

And yet, at the same time, God was doing amazing, miraculous things for them like giving them a perfectly climate-controlled environment via a cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, their shoes never wearing out, the money and resources to build an amazing temple for God, etc.

Look around you...in spite of all the things that aren't exactly the way you want them...what are the amazing, unbelievable, surreal things that God has done – and is doing – for you?

Well, for the children of Israel – those who stayed faithful to God – there soon enough came a day when they crossed over into the Promised Land – just as God promised they would.

It’s all the same for you. You’re on your way…

You’re on your way to your specific Promised Land…

You’ve got to take a pit-stop at your specific “Egypt” first…

Then, you’ve got to pass through your specific “Wilderness”…

And, whether you’re in your “Egypt” or your “Wilderness”…

Everything’s fine right now…

It really is…

Sure, it may even look like you’re going to lose something that’s important to you in the near future…

But, as of this very moment, everything really is ok.

And amazingly, everything’s going to work out for the very best. You’ll see.

Believe it or not, you really are going to end up in your very own God-given Promised Land – if you’ll just keep holding to the dream.

As far as the timing of things…

One of the ordinances that God has set up is a “Gestation” period.

If you plant a seed, there’s a gestation period before the seed appears visibly as a plant. Because people have planted a lot of seeds, we know what the gestation period is.

If a woman gets pregnant, we know from experience, there’s a 9-month gestation period before she gets to physically hold the baby.

We understand this from the natural side of things. But for some reason, we want to ignore this – we don’t want to accept this – on the spiritual side of things.

The fact is, there IS a gestation period for “spiritual” seeds too.

The difference is that because it’s a spiritual seed – and you’ve never “planted” this kind of seed before, you don’t have enough experience to know exactly what the gestation period is.

So, just because you don’t yet see when, where, or how the money you believe for is coming doesn’t mean it’s not coming. It just means that it’s still in its gestation period.

And, there’s nothing wrong for believing for it to happen within a period of a year. But, if it doesn’t show up in a year, that just means you “misjudged” the gestation period a bit and it’s still on its way.

Now, the question you may be asking is, “Is there some way to speed up the gestation period?”

The answer is yes. It’s by doing two things:

One, it’s getting yourself a mastermind partner. A mastermind partner gives you extra insight, wisdom, knowledge, experience, perspective, and help – which makes it possible for you to achieve your success faster, with fewer mistakes, with fewer setbacks, and fewer losses. (Check out this website: http://www.christianmastermind.com/)

Two, begin to serve people on a greater scale.

Prosperity is equal to serving people in a meaningful way on a large scale.

Let me repeat that…

Prosperity is equal to serving people in a meaningful way on a large scale.

The greater one serves people, the greater their prosperity.

Too often, people think becoming a millionaire is about getting lucky in some way and a bundle of money falling into their lap with little to no effort on their part.

People who think this way will NEVER become millionaires because they’re not following God’s model.

People who become millionaires are people who LEARN to serve others in a meaningful, valuable way.

Think about that word, “learn”…

Learning is often a laborious, arduous, unpleasant journey (i.e. “Egypt” and “Wilderness”).

But again, this is where a mastermind partner can help you identify ways that you can provide greater service and thereby attain prosperity faster than you can by yourself.

So, as it pertains to the good that you desire, remember these key points:

1. In order to receive God’s blessings, you must be WILLING to first pass through “Egypt” and the “Wilderness” and only then will God bring you into your “Promised Land”.
   
2. Prosperity is equal to serving people in a meaningful way on a large scale.
   
3. Have a mastermind partner.

Do you fully realize the incredible value and importance in what I’ve just shared with you?

Yes, I believe you do!

Peace, love, and blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2008 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

In Tough Times…

God’s people have been sailing through tough times for a long time…

Here’s some commentary on 1 Kings Chapter 17 that I hope you’ll find helpful and encouraging.

“As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.”

Ok, here’s a problem that certainly has a significant national impact.

“And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.”

But, the Lord is CLEARLY taking care of Elijah.

“And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.”

Now, here’s where we get ourselves in trouble.

When God lets a brook dry up…

When God closes a door…

When God shuts down a channel of supply…

We get MAJOR upset. We start thinking that God doesn’t care about us. And of course, the enemy is there to suggest that if God really loved us and cared about us, this wouldn’t be happening to us.

My friend, God doesn’t ever dry up, close up, or shut down anything without simultaneously providing something BETTER!

“And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.”

See…I told you the Lord always has something else better for you.

“So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”

Isn’t this so like us?

We had plenty to eat yesterday.

We’ve got something to eat today.

Yes, things may or may not be exactly what we want but as of right now, we’re ok, we’re good.

But, when we can’t see tomorrow’s supply we just naturally assume that we’re going to die.

Friend, God’s been taking care of people a long time and He’s going to take care of you and me too!

“And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.”

Here’s your take-away point: in no way is God’s supply wasting away nor is His supply failing. God’s abundant supply is ever plenteous and ever available to you and me.

Yes, there are “lean” times and there are “fat” times – according to the cycle of seasons that God has ordained from the beginning of time – but that in no way means that God won’t take care of us.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2008 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

Here’s Where The Money’s At…

In light of the current economic crises and the news media’s endless shouting of troubles, problems, failures, unrest, doom and gloom…

Today is a perfect day for me to remind you…

The Lord is your source and supply – He always has been, always will be – and God’s abundant supply is independent of and in spite of any world, national, regional, or local condition or situation.

“Let [men and women] trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon [their] God.” Isaiah 50:10

Contrary to what the enemy of good is constantly suggesting (remember, he’s out to steal, kill, and destroy wherever he can), it pays to live your life trusting in the goodness and supply of the Lord because…

“He that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be made fat [blessed and successful].” Proverbs 28:25

In all the noise, commotion, and chaos coming from the world, have you kind of forgotten this?

My friend, God’s calling to you…

“O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear [love, respect, and reverence] the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear [love, respect, and reverence] him. The young lions [covetous and greedy people of the world] do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.” Psalms 34:8-10

Have you ever waited out a rainstorm from underneath a dry shelter? That’s what it’s like for the person who’s in right relationship with God through Jesus Christ…

“I [the Lord thy God] have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand.” Isaiah 51:16

Isn’t that wonderful?

Nevertheless, this IS a time for you to be careful and wise.

“The crown of the wise is their riches: but the foolishness of fools is folly [trouble and problems].” Proverbs 14:24

This IS a time to put away foolishness…

“The foolishness of man perverteth his way: and his heart fretteth against the LORD.” Proverbs 19:3

What does that mean?

So many people are looking for great gain – without providing a corresponding level of value and service to mankind. It’s this kind of foolishness that perverts people’s life – and then they find themselves fretting against the Lord because of all the trouble they’re in – that they put themselves into.

Similarly…

“But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.” 1 Timothy 6:9

This verse isn’t talking about money being a bad thing – money is nothing more than a medium of exchange for goods, services, and value – and providing value and service and being compensated and rewarded accordingly is an indisputably God-ordained principle and concept.

What this verse is talking about is people TRYING TO LIVE BEYOND THEIR MEANS!

People driving automobiles that are more expensive than they can really afford.

People who live in homes they can’t really afford.

People who are "upside down" in all or most of their financial affairs.

Do you see that?

It’s also talking about people who WANT A LOT FOR SOMETHING LITTLE.

That’s what’s been going on strong for a long time – especially the last 15 – 20 years…

Individuals, corporations, and even governments handing over any extra money they can scrape together to OTHERS (the stock market, etc) and telling them, “Make me rich – without any real effort or rendering of service on my part.”

As we can see and hear all around us, this doesn’t work on a long-term basis.

The only reliable, sustainable, and God-ordained way to turn a dime into a dollar is to take that dime and infuse it with your God-given creative mind, talents, abilities, and skills such that it provides a REAL dollar worth of value and service to people.

To their own misfortune, too many people are trying to just get a dollar out of a dime.

So again…

“Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.” Proverbs 9:6

One last thing…

This IS a time to make sure there’s nothing but Jesus – nothing but good – inside of us…

“For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: all these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” Mark 7:21-23

“Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Romans 8:9

And, if we have the Spirit of Christ inside of us, then we also have available to us…

“The supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:19

My friend, God's way is the good way! It always has been and always will be.

Here’s what I want you to hold in your thoughts as you go about your day…

1. Let’s go back to trusting in God as our source and our supply
2. Let’s get in right relationship with God through Jesus Christ
3. Let’s put away the foolish notion of wanting a lot for a little and start providing real value and real service and thereby EARN real compensation.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2008 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.millionairesforjesus.com/

Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

If You've Been Feeling A Little Down Lately...

It may be that you have times when you forget all that you have on your side…

And all that you have going for you…

And you start thinking you’re all alone…

That you’re trying to do all this good stuff by yourself…

And nobody is helping you…

Let alone caring about you.

If you’ve found yourself thinking these kinds of thoughts lately, let me remind you; the enemy of all good wants to distract you and get you off course so that you’ll miss out on your good.

Let me also remind you of the REAL TRUTH:

“It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect.” Psalms 18:32

When I was a young man, there was one summer where I worked for an outfit operating heavy equipment – large tractors and bulldozer’s. I can remember being amazed at the incredible power these machines possessed.

All I had to do was wrap my hand around the throttle and give it a small forward movement and whatever was behind my tractor or in front of my dozer was moving – whether it wanted to or not.

And yet, as powerful as that equipment was, it was nothing compared to the power of God and the strength that He ENVELOPES you with, RIGHT NOW.

So implant this firmly in your mind, “It is God that girdeth me with strength”.

And, when you feel like nothing is working, when you feel like you’ve messed everything up, when it feels like everything is wrong and nothing is right…

That’s the absolute BEST time to remind yourself, “[God] maketh my way perfect”.

There’s more I want you to recall…

“Thou [God] shalt increase my greatness, and comfort me on every side.” Psalms 71:21

Brother or sister, do you realize that God has put GREATNESS in YOU? He installed it in you and now – NO MATTER WHAT IT SEEMS LIKE TO YOU – HE IS INCREASING YOUR GREATNESS.

He just asks that you keep doing your best, that you keep moving forward, that you keep the faith.

Soon enough, you’ll find yourself being amazed at all the great things that God is doing through you. And, you’ll enjoy God’s comfort all around you as well as the comfort of wonderful people all around you.

Be encouraged. Things really are better than what you realize.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2008 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.MillionairesForJesus.com
Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

YOU Must Be A Pretty Special Person…

I was thinking of you...

It takes courage to continue walking forward in faith in the face of disappointments and setbacks. You worked so hard. You put so much into it. You gave it all your emotional and physical energy. And then, right before your very eyes, your hopes and dreams were dashed.

It’s at this point that other people develop a strong case of “NOSTALGIA” – but not you. Others start thinking BACKWARDS to what they remember as “good” times when everything was “ok” – but not you.

These other people let their memory build a beautiful picture of the past that becomes irresistible to them – but not you.

“Besides,” they say, “my hopes and dreams didn’t work out anyway, right? Why fight it? It’s too much. It’s too hard. It wears on the nerves.”

And they gave up. They forsook their dreams and went BACKWARDS – but not you.

Only problem was, their memory served them WRONG! Their memory fabricated a false picture of the past. The past wasn’t nearly as great as they remembered it. Even if it was “ok”, God isn’t interested in sitting still. God’s interested in moving forward, onward, upward, to bigger, better, greater, grander, more wonderful things in YOUR life and His Kingdom.

You kept in mind the story found in Numbers chapter 11 where the Children of Israel started talking about how great Egypt was. How they remembered the vegetables but forgot about the slavery, the abuse, and the killing of their children. They started looking BACKWARDS and “the anger of the LORD was greatly kindled” against them.

But you didn’t let yourself do this, did you.

I’m glad you realize that God doesn’t want you looking BACKWARDS.

I’m glad you realize that God has something better for you as you go FORWARD in faith.

Those hopes and dreams that you have? That’s God wanting to express Himself through YOU.

Even in the face of disappointments and setbacks, you realize that God is making you. When those hopes and dreams were dashed, that wasn’t failure. That was God teaching you and making you. You saw that, didn’t you?

For others, when events don’t match up with what they WANT to happen, they tend to start thinking of them in a negative way. They tend to view them as failures – and then they allow their emotions and feelings to take over – and then they start going BACKWARDS.

But you didn’t.

You remembered that God commands us to “walk by faith” and not by our emotions and feelings.

I see that you realize, believe, and accept that everything that is happening in your life is working together for your good.

That’s absolutely amazing! There’s not very many people like you.

I hear you remembering God’s words found in Isaiah 48:17 – “Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.”

And as you remember these words, you threw away your disappointment and discouragement. You said that, “No matter how it may seem or feel, everything in my life is right on plan and on target. It’s all good! God has great things that He’s leading me TOWARDS.”

And now, you’re letting that beautiful smile of yours break out on your face as you realize that it is going to be PROFITABLE for you AND for God.

And, as you think of this, God is looking at you with a heart full of love, with tears of happiness and excitement in His eyes as HE sees ALL the GOOD that HE IS PERFORMING and is going to PERFORM in YOUR life.

I mean WOW! The Almighty God of Heaven and Earth with all His power, might, and creation – and His eye and focus is on making GOOD in YOUR LIFE!

You know, in a lot of ways, you remind me of a man in the Bible... A man named Joseph who went from dreamer, to slave, to convict, to GOVERNOR.

Yes, you must be a pretty special person.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2006 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.MillionairesForJesus.com
Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire

Have you ever been discouraged and frustrated?

I received the following (slightly paraphrased so that it can apply to everyone) from a Brother in Christ:

"I have stopped working on becoming a Millionaire For Jesus because it isn't happening and I don't understand why. My vision is to bring thousands and thousands of people into the Kingdom of the Lord which is why I need the money - not to put in the bank but to decrease the devil's kingdom."

I myself have felt this same frustration, disappointment, and discouragement expressed by this Brother. If you are human, you have felt it too.

But here's what we have to keep in mind:

Never, ever "stop working on it"!

Constantly say with your mouth and visualize in your mind, "I am used of God in a mighty way and I lead thousands and thousands of people to Christ". (I am using what this man wanted in this example. Feel free to adjust this to be exactly what you want it to be).

Getting frustrated at not "seeing" results "when" you want to see them is the very thing that undermines your faith and causes you to lose out on the very results you want to see.

You bring "failure" into your life when you base what you say, think, feel, and believe upon external "circumstances" and "facts".

God never said what you see or touch is TRUTH. He said His WORD is TRUTH.

Words are non-tangible things.

God SPEAKS the WORDS of WHAT He wants - AND THEN THEY COME TO PASS.

Christ said He is coming back - WORDS - He's not back yet, but we know that He is coming back because He said the WORDS!

God has made things to operate in exactly the same way in your life. The TRUTH is NOT that you don't have the money to decrease the devil's kingdom (again, using this man's example).

The TRUTH, as it applies to your life, is what you CHOOSE to say, think, and believe - no matter what external circumstances look like - AND GOD WILL TURN IT INTO TANGIBLE REALITY.

Your job is to see the goal / vision, hold to it with relentless faith, plant and water when and where you can, AND LET GOD BRING THE INCREASE.

In Hebrews 11:1 we read about "the evidence of things not seen". We have to fully understand that ABSENCE OF EVIDENCE IS NOT EVIDENCE THAT YOU CAN'T HAVE OR WON'T GET WHAT YOU WANT!

God is telling you that you get to CHOOSE what you want, and that the ability to MAINTAIN a mental picture of what you want is all the EVIDENCE you need for the thing to be MANIFESTED.

You must not let the fact that something isn't happening control your thinking. You must not let your external circumstances control you. What you MUST control is your thoughts - in terms of focusing on what you want.

You must rest assured, calmly, confidently, expectantly, that what you want is on its way - it just hasn't yet made the TRANSFORMATION from the non-physical picture that's in your mind to the physical reality that surrounds you.

Have you ever been surprised when you got something you wanted? That wasn't faith because true faith is never surprised. True faith is expectant. And, when it MATERIALIZES, you are thankful and grateful - but never surprised.

Also, you bring failure into your life when you can't see HOW and get frustrated. You don't have to worry about the HOW. God will take care of that part. Your job is to simply hold with the WILL-POWER that God has given you to the vision / goal that you CHOOSE.

Another snare that brings failure, is trying to FORCE the solution or answer to your vision / goal to come from a certain person or in a certain way or by a certain means. Don't do this! Again, simply hold to the vision / goal of what you want and let God MANIFEST it how He wants to and by whatever means He chooses.

Think of this: If you were to sit down in front of a rose bud and watch it for an extended period of time, it would completely bloom and unfold right before your eyes - and you would never see it move.

The same concept applies to your vision / goal. You just keep "seeing", "saying", and "believing" for your vision and even though it may "look" like nothing is happening, rest assured that it is.

See, the process is "invisible" to us (He's the "Invisible God"). We get so hung up on the "outcome" and the "end result" such that we FORFEIT the vision / goal because we get frustrated during the process and we give up.

Look at every miracle that Christ performed in the Bible. In EVERY case, Christ spoke what He wanted - not what was or used to be.

Christ is our example and we must do what He did.

Brother or Sister in Christ, God is going to use you in a mighty, powerful way to build up and expand His Kingdom. Your desire is good and right so stay encouraged. Keep the faith. Don't let the enemy steal your dream. You can do it. I know you can do it. God is for you and if God be for you, who can be against you!

Comments? Thoughts? Was this helpful? I would love to hear back from you.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,
Lane Fox

Copyright © 2006 by Lane Fox, MillionairesForJesus.com

Permission is granted to reprint this article ONLY if a link is included with it as follows:

URL: http://www.MillionairesForJesus.com
Link Text: Millionaires For Jesus - God's Millionaires - Christian Millionaire