A Key Secret To YOUR Success

Today, I share with you a key secret to YOUR success. Maybe, nobody has ever told you about this secret…because they did not know about it themselves.

Maybe, you have never recognized this secret for yourself…although it has been laying openly before you all your life…waiting for you to recognize it and use it.

Or maybe, somewhere along the way, a teacher actually did tell you about this secret…but perhaps you did not recognize or understand it.  Perhaps it was so contrary to the mentality of the people surrounding you that it did not register with you.  Perhaps you simply did not like the premise of it.  Whatever the case, the net result was that you turned a deaf ear and a blind eye to the secret…you promptly forgot about it…and continued on in your life without it.

Now having said this, if you have read any of my writings, then by the end of this article, you will recognize that this secret has been laced through almost everything I have ever shared with you…and now, it is time for you to fully understand this secret so that you can use it for good: for your own good…for good in your family…and for good in God’s Kingdom.

Today can be a turning point in your life!

However, I should warn you in advance…this secret may at first make you angry…it may go against principles you have believed in for a long time…it may seem like heresy and sacrilege to you…it may contradict the “philosophy” you have built around a narrow list of favorite, nice-sounding scriptures that feel good to you.

But, IF you have spent years (or decades) using your philosophy…and it has not produced the success you want, then I recommend you update your philosophy with this secret.

The secret is summed up well in an old Quaker saying that says: “Pray…but move your feet!

In other words, it is a good thing to pray…but DO SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE AND BENEFICIAL WHILE YOU ARE PRAYING.  DO MORE THAN JUST SIT AROUND DOING NOTHING WHILE YOU PRAY.

To say it even more strongly, the secret is do not waste time and energy asking God for things that He has given you the ability to create and manifest for yourself.

Realize that God has given you the ability to create and manifest far more than you may have wanted to admit or believe up to this point.

Specifically, instead of sitting around wasting your life away asking God for miracles…instead of languishing in unwanted, unpleasant conditions and circumstances (and perhaps dragging the people you love down with you) while imploring God for a divine intervention…just GO AHEAD and create and manifest goodness WHILE you are praying for God’s help.

How do you create and manifest goodness?

You devote your time and energy towards learning and working…while your mindset, drive, focus, and commitment is directed towards providing benefit and value to other people.

Instead of praying for miracles from God…or from other people…direct your prayers towards asking for God’s help behind-the-scenes…in those areas that are outside of what you can do, affect, or impact…while you do your part of learning and working smartly on the front-scenes.

And importantly, this behind-the-scenes part that is outside of what you can do, impact, and affect is FAR SMALLER than what the typical person lazily wants it to be.

It is common for a person to want God’s part to be the large, hard part…and their part…the part they are responsible for…to be a TINY, SIMPLE, EASY, NO-EFFORT-REQUIRED part…and that is NOT how success is…or how success works.

Bluntly, too many people want their success to come to them as a result of God’s divine, miraculous intervention…or as a result of some wealthy benefactor giving them a large money-gift…or as a result of winning some lottery…AND SUCCESS NEVER, EVER COMES IN ANY OF THESE WAYS!

Even if a person is able to work up a heart-throbbing story and thereby finagle a money-gift from someone…or even if a person happens to get lucky and win a large lottery…it will not be long until that person is in worse circumstances and conditions than they were in before they received the gift or winning.

Now, let’s pause here…you may well be popping in anger…you may well be rejecting what I am saying…because it is not how you want the world to be…because it is not how you want life to work…because it is not how you want God to be towards you…because you want God to align with your model…instead of you aligning with God’s model.  But always remember: how things really are…and how things really work…has nothing to do with how we “wish” things would be.

As an adult, you KNOW that the “idyllic philosophy” that a child exhibits in his or her “pretend play” simply does not correlate to success in the real world.

Pretending to be a doctor…or an astronaut…or a sports star…or a movie star…or any other high-performance person of success is very, very different from putting forth the learning and work necessary to actually BECOME such a person.

And yet, too many adults go through their adult life “wanting” their “idyllic philosophy”…their “pretend play”…to produce success for them…BUT IT DOES NOT…and the sooner they accept that…and update their philosophy to a grown-up philosophy…the sooner they can get to the success they want…and that God wants for them too.

Back to the child’s play…you will NEVER hear a young child say, “I want to be a low-paid, low-success person when I grow up.”  No child wants to be a trash-hauler, floor-sweeper, dish-washer, and so on. What every child wants is to be something big, important, meaningful, significant, and successful.

That is what God wants you to be too. In fact, did not Jesus tell us in Matthew 18:3, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven“?

But again, while child-like faith and child-like desires are good…a childish philosophy DOES NOT produce the success we all want to enjoy in life. Similarly, a beggarly philosophy DOES NOT produce this success either.

Now, I can hear some of you rejecting what I am saying…I can hear some of you quoting scriptures such as Matthew 18:19, John 14:14, John 16:23, and so on that tell us we can simply ask and whatever we want will be given to us…but YOUR OWN experience has taught you that these scriptures do not work in this way…which is confirmed by James 4:3, “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss“.

So, let your anger go…let your resistance go…and let’s look at some scriptures that tell us the truth of this secret I am telling you about…

Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou are in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.” Matthew 5:25-26

Notice what this pair of verses TELLS you.

Notice that this pair of verses makes it clear that IF you end up in trouble, God is NOT going to bail you out…that you are in fact on your own and you are going to have to work yourself out of your mess without God’s help.

Now, why is this?

It is because YOU COULD HAVE DONE SOMETHING TO AVOID THE PROBLEM…BUT YOU DID NOT DO “YOUR PART” TO AVOID THE PROBLEM!

But, doesn’t God love us?“, you argue. “Surely, if God loves us, He will help us get out of trouble, right?

Well, you have to understand that love and consequences are two totally different things…and love does not excuse a person from consequences!  In fact, true love administers consequences so that the beloved will learn and work properly.

Bluntly, this scripture is TELLING us PLAINLY that we should NOT expect or count on God to miraculously deliver us out of our SELF-INFLICTED troubles, problems, and messes…especially when the problems could have been avoided by learning and effort on our part.

Now, I grant you, God sometimes does deliver people.  In His great mercy and grace, He sometimes delivers people in spite of their foolishness and ignorance. But, to live life EXPECTING God’s miraculous deliverance out of self-inflicted problems will soon prove to be foolhardy…as proven by the corresponding misery and suffering such a person gets to live in.

Again, we see the secret…God expects YOU to do for yourself those things that you CAN and SHOULD do. And, if you do not, then YOU will pay the price and suffer the consequences.

If God has bailed you out of self-inflicted troubles, problems, and messes, then you should realize that was pure mercy and grace…AND…you should realize that God will NOT continue to bail you out…because He has already given you mercy and grace…He has already given you the opportunity to LEARN what you needed to learn…He has already given you the opportunity to do things PROPERLY and CORRECTLY…and if you did not learn what you should have learned from your past experiences…and if you did not use the opportunities to MAKE SURE YOU NEVER AGAIN MADE THE SAME KIND OF MISTAKES…then you can reliably count on the fact that you are on your own…and you ARE going to pay the “uttermost farthing” to get YOURSELF out of your mess.

The other thing these verses speak to…that we all know…is that life can at times be quite “adversarial”. It does not matter if you are the world’s poorest person…or the world’s richest person…or anywhere in between…life IS going to throw adversity at you. That is part of the curse that we inherited from Adam. But, adversity or not, there is always something YOU can do…there is always something that needs to be done by YOU…WHILE you are praying and asking God for help.

Now we come to the next scripture that pertains to this secret…

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee“. Hosea 4:6

It really is the most amazing thing…people will eagerly learn about things that have no meaning, benefit, or value…and at the same time, they will resist learning meaningful, important, beneficial things with all of their being.

They will diligently STUDY the latest sports stats…or the latest celebrity trends…but try to get them to read a book or listen to an audio program that will give them some valuable knowledge and they will resist, reject, and procrastinate…until ultimately the net effect is that they refuse to read or listen to anything that will give them knowledge.

They will invest spectacular amounts of time and energy towards learning how to work and manipulate charity systems and subsidy programs…but try to get them to learn about how to provide value and benefit to other people…well, you will find that it is a major up-hill battle because they are not very interested in that…and they have loads of excuses besides.

By the way…here is a side note for you to consider: successful people are constantly amazed at how HARD unsuccessful people “work” at being…and remaining…unsuccessful.

Unsuccessful people consistently work FAR HARDER…and SUFFER FAR MORE…in order to get their meager portion out of life…than the successful person ever had to work or suffer in order to create and manifest success.

But, this should not be surprising I guess…after all, the Bible tells us in Proverbs 13:15, “the way of transgressors is hard.”

Who is the transgressor? It is the person who is unwilling to acquire and apply WISDOM, KNOWLEDGE, and UNDERSTANDING…the very items that the ENTIRE Bible directs us to seek, acquire, and apply.

So, understand clearly that if we reject knowledge, then God TELLS us PLAINLY that He will reject us too.

In short, people who reject learning…and who refuse wisdom, knowledge, and understanding…are rejecting and refusing success.

That brings us to this point: ALL successful people are LEARNERS! No exceptions!

But wait!“, you argue. “What about those people who did not finish high-school or college and yet they became millionaires or billionaires?

Well, I challenge you to dig into the details of their back-story…and you will infallibly find that the person was a diligent, dedicated, devoted, devout LEARNER.

Perhaps the person had to drop out of school for survival reasons. Abraham Lincoln is an example of this kind of person. But, after Abe’s long day of working to survive, history reports that his evenings were filled with reading, study, and learning. Moreover, history reports that Abe literally read books while he walked to work day by day. Abe came from the poorest of circumstances…lost his mother at a young age…but he was a LEARNER…and ultimately, he became one of the greatest…if not THE greatest…President the United States has ever had.

Or, perhaps the person dropped out of college because the learning pace was too slow or the learning depth was too shallow…and the person realized that they could learn much faster or more thoroughly on their own. Perhaps the person recognized that a college environment was just slowing him or her down from doing important things. Bill Gates of Microsoft fame is a great example of this kind of person.

Again…feel free to dig into the back-story of ANY truly successful person and you will infallibly find that they are (or were) SERIOUS LEARNERS!

Now, I DO believe in prayer…the Bible tells us to pray always…and I DO believe in miracles.

IF, like Daniel, you find yourself being thrown into a Den of lions…and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it short of denying Christ…then in that case, you can absolutely expect and depend upon God to provide a miracle.

But, outside of situations like this, when you find yourself receiving a miracle…you better realize that it is one of two things. One, it may be that God is giving you mercy and grace…and you better learn what you need to learn…and change or do whatever you need to change or do…so that you never again put yourself in a bad situation like the one God just delivered you out of…because if you do, you will most likely find yourself “on your own”. Two, it may be that God…in His goodness and generousness…is simply giving you a gift…which you should receive with thanksgiving and praise…while continuing your learning and working to provide value…without depending upon any additional miraculous gifts.

Ironically, the less you depend upon miracles, and the more you devote yourself to learning and working, the more “miracles” will happen in your life.

To summarize, do not waste time and energy asking God for things that He has given you the ability to create and manifest for yourself. Instead, devote your time and energy towards learning and working…while your mindset, drive, focus, and commitment is directed towards providing benefit and value to other people…and in doing so, you will create and manifest success for yourself, those you love, and God’s Kingdom.

One last point related to this secret I am sharing with you…

Unsuccessful people LOVE to proclaim that successful people obtained their success by being greedy liars, deceivers, and cheaters. However, prevailing reality does not support this proclamation.

Similarly, poor people LOVE to proclaim that the rich obtained their wealth by robbing the poor. But again, prevailing reality does not support this proclamation.

Certainly, there has been…and there always will be…people who are greedy liars, deceivers, and cheaters…but there are just as many or more of these kinds of people in the unsuccessful ranks of life as there are in the successful ranks.

Certainly, there have been wealthy individuals who took advantage of poor people…but there continues to be FAR MORE cases of poor people taking advantage of other poor people…than there has ever been of rich people taking advantage of poor people.

Similarly, there continues to be FAR MORE cases of poor people stealing from and cheating their employers than there has ever been of employers stealing from and cheating their employees.

The prevailing reality is that success stems from providing value, service, and benefit to other people. And, where there is a lack of success, there is a corresponding lack of value, service, and benefit provision.

Who are the successful people who have plenty of money?

The answer is easy…they are the people who are behind the many “brands” that we appreciate, value, and enjoy in our regular lives.

Why do we appreciate, value, and enjoy certain “brands”?

It is because they provide benefit in our lives. These “brands” are the best products…the highest levels of service…the grounds of trust and loyalty…the means by which life is made better, easier, and more enjoyable.

How did these “brands”…that we continue to GIVE our money to…come to mean so much to us?

Was it just luck? Was it just happenstance? Was it due to devious misconduct? NO it was NOT!

The success and wealth of these “brands” came as a result of certain people APPLYING and DEVOTING themselves to LEARNING and WORKING to provide value, service, and benefit to other people.

Search the internet…scan the business magazines…look for the “top brands”…and then dig into the back-story of how those brands came into being…and how they progressed. Today, many of them are huge, multi-million, or even multi-billion dollar businesses…but at the beginning, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE BRANDS was nothing more than an idea in some man or woman’s mind…and that man or woman applied his or her self to LEARNING and WORKING to create and manifest that idea into the thing of value, service, and benefit to other people that we see today.

They did it…and you CAN do it to…IF you APPLY and DEVOTE yourself to LEARNING and WORKING like they did!

You don’t need a killer idea. You don’t need a giant financial grub-stake. You just need to apply and devote yourself to learning and working…while holding your focus upon finding some small way to provide value, service, and benefit to others. In time, you may well find yourself in the list of wealthy “brand” creators and owners…enjoying all the success that God meant for you to have and enjoy all along. He was just waiting on you to apply and devote yourself to learning and working.

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© 2014 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

Considerations for 2013

I.

You are to be commended for all the good that you have done … for opening yourself up to be a channel of God’s good and God’s blessings through you … over the course of the past year.

You are to be commended for having impacted certain people in a positive, up-lifting, and encouraging way.  Those people NEEDED that positive impact from you.  They REALLY needed it.  And God’s Spirit flowing through you … and you purposely being your best and most-developed self … enabled you to make that much-needed impact upon them.

You are to be commended for all the positive influences you have had in other people’s lives.  There were people who were going in a direction that was not good for them … but the love of God flowing through you … and your kindness, compassion, consideration, and care for them influenced them in such a way that they changed and began to move in a better direction.

You are to be commended for the important lessons you learned over the past year.  It was smart of you to look back over your successes and your failures … to look back over the good and the bad … and extract out the important lessons … so that you can carry them forward into the next year and use them in a way that makes the rest of your life … and the lives of those you interact with … better.

You are to be commended for all that you achieved and accomplished over the past year.  Achievement and accomplishment does not happen by accident.  It ALWAYS happens as a result of a person doing certain things on purpose.

You are to be commended for all the good choices and decisions you made … and for all the good consequences that have come and will come into your life as a result.

Now, let’s ask ourselves some personal questions and see if we can spot any opportunities for greater good in our lives…

II.

Was 2012 more or less the same as 2011 … which was more or less the same as 2010 … which was more or less like 2009 … and so on?

These are the years of my life.  Am I satisfied with them?

Are they meaningful years?

Do I want more years just like them?

Are they years of growth, development, increase, and value?

Or, are they years of sameness, stagnation, and mediocrity?

To chart a trend, one only needs three “data points”.  What kind of “trend” does the last three years of my life chart?

And, if the trend stays the same, what are the next three years likely to hold for me?

Now, if after considering these questions I feel pleased with how my life’s journey is progressing, then I can acknowledge and appreciate that.

On the other hand, if after considering these questions I feel displeasure over the lack of progress in my life’s journey, then I must ask myself, “When and how will I decide to do things differently and better so that I can get different and better outcomes and results?

When will I make the commitment to invest the effort needed to make a real change in direction?”

III.

The pattern of my life is a function of my meaningful learning’s, my meaningful efforts, my meaningful people-connections, and my meaningful value-offerings.

What have I learned in 2012 that was meaningful?

What effort have I invested in 2012 that was meaningful?

What meaningful people-connections have I earned, developed, and fostered?

What meaningful value-offerings have I created and presented to the world?

IV.

I have spent a LOT of money this year.  But the question is, what do I have to show for it?

Here’s another question … how much of that money was an investment in developing myself, my spouse, and/or my children in a meaningful way?

People who do well in life are continuously expanding and increasing what they are aware of, what they know about, what they can do, and the value they can provide.

People who do poorly in life rarely ever expand their awareness in a meaningful way, they rarely learning anything new that’s significant or meaningful, and they rarely offer anything of value to other people.

V.

Time and life are irrevocably linked.  To value my time is to value my life.  To use my time wisely is to bless my life.

Here is an important question…How much of my time … how much of my life … have I wasted creating nothing and earning nothing … while WANTING those to who have created and earned … those who have learned and worked … to give to me?

The strategy of letting other people do the learning and work … of letting other people do the creating and earning … while WANTING them to give THEIR REWARDS to me … is a strategy that will keep me in a state of UNHAPPY WANT.

VI.

How well have I nurtured and protected my ability to influence others for God and for good?

There is a way to interact with other people that positions me so I can influence them for good … and there is a way to interact with them that destroys my ability to influence them for good.

If I choose to be the kind of person who holds no influence in the lives of other people … if I choose to live and operate at that level … then I render myself ineffective and I block myself from much good.

VII.

When I look at the overall message God conveys to His people in the Bible, I understand that He wants me to be in right relationship with Him.  He wants me to love people.  He wants me to be full of good works and right deeds.  He wants me to be in good health.  And, He wants me to prosper.  The little book of 3 John gives me an excellent synopsis of this truth.

What this means is that God does not want me living a restricted, constricted, limited, ineffective, or non-productive life that is non-fruitful or less than my best before God and man.

The fact is, God WANTS me to be fruitful and prosperous … both in relation to Him and in relation to humankind.

Those who loved me before they passed on … and those who love me now … do not want me living a restricted, constricted, limited, ineffective, non-productive life that is less than the very best that is possible for me.  Actually, they want the very best for me in every area of my life.

And certainly, those who follow along after me in my footsteps do not deserve the harm that would come to them if I were to live my life in a non-fruitful way that is less than my best before God and humankind.

So, in what ways have I been limiting myself?

HOW have I been limiting myself?

What constraints and limitations have I accepted that really do not exist anywhere except in my own mind?

What possibilities have I blocked out of my life because of how I represent things in my mind?

How am I imposing constraints and limitations upon myself that imprison me and hold me back from the greater good that should be a part of my life?

How much good are these self-defined, self-imposed, and/or accepted-from-others limitations costing me personally … and all the others that I love and care about?

What do I need to begin doing differently?

What needs to change so that I am no longer limiting myself?

Also, is there anybody in my life who I have been letting hinder and limit me?

Have I been letting the mindset and behavior of another person hold me back?

If yes, when will I stop giving this other person power over my life and define a new interaction with them that serves me better?

VIII.

What am I doing that is affecting me adversely?

How am I doing things such that I am costing myself much good?

How am I behaving and operating such that I am blocking myself from the greater good that I want and desire?

Do I like costing myself good so much so that I choose to continue on as I have been?

Or, would I rather have greater good in my life to the point I choose to make the necessary changes?

IX.

It’s easy to go through life seeking entertainment and recreation while procrastinating on (or even avoiding) that which is important, meaningful, significant, and life-impacting.

Certainly, entertainment and recreation is needful if one is to be balanced and healthy … but a good thing over-extended … too much of a good thing … becomes unhealthy and destructive.

So, how much of my time, energy, and effort is devoted towards entertainment and recreation … and how much of my time, energy, and effort is devoted towards creating good, providing value, and making a positive difference in people’s lives?

These are important questions because I don’t want to be one of those people who spend and waste their prime years in the pursuit of entertainment and recreation.

X.

How much of my time, energy, effort, and resources am I devoting towards trying to gain the recognition, attention, and approval of certain other people?

When am I going to realize that it is pointless, fruitless, meaningless, and detrimental to live my life in this way?

When am I going to stop giving away my life to other people?

God truly has a purpose for me … He purposely put me on this earth to do certain good works … to affect certain people in a good way … and if I am living my life trying to do what other people assert is right for me … instead of what I know is right between me and God … then I am thwarting God’s plan for my life … and that is NOT a good thing to do.

XI.

How, when, and where am I going to develop and foster new win-win, mutually-beneficial relationships?

How, when, and where am I going to contribute to other people’s lives so that other people are inspired to contribute to my life?

How, when, and where am I going to develop and foster new relationships where all of us are encouraged, inspired, and uplifted on a spiritual level, on a financial level, on a health level, and so on?

Here’s a way to find the gaps in my relationships so I know where I need to developing and fostering…

If I had to have 5 people who could and would willingly, enthusiastically, and authoritatively endorse me and vouch for me on a spiritual level, who would those five people be?

If I had to have 5 people who could and would willingly, enthusiastically, and authoritatively endorse me and vouch for me on a business level, who would those five people be?

If I had to have 5 people who could and would willingly, enthusiastically, and authoritatively endorse me and vouch for me on a health level, who would those five people be?

If I do not have at least 5 such people in each of the important areas of my life, then that is a major limiting factor in my life that shows and proves I am not providing sufficient value in other people’s lives … and if I want greater blessings in my life, then I must provide greater value to many people which will in turn attract those key, high-quality, high-value people into harmony with me.

XII.

Positive, significant, meaningful, and important experiences with other people are always more valuable and enjoyable than are mere possessions or assets.

There is zero happiness in having and hoarding money and other material possessions.  But, happiness and satisfaction is released when money and material possessions are used and shared for good with people I care about and who care about me.

So, as I go into the next year, what experiences do I want to have with other people?

Who will I use and share my money and assets with so that joy, happiness, and satisfaction is released in my life and theirs?

Having said this, resentment comes from giving to or sharing with those who choose to be users, takers, moochers, and beggars for no legitimate reason.  The ONLY thing one should offer to such people is the opportunity to EARN.

XIII.

I do not watch others participate in life and wish I could win like they do.   Instead, I am an ongoing learner so I can participate and win.  I am an ongoing worker so I can participate and win.

To participate is to win. To not participate is to lose. That is why I participate … that is why I continuously ratchet up my skill by learning from everything … that is why I ratchet up my value by working intelligently and diligently … I am participating UNTIL I DO win.

I realize that many of the good feelings desired by the masses are on the other side of learning and working … and unlike some, I am willing to learn and work … which is why I enjoy many satisfying feelings.

Similarly, many of the possessions and experiences that the masses wish to enjoy in life are on the other side of learning and working … and my willingness to learn and work is precisely why I enjoy many wonderful possessions and experiences.

Those who are not happy … those who have not … those who are failing and losing in life will think I am weird and crazy for learning and working … and they will be quick to let me know what they think.  But, I pay them no mind because their results are NOT the results I want.  I want different and better results … which means I willingly do what they are not willing to do … and I purposely do what they disdain doing.

Of course, those who fail and lose in life “say” that they “work”.  But a closer analysis of their “work” reveals that they are like a disconnected windmill … the fan blades are turning … sometimes they are REALLY turning … but nothing much is happening in terms of producing something of value.

XIV.

As I go into 2013, let me keep the following modified quotations in mind:

“I choose to keep a green tree in my heart so that I will always be able to enjoy the cool shade it creates and the music of the songbirds it attracts.”

“Some people will love me for who I am while others will hate me for the same reason.  So, I choose to be all that I can be so that those who love me have even more to love me for … and those who hate me will have even more to hate me for.”

“This is the beginning of a new day and a new year.  I have been given this day and this year to use as I will.  I can waste it or use it for good. What I do today is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.  What I do this year is important because I am exchanging a year of my life for it.  When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever.  When next year comes, this year will be gone forever.  In its place will be something that I have left behind.  I choose to make it be something good.”

“Every single human being is born with an equally incredible potential to do great and awesome things in their life.  I choose to be one of the few who actually does something incredible and great and awesome.”

“Most people look for what is bad, wrong, or offensive … and they usually find it.  I choose to be one of those few who are different.  I choose to look for … and find … what is good, right, and pleasing.”

XV.

How much am I appreciating the people who bring money into my life…whether an employer…or customers…or a spouse?

How much do I SHOW them love and appreciation?

It really is quite amazing how many people will despise, disparage, and vilify those who bring money into their life…and any person who does this should become aware that this is a proven strategy for CAUSING those people to STOP bringing money into their life.

So again, those who bring blessings, resources, money, wisdom, and understanding into my life…how much am I expressing and showing my appreciation and gratitude to them?

Is it enough appreciation and gratitude that they are motivated to continue pouring blessings into my life?

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© 2013 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How To Become Great

God has a certain wisdom that’s been stirring in your heart for a while…

Allow me to confirm that wisdom for you…

It’s NOT how much you have that makes you happy. And yet, so many people spend huge amounts of time and energy wishing they had more.

It’s NOT how much you get that satisfies. And yet, so many people spend huge amounts of time and energy wishing they could get more.

It’s NOT status and notoriety that fulfills. And yet, so many people spend huge amounts of time and energy wishing they were at a higher level and that more people’s attention was upon them.

It’s NOT having people look up to you with envy that brings joy. And yet, so many people spend huge amounts of time and energy wishing they were in a place of success that other people would envy.

And,  God’s wisdom stirring in your heart tells you plainly that all this “wishing” does you no good…and is in fact a block to you receiving your good.

So you ask: “What is it that does delight my soul?

And again, God’s wisdom in your heart reveals the answer…

It’s what you DO…that in some way makes the world a better place for certain people…and that in some way points those people to Jesus Christ.

You “know” all of this…because it’s God’s wisdom that’s stirring in your heart.

And in your desire to do good, you create much frustration for yourself that really is unnecessary.  Your carnal self rises up…overriding your spiritual self…

…and wants to do your good at a HUGE level…at a level where you have much…where you get much…where you have much status and notoriety…where people look at you with envy…

…and because you are at a level that seems to you to be rather humble and perhaps even meager…you feel very unhappy and frustrated.

But God, in His love and care for you…stirs again His wisdom in your heart…and reminds you…

All is well and all grows better.

Everything is right on time and right on pace with God’s perfect plan for YOUR life.

While it may be true that certain things don’t “feel” all that great right now…”faith” lets you know that God is creating and orchestrating great good RIGHT NOW out of your PRESENT circumstances and conditions.  Time will inevitably prove that your “faith” was the REAL truth.

God’s wisdom in your heart reminds you of Christ’s words in Matthew 25:  “thou hast been faithful over a FEW things,  I WILL MAKE THEE ruler over many things“.

And as you think about these words from Christ to you…you can realize that there’s nothing for you to be fretting about…there’s nothing to be worried about…there’s nothing to be upset or frustrated about.

All you have to do is this: DO whatever you can…right where you are at…with whatever resources you have…to make the world a better place for just one person…and while you are doing that, find some way point to point that person to Jesus Christ…and then do that again for another person…and another…

Soon enough, you WILL look around and find that GOD HAS MADE THEE a RULER over MANY THINGS!

Isn’t it a RELIEF to know that God will do the “heavy lifting” of “making” you great in His Kingdom?

And so, you can just relax now into this new year with complete peace in your heart, total faith and trust in God, and the full confidence to go DO your part.

As you do your part, God WILL do His part.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

A Core Belief Of Great Men And Women

There’s a quote (generally attributed to Robert Schuller) that success coaches like to use to challenge people:

What would you do if you knew you could not fail?

It’s a good quote because it inspires people to operate at a higher level. However, there is a problem with this quote’s line of thinking…man’s ability, strength, and knowledge is limited.

So, given this limitation, let’s consider a much more powerful quote:

I am holy“.

This is a quote from David in Psalms 86:2. Now, let’s be clear on what David is saying in this quote…he’s NOT saying that he’s holy like God is Holy. So, let’s recast this quote into what David IS saying:

I am one who God favors“.

Permit me to say that again…except this time, I want you to read it as if it were true for you:

I am one who God favors“.

How does that feel?

I’m wondering…would it bring tears to your eyes and extreme gratitude to your heart if you were to find out that God favors YOU?

I’m wondering…what would your life be like IF you REALLY BELIEVED that God favored you?

How would you think? How would you operate? How would you interact with other people?

What great and wonderful things would you achieve and accomplish…all because God’s favor was upon you?

The trouble is…FEW of God’s people BELIEVE God’s favor is upon them.

Now, IF we are NOT in right relationship with God through Jesus Christ, then we KNOW we are not going to have God’s favor in our life. There are many verses throughout the Bible that tell us this and as an example, Proverbs 3:33 tells us, “The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.

But, assuming you are living, doing, acting, and thinking right before the Lord, then here is what you should know:

Thou [Lord] hast granted me life and favour, and thy visitation hath preserved my spirit.” Job 10:12

As you live your life in Christ, here’s what you should know:

For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.” Psalm 5:12

among the righteous there IS favour” Proverbs 14:9

However, there’s another aspect to having God’s favor in our lives…

In every aspect of life, there are ALWAYS two parts…there’s God’s part…and there is OUR part.

For example…

For whoso findeth [wisdom] findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD. But he that sinneth against [wisdom] wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate [wisdom] love death.” Proverbs 8:35

Good understanding giveth favour” Proverbs 13:5

From verses like the previous two, we realize it is OUR responsibility to learn, to grow, to develop, to turn learning and knowledge into understanding and wisdom.

And for some, as they look back over the last few years, there hasn’t been much growth in the area of understanding and wisdom…there’s been a lot of complaining and blaming…but not much growth.

And the thing is, IF we fail to do our part, THEN we HINDER God from doing his part.

There’s another part that WE are responsible for…

A good man showeth favour” Psalm 112:5

Too often, people are so focused on GETTING favor from someone “above” them that they fail to GIVE favor to those “around” them. But, that man or woman who habitually puts effort into SHOWING FAVOR to others cannot help but experience a favor-filled life.

Bottom line, make whatever shifts and changes you need to make…so that you become fully persuaded that “I am one who God favors“…and your life will go through such an incredible transformation it’s beyond your current comprehension.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

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.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

Would you like for someone to give you money?

There was a certain man who was asking for money.

He really was in a difficult predicament. Circumstances and conditions were hard for him.

They had been for a long, long time.

No relief was in site.

And right now, all he wanted was for some one to give him some money.

THAT would make his situation better, he believed.

You can read more about this man in Acts Chapter 3 and what you’ll find out is that…

Money WAS NOT what he needed.

Oh sure, he could have easily found a way to spend and dispose of whatever money was given to him – but money wasn’t what he needed the most.

What he needed was a HEALING.

If you’ll receive it…

If you really want help…

If you genuinely want to turn your affairs around for the better…

You don’t need money either. What you need is a healing…a healing in the area of money beliefs and perspectives…a healing in your mindset about money…a healing in the way you want to “get” money.

You need a healing from that socialistic mindset that wants someone else to “give” you money…to “bail” you out of your problems…your troubles…your conditions and circumstances…

Which is the same thing as saying you want someone to RELIEVE you from the CONSEQUENCES of your choices…your perspectives…your beliefs…your attitude…your actions and inactions…ALL OF WHICH WOULD PUT YOU RIGHT BACK INTO THE SAME SITUATION YOU ARE IN RIGHT NOW EVEN IF SOMEONE DID “GIVE” YOU MONEY.

In fact, it’s not at all unusual for people who have been “gifted” bailout money to end up in conditions and circumstances that are WORSE than the ones they are in right now.

Here is your healing if you really want it…

Money is compensation for value and service rendered.

Provide little value or service and receive little money.

Provide much value or service and receive much money.

But, the money isn’t what’s important.

What’s important is the benefit that your value and service brings to people’s lives.

In providing value and service, you’re HELPING people.

By helping people, you FIT IN with God’s design and plan for mankind.

Yesterday, a friend reminded me of when we were boys…

The widow women we knew didn’t sit around down and out and poor.

Instead, they WORKED!

One of them made handmade quilts that were of such excellent craftsmanship and design that they were SOLD before she could finish them…and in fact, she had a back-list of requests that constantly kept her several months “behind”.

Another one made and delivered mouthwatering homemade pies, cakes, and desserts for families that didn’t have time to make their own. And, they sure beat the stale, bland, chemical-laden options that were available at the grocery store.

Yet another one took the little bit of money her deceased husband left her and built a greenhouse which she soon leveraged into a booming year-around business of providing families with FRESH, HEALTHY vegetables that were of better quality than what a person could get at any local grocery store.

I guess you could say that people did give these widow-women money…and people were happy to give it to them…because they were getting something of value back.

These widow-women didn’t lack for money. In fact, they hired young men and women in the church so that even more money was flowing to and through them.

What about you?

What do you have to give to people for money besides a bunch of empty, windy promises of “I’ll pay you back when…”

You may be way “upside down”…you may be way in debt…with huge bills staring you in the face.

It doesn’t matter.

All that matters is that you find some way to provide value and service to people…

And, that you find a way PRONTO!

Ask God in prayer what’s the best way for you right now.

It may be something that you only do for a while. It may be something you do for the rest of your life. Just keep your focus on providing value and service and you’ll end up doing the right things. God will lead you in the right direction if you’ll let him (Isaiah 49:18).

Tell those that you owe what you’re doing to turn things around for yourself…so that you can both pay them off plus accrued interest AND create a better life for yourself and your family.

They’ll work with you. If they see that you’re genuinely working at doing something to provide value and service they’ll carry you.

It’s when they see you sitting around wanting something for nothing that they become unwilling to work with you.

Quit wanting money.

Be a searcher, seeker, and implementer of ways to provide value or service.

Provide it in whatever way you can.

Provide it in such a way that there’s something REMARKABLE, SPETACULAR, INCREDIBLE, or AMAZING about it.

It really is as simple as this. The “hard” part is actually doing the WORK. The “hard” part is overcoming your “fear of failure” and your “fear of people”. The “hard” part overcoming your “fear of rejection” and going ahead and stepping out into the world of people and offering your value to them.

Now, it may take some time.

That’s ok. The time was going to pass anyway.

Undoubtedly, there are certain hardships, mishaps, or “disadvantages” in your past. Maybe, you’ve brought them forward with you into your present.

That’s good. Those “disadvantages” contain your unique advantage so that you can provide value in a way that’s remarkable and special. Besides, every other person who’s ever “made it” had their own set of “disadvantages” that they got past just like you can.

There will be failures and setbacks along the way.

That’s ok. Don’t worry about them. They don’t define you. They aren’t the “end”. They are merely “educational devices” so that you learn what you need to learn. This is God’s way of directing you into providing the precise, specific value that people really want.

There will be times when it “seems” like nothing is working.

That’s when you maintain your Faith in God and REFINE your ideas about serving and providing value to people. As you continue doing the WORK of your “part”, God will do His part behind the scenes. If you don’t quit and give up, you’ll soon enough see that is true.

Your life will never be the same.

You’ll never “want” money again.

One more really important thing…

Watch out for the people who take it upon themselves to tell you this won’t work for you. Oh, they’ll have their “proof”. They’ll have all these “horror” stories where “someone” they know tried to step out and be a provider of value and “lost” everything. (Notice how it’s usually someone else as most of these nay-sayers have never had the courage, faith, and trust in God to actually try anything for themselves.)

Watch out for these kinds of people lest you join their ranks of those who are AFRAID to go do the WORK and you waste your life away having never accomplished or achieved anything meaningful.

But, you ask, who’s really right? Me or “them”?

Look to your Bible for your answer.

Can you find anywhere in the Bible where it tells you that you’ll “lose everything” if you strive to provide greater value (LOVE) to people?

No?

Is there any place in your Bible that tells you God will forsake you and abandon you if you’re genuinely serving Him and loving (SERVING) people?

No?

Well, there’s your answer.

But of course, if your FAITH is that you’ll fail and lose all…well, then you have obligated God to give you that.

But, if your FAITH is that you’ll do your best to provide value and God will take care of everything else…well, God will do that for you too.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How To Manifest A Miracle

I hope this really inspires you…

I hope this really encourages you, builds your hope, and increases your faith…

All too often, people have a problem…maybe its money, health, or a relationship…

And they start dwelling on what they DON’T have and what they THINK they need.

They GENERATE a lot of unpleasant feelings as they dwell on these things.

They think they need someone to give them some money.

They think they need a better doctor.

They think they need a different husband or wife.

Actually, they don’t really need any of these “needs”. These are all SECONDARY “needs”. These are all DERIVATIVES of the PRIMARY NEED…

The primary NEED is to be in right relationship with God through Jesus Christ and to obey God rather than men.

Let’s explore…

Most people know about the scripture that says, “But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33)

There’s a BIG difference between knowing ABOUT something and KNOWING something.

That’s why it’s so important that we spend significant time STUDYING they Bible and SEEKING the truth’s Jesus said are HIDDEN from the carnal person.

Now, we’re ready to go deeper…

Let’s look at the Biblical account of Jesus’ first miracle in John chapter 2.

Verse 3 says, “They have NO wine.”

So, right off the bat, we see a LACK problem. We find that there is a significant need.

What about you? Do you have a LACK problem? Do you have a significant need?

Do you – like the people in this story – have need of a miracle?

Well, God is a God of miracles…but miracles are at the END of the line…not at the FRONT!

Witness verse 5 that says, “Whatsoever he saith unto you, DO IT.”

Uh oh…there’s the real clincher…YOU HAVE GOT TO DO SOMETHING FIRST!

That’s why I say you don’t need someone to give you money. You don’t need a better doctor. You don’t need a different husband or wife. YOU NEED A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST WHERE GOD WILL SPEAK THE WORD TO YOUR HEART AND MIND OF WHAT YOU NEED TO DO.

It’s AFTER you start DOING whatever it is that God speaks to your heart to do that the miraculous can occur.

But, you’ve got to DO what God tells you to DO with FULL PASSION AND INTENSITY.

In verse 7 we read, “And they filled them up to the brim.” The servants in this story didn’t half-way fill the pots that Jesus commanded them to fill. THEY FILLED THEM ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP. They put all they could into what they were doing. They went all the way.

Now, AND ONLY NOW, do we finally get to God’s part…

Verse 9 says, “and knew not whence it was”.

Somewhere, between DOING their part of filling the water pots and taking them out to the wedding party the miraculous power of God took over the work of their hands and blessed it – and the water became wine.

Right now, do you know how God is going to work everything out in your life and in your situation?

In most cases, the answer is, “I don’t have a clue”, right?

But, that doesn’t matter…as you DO what the Lord has told you to do THEN, AND ONLY THEN will the miraculous come out of that which is unseen and unknown BY US – BUT WHICH IS FULLY SEEN AND FULLY KNOWN BY GOD!

It’s true!

It really is. This is how it works.

Get a close look at verse 11, “This beginning of miracles did Jesus…and MANIFESTED FORTH HIS GLORY”

God WANTS TO MANIFEST FORTH HIS GLORY IN YOUR LIFE.

Do you realize that?

Can you really, truly, fully grasp that God really does want to do the wonderful and miraculous in your life?

But, it’s about YOU and God…just the two of you.

You don’t need something from someone else. You don’t need other people to do something or give you something.

Right now, God isn’t the least interested in someone doing whatever it is that you think they ought to do or that you want them to do.

Right now, God isn’t the least interested in someone giving you whatever it is that you think you want them to give you.

Sure, when God ultimately performs the miraculous, it will probably involve other people that God has orchestrated to be a part your blessing…

But, like I said, that’s all SECONDARY AND INCIDENTAL to the primary thing…

You having the kind of relationship with God where He will speak to your heart what He wants YOU to do and you OBEYING His voice.

That’s what it’s all about.

Moreover, as you are DOING what God has spoken to your heart to do, inevitably you’ll be helping and blessing other people.

That’s a good thing…

“Whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:8)

When you fully get this concept of you doing your part so that God can do his part, your life will never, ever be the same.

It will never be the same because you’ll no longer waste time waiting around for a miracle.

You’ll never again sit around unhappy because someone else isn’t doing something or giving you something.

Instead, you’ll quickly start seeking whatever it is that God wants you to do and you’ll do it as unto the Lord, knowing that in the unseen and the unknown, the Power of God will begin working to bless abundantly that which you are doing…and you’ll proceed with full confidence, with full faith that THE MIRACULOUS IS GOING TO HAPPEN in due process of time.

Don’t be bothered by how small your start is.

Don’t let the small scale of things right now frustrate you when you can envision things on a much grander scale.

Scale is God’s business not yours.

When God is ready…when God has got YOU ready…then He will scale things up to bigger proportions. You don’t have to worry about that.

All you have to do is OBEY and DO whatever it is that God speaks to your heart to do. Everything else will be taken care of by God.

Isn’t that wonderful to know?

Doesn’t that release a lot of pressure off of you?

Can you step into the freedom of LETTING God lead you by speaking to your heart what it is He wants you to DO?

Can you relax into the peace and joy of knowing that as you do your part, God will do His part?

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

Opportunities Everywhere – But Only The Wealthy See Them…

If you’ve read my FREE eBook, “The Philosophy of the Happy, Healthy, and Wealthy“, you might remember that I stated there’s a reason the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.

Hold that thought in mind…

It’s been suggested time and again by people of a certain mindset that money should be taken from wealthy people and “redistributed” to the poor.

And, when the wealthy hear this, they always chuckle to themselves because they know that even if something like that did happen, it would only be a matter of a few years until the money “redistributed” itself right back into their wallets and bank accounts.

How can this be?

Actually, it’s rather simple…the “normal” person…the proverbial 95% of people think primarily in terms of what they WANT.

They’re always wanting something…these are the people who LITERALLY spend their entire life dwelling upon some new thing they want, lusting after what they don’t have.

To these people money is nothing more than a means to get something they want and they forever want more money so they can GET more stuff.

They are SELF-INTERESTED CONSUMERS. Their vision, perspective, and awareness RARELY opens up to anything outside of themselves.

The other 5% of people…the wealthy minority…well, they want more money and more stuff too…but that’s not what they think about the most…what the wealthy think about primarily is…

“How can I and how WILL I provide INCREASED SERVICE and VALUE to a select segment of people so that I am duly rewarded and compensated for that increased service and value?”

To people who think primarily in this way, money is a means to provide increased service and value to an increasingly larger segment of people so that their rewards and compensation can be increased as well.

This makes them SELF-INTERESTED and OTHER-INTERESTED PROVIDERS.

Here’s what you must realize…

Money ALWAYS LEAVES CONSUMERS and GOES to PROVIDERS!

And so, even if some government agency took the money away from the providers, the consumers would literally hand it right back over to the providers.

Do you understand that?

Good…because your wealth depends upon you understanding that.

In fact, pause right here and ask yourself, “Do I primarily think about consuming or providing? Which way do I mostly think about using money?

Now, this brings us to why the poor think there is a scarcity of opportunity while the wealthy see opportunity everywhere.

For those people in the 95% group, they’re thinking primarily about what they WANT…

Which leads them to thinking about how to GET more money so that they can GET what they want…

But all they can see is that wealthy people have “all” the money and they don’t know how to “get” the wealthy to “let go” and “share” some of their money with them…

And so, it appears to 95% of people that there is a scarcity of opportunity.

In contrast, those people in the 5% group, they’re asking themselves how they will provide increased service and value and get rewarded for it.

And so, they look around at what other people are wanting…

They look around at all the places where money is being spent…

And they ask themselves questions like, “Given what’s wanted and what’s being bought and sold in this specific situation:

1. How could I create or buy the supplies, raw materials, or resources that are required cheaper than what they currently cost?

2. How could I sell more of the service or product to more people faster or more conveniently?

3. How could I enhance the value of the service or product so that it can be sold at a higher price?

As you well know, it’s not hard to find inefficiencies and waste…

It’s not hard to find opportunities for improvement…

And so, the wealthy LITERALLY see OPPORTUNITIES EVERYWHERE. They see so many opportunities that their biggest challenge is deciding which opportunities they want to take advantage of and which one’s they should let pass on by.

And, the way they decide is by comparing each opportunity to their purpose in life, to the potential for reward and compensation, to the effort and energy required, and the potential impact upon other initiatives they already have underway.

Now, go back and take a closer look at #1, #2, and #3 above. Realize that individuals have EARNED vast fortunes by finding and implementing an answer to just one of these three questions.

And those who find and implement answers to all three questions? Well, they are the wealthiest of the wealthy.

Ok, here’s your homework assignment…for the next week, every time you spend money, turn on your curiosity mode, consider and analyze the overall business situation in which you are spending money, then ask yourself the three questions above.

I’m confident you’ll be amazed at just how many opportunities there are all around you.

Now that you know this, guess what?

Now, it’s up to you to watch closely for the right opportunity and then implement.

Now, it’s time for you to expand your horizons and your awareness and transition beyond a mere consumer and become a member of the wealthy provider club.

It won’t happen over night. You’ll make plenty of mistakes. There’ll be some suffering. You’ll have to make some sacrifices. People will laugh at you, make fun of you, tell you that you’re not very smart, and that you don’t have what it takes. And, it’s all ok because you’ll end up wealthy…enjoying the goodness and fullness of life that God has for you and making a far bigger difference in the Kingdom of God.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How can I become more prosperous?

If you were to ask me, “How can I become more prosperous?”, here’s some of what I would tell you:

  • Remember to ALWAYS let God be your strength and consider Him in everything you do.
    Be an entrepreneurial, successful, positive, high-value, low-maintenance person so that you can have entrepreneurial, successful, positive, high-value, low-maintenance friends / colleagues.
  • High earners are HUGE action takers, excellent relationship builders, and excellent connection makers. They have the contacts, relationships, and active connections that are benefiting their own and others bank accounts. They got this way ON PURPOSE because striking key relationships is one of the best ways to increase income.
  • Create, produce, implement or provide something that’s of value to others. Now, find a way to improve it. Then, improve it yet again. Next, create, produce, implement, or provide something that’s complimentary to the first thing so that you have two things to offer to people. Keep on repeating this process.
  • It’s PARAMOUNT that you make changes for the better. Get serious. Do things differently. Step outside your comfort zone. Stretch your wings and fly. Connect with people by phone, letter, or best of all, face to face. Put yourself out there – not as a beggar but as a value-provider.
  • Up to this point, YOU have REPEATED a set of tasks and procedures – YOU have operated your own little methodology or system – all of which produced the income level you now have – all of which you’ll need to improve, enhance, upgrade, and add more features, functions, and capabilities to so that you can increase your value production if you desire to increase your income level. This is true whether you work for yourself or someone else.
  • Here in the US as well as in some other countries, a nation’s wealth is measured by its “Gross Domestic Product” (GDP). GDP is a measure of the total market value of goods and services produced that nation’s citizens. It’s the income generated by the output of that country’s citizens. It’s the rewards for all the activity and performance that’s of value to the citizens of that country. And, how much GDP grows from one period to another is a strong indicator of that nations economic health. Guess what? This same concept applies to the personal, individual level – your income IS a MIRROR of your “Gross PERSONAL Production” (GPP).
  • Your “Gross Personal Production” is a matrix of these three things:
  1. Offering and selling existing products or services to people who are new to your world.
  2. Offering and selling something new and wanted to an interested audience who is already a part of your world.
  3. The systems of action, accomplishment, achievement, and completion – systems that create, develop, extend, enhance, convert, improve, and maintain items #1 and #2.
  • Your “Gross Personal Production” – the amount of money you receive – is in proportion to the size of your systems. More specifically, it’s in proportion to how expansive and frequently your systems make valuable offerings to interested people that convert into completed sales.
  • People have set up systems that generate a few hundred dollars (substitute your own currency for those of you outside the US) all the way up to several billion dollars per month. What is your system generating for you each month?
  • Let me say it this way… Money moves towards people and things of value. You can make money selling something of value that you own. You can make money selling something of value that you DON’T own but have the right to sell. To make more money, make more sales. To make more sales, give people – and more people – more opportunities to buy – purposely give them multiple opportunities to buy and give them calculated opportunities to buy multiple things. And always, always be building a customer list so that you always have someone to sell something to. All that you hope for is available for you to have and intelligent, applied, persistent effort and focus will surely abolish the obstacles that are between you and what you want. Be encouraged. We’re still in business for God and as out-of-control as circumstances sometimes seem, God’s still in control of all things.
  • Perhaps, this is a good time to ask the age-old questions: A) What must I begin doing? B) What must I do more of? C) What must I do less of? D) What must I stop doing altogether?

These things are work…they are something that’s out of the norm for you…there are things you don’t know or aren’t sure about…and that’s why many people aren’t prosperous.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

Let’s talk about “Mustard Seed” faith…

I cannot count the number of people I’ve encountered who want someone ELSE (or something ELSE like the lottery) to give them their first million so that they can THEN go do something in the Kingdom of God.

Unfortunately for these folks, they either don’t realize – or don’t want to realize – that what they want doesn’t line up with God’s Word.

They are unaware that they are WORKING AGAINST themselves because they are trying to do things CONTRARY to God’s Word.

Consider these scriptures:

“Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: butwhen it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” Matthew 13:31-32

“And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sownit groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, andshooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.” Mark 4:30-32

“Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into HIS garden; and it grew, andwaxed great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.” Luke 13:18-19

In these verses, we can see that things that are blessed of God START with something SMALL that is PLANTED in OUR garden (ministered in our ministry) so that God can bless it and cause it to GROW and BECOME something GREAT.

The problem is, many people are unwilling to humble themselves DOWN to the point where they can start SMALL so that God can do HIS work of GROWING something GREAT in their lives.

They FEAR what other people will think of them and in PRIDE they refuse to humble themselves to a “low estate”. And that’s such a shame because the rewards are HUGE for those who let go of their “people” consciousness and embrace a “God” consciousness.

That’s part one. Here’s part two…

Lots of people talk about these two verses:

“And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” Matthew 17:20

“And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.” Luke 17:6

Now, I’m sure you can agree with me that lots of people want this kind of faith where they can just SAY, “Give me money” and money will come to them. But, as Jesus told us in Matthew 4:4 and in Luke 4:4, we’ve got to LIVE according to the entire Word of God.

What this means is that we need to connect the preceding scriptures of starting small with scriptures like:

“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” Luke 6:38

“Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord” Ephesians 6:8

WHEN people make this connection, THEN they’ll have something that will REALLY WORK in their lives.

Here’s the thing; I don’t care who you are and I don’t care what you DON’T have…

EVERYBODY has SOMETHING – however small it may be – that they can give as unto the Lord – they have something they can plant in the Kingdom of God.

Which means; the sooner you start giving and planting, the sooner you start ministering in your ministry, the sooner you can SPEAK to that which you’ve given, planted, and ministered, the sooner God can bless it to become something great.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

It’s Time for You to Start Being More UNreasonable…

You can’t always avoid seeing the unpleasant, the undesirable, the problem, the trouble, the negative, or the bad.

You can’t always avoid hearing about it either.

Sometimes, it even “hits home” – right in the middle of your affairs, conditions, and circumstances.

But, YOU DON’T HAVE TO RECEIVE IT!

You don’t have to tune in to it.

You don’t have to accept it.

You don’t have to embrace it.

Open up your Bible and flip over to the 4 short chapters in the book of Philippians. Notice some of the amazing verses in there…

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it…

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of a good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Now really think about that…

Here is Paul the Apostle is in a Roman prison – and history tells us that these Roman cells were essentially sewage pits – and yet, he’s telling himself and us to think on NOTHING but GOOD things.

That’s what I’m talking about…Yes, Paul was in a bad situation but he wasn’t embracing it. He definitely was not tuning in to it.

In fact, if you weren’t really paying attention, you wouldn’t even realize from reading Philippians that Paul is in prison.

What about you?

What are you tuned in to?

What are you embracing?

If a friend were to call you up and ask you, “How’s it going?” what would come out of your mouth?

The truth is that the good you desire DEPENDS upon you living by Paul’s words, “if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

In other words, if there’s good in it, think about it. Dwell upon it. But, if there’s nothing good about it, then REFUSE TO GIVE IT ANY MENTAL ENERGY!

Don’t think about it. Don’t tell people about it. Just delete it from your mind and turn the focus and the attention of your mind to the good that you desire.

Now, some people say to me, “That’s not even reasonable!”

My response is, “You’re right. God has called us to be “unreasonable” when it comes to living our lives – because the person that’s living their life with their faith placed firmly in God does refuse and reject what they don’t want and firmly embraces their firm belief that God will bring about the Good that they desire – or something better.”

In reading the Gospels, you repeatedly find Jesus “getting on” to people because they weren’t being “unreasonable” enough to believe God for good in the midst of the bad.

It’s time for you to start being more “unreasonable”…the good you desire depends upon it!

No matter what your external conditions and circumstances…

Think the good that you desire.

Speak the good that you desire.

Act the good that you desire.

Today is a PERFECT day for you to start being more UNreasonable!

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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 Want To Be Big (A Lesson on Mustard Seed Faith)

Lots of people have read about mustard seed faith (Matthew 13:31-32, Matthew 17:20, Mark 4:32-32, Luke 13:19, Luke 17:6)

Lots of people like to talk about mustard seed faith.

Few people who are willing to BECOME mustard seed faith…

Few people are willing to “go backwards” when it comes to material things. Few people are willing to let themselves, their circumstances, their finances, or their lifestyle become small so that God can make and grow them into something big and fruitful.

God has ordained things to start out SMALL.

Often, things start out EXTREMELY small.

In nature, a seed is planted. It’s so small and insignificant. Compared to the full-grown “giants” that are all around it, it’s hard to imagine that this one little seed even matters – let alone that it could ever make a difference.

But, the seed doesn’t concern itself with such burdening, limiting thoughts.

It just begins the germinating process by absorbing miniscule amounts of moisture and nutrients from the soil that’s around it.

Compared to the resources of the surrounding “giants”, the resources of the tiny seed is almost laughable.

But again, the seed doesn’t waste it’s time making such non-useful comparisons.

By drawing upon that which is available to it with the small strength that it has, it soon enough starts a root. Now, it’s a little bigger and has a little more strength. Now, it can draw a little more moisture and it can draw even more nutrients from the soil.

It doesn’t worry about what others around it are doing. It just keeps doing all it can do with all it has available to it.

Before long, a sprout pops out of the ground. Now, it can draw on even more resources such as sunshine.

Eventually, the little seed becomes one of the “giants” that contributes to the eco-systems of nature in a major way.

This is the way of God. This is how God has ordained things to work.

Do not be afraid of becoming small.

Do not be afraid of people seeing you in a low estate.

Do not be afraid of moving into a position where you’re now the “least”.

For in doing so, you place yourself firmly into the hands of God so that He can make you one of those who are among the “greatest”.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How Can I Be Successful Like…

Frequently, people ask me, “How can I be successful like [successful person’s name]?

Sometimes they ask it like this, “How can I be as successful as [successful person’s name]?

And, when they ask me this question, you can feel their frustration, you can feel their hopelessness, you can feel that they don’t believe they can attain the success they desire.

They feel this way because they stopped too soon. They asked one single question and because of how they phrased and positioned the question to themselves, there wasn’t an easy answer and now they’re stuck – and that’s why they feel the way they do.

My friend, you must get beyond limiting questions and learn to ask yourself empowering and enabling questions!

So, in response to their question, I might ask them a question back like, “How successful is [successful person’s name]?

They almost always tell me, “I don’t know” or “I’m not sure”.

Well, as you can already tell from my question and their answer, they don’t even know what their target is. They have nothing more than a vague, ambiguous, ethereal notion of what they want. They just know they want to be more successful.

No wonder they feel stuck, stumped, and frustrated. Trying to hit a target of “nothingness” is ALWAYS a maddening exercise.

The obvious point is that regardless of whatever level of success you perceive someone else to have, you must decide clearly and specifically what level of success YOU want.

But, let’s say they are clear on how successful they want to be. Then, I’ll ask them something like, “What makes [successful person’s name] so successful? In your study of them, what are the specific things that you have observed them doing that you believe causes them to be so successful?

Again, they almost always tell me, “I don’t know” or “I’m not sure”.

So now, we both know that really, their desire for greater success is merely an idle wish. They want “something” but they aren’t really serious about it. They aren’t serious enough about it to actually try to study and figure out how to attain the success they say they want.

Really, they just want something for nothing – and God never supports that model. There is always a sacrifice, there is always a price.

But, I’ll push forward and ask them to give my question some thought for a moment and see if they can come up with some things they “think” the successful person might be doing. And, now that they’re actually thinking about it, they usually come up with two or three things.

Now, I ask them, “Are these things that the successful person does – that you just told me about – are these things that at some level – maybe it’s to a different degree – maybe it’s on a different scale – but at some level, could you do these same things?

Usually, their answer is along the lines of, “Uhhhh, yea, I guess so.”

At which point, I usually ask them one last question, “Do you really want to be as successful as [successful person’s name]? If you do, then you now know what you need to start doing because if you do what they do, you’ll become as successful as they are.

Ask yourself empowering, enabling, thought-provoking questions.

Study success.

Take action.

Success is waiting for you.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How To Create Affirmations That Work…

For an affirmation to work, it needs POWER…

POWER comes from God through Christ…

Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” 1Corinthians 1:24

By the word of truth, by the power of God” 2 Corinthians 6:7

And, the Bible is this truth, this wisdom, this POWER packaged up in WORD form for our benefit…

The SOLUTION to any and every problem you’re dealing with right now can be found in the Bible.

You can have victory over your problems by using Bible-based affirmations…

Find those verses that apply to your situation and circumstances…

…and turn them into an affirmation!

Let me give you two examples derived from Acts 3:16:

“And [Jesus] through faith in His name HATH made [me] [???]”

“The faith which is by [Jesus] hath given [me] this [???]”

And, just so it’s clear, the ??? part is the polar opposite of your problem…the ??? part is the “good”, the “ideal”, the “outcome” you want.

Go ahead…try plugging in the polar opposite of your problem into one of the above affirmations and see if you don’t FEEL a spark of POWER in just saying it.

This is good…

And, I want you to let it get even better…

I want you to learn to talk to yourself just like Jesus would talk to you!

In Luke 13:10-13, we find a woman who was bound with a crippling infirmity that she’d had for 18 years.

Do you know what Jesus said to her when his path crossed hers?

He said, “Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.”

And immediately, this woman was made whole and she gave glory to God.

Could you use the PATTERN of Christ’s words in talking to yourself to create the same effect of victory in your life?

“[Your Name], thou art [???]”

Brother or Sister in Christ, you CAN use the PATTERN of Christ’s words in your life and His words WILL work for YOU too!

Of course, it doesn’t matter what you say if you’re constantly IMAGINING unpleasant, unwanted, and undesirable situations and circumstances. So, put away those negative thoughts.

Actively reject and eject any and every thought of what you don’t want from your mind. Give zero energy (fertilizer) to the undesirable – it may in fact exist at this moment in time but that doesn’t mean you have to give energy to it.

Instead, as you say your affirmation, IMAGINE yourself actually having, doing, being the good that you desire…IMAGINE yourself actively engaged with, in operation with, performing with, and using the good you desire even as you say your affirmation. In this way, you put good energy (fertilizer) into what you do want.

Bottom line, when you holistically think, talk, and act according to the principles set forth in the Bible, you’ll find that your life is a series of movements “from glory to glory”. This doesn’t mean there won’t be times of hardship and suffering – there will be. But, even in these times, we know that a greater victory is in the making.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

How To Get Out Of Debt (And How To Stay Out Of Debt)

I frequently get emails much like this one:

Hello Millionaires For Jesus,

Without going into specifics, I need financial assistance. Before I can become a “Millionaire for Jesus” I need guidance on how to get out of debt. I am not looking for a handout. I need specific guidance to get out of specific debt until I can have controllable debt. Please advise.

Sincerely,
xxxxxxxxxx

Before I describe the process of eliminating debt, I first need to make sure you are fully AWARE of a certain choice you’ve already made – one that you may not have even been aware that you made it. The choice was to:

  1. Operate on credit (easy on the front-end, painful on the back-end)
  2. Operate on cash (can be unpleasant on the front-end, easy on the back-end)

This is a significant CHOICE to make – this is a WAY OF LIVING choice – a choice that will impact you for the rest of your life with far-reaching consequences.

Also, this is a choice that everyone makes no matter what level of income they have.

It’s a choice one makes to:

  1. Get immediate gratification and forgo greater future enjoyment
  2. Forgo immediate gratification and gain greater future enjoyment

Somewhere along the way, a person DECIDES which way they are going to live and operate.

After that, they just habitually live and operate that way.

Here’s the thing, nobody ever stops wanting. If a person wants ABC, as soon as they get ABC, they’ll begin to want DEF. As soon as they have DEF, they’ll want GHI.

So, when a person operates on credit, they can quickly and easily get ABC.

But, the price that MUST be paid in order to get ABC now is to pay two to three times more for it on the back-end over what ABC would have cost if bought with cash up-front.

And, because they are paying for ABC twice or three times, that makes it more difficult for them to get DEF.

And, if they do manage to somehow get DEF, they have now indebted themselves to the point they’ll never be able to get or enjoy GHI because they’re struggling just to get ABC and DEF paid off.

Here’s an example you can check out for yourself: a $200,000 home with a 30-year, 8% interest mortgage will end up costing more than $515,000.

When you look at this truth, you can realize that you aren’t paying 8% interest. In reality, you’re paying almost 200% interest.

How wise is that?

(Approximately 1/3 of a mortgage pays for the home and approximately 2/3 of the mortgage pays interest – that equals 200% interest. But of course, lending companies know that if they positioned their business in its true light, far fewer people would borrow. And so, they use an “amortized” approach so they can tell you that you are borrowing at “8%”.)

If you were to walk up to the average person and ask them if they would trade you one of their $5 bills for two of your $1 bills you know they’d say, “No!”

And yet, the average person frequently makes this same kind of foolish exchange with far bigger numbers that have far more negative and severe impacts on their lives.

In Luke 14:28, Jesus speaks of “counting the cost”. If up to this point, you have not consciously made it your way of living to count the current cost compared to the future cost, it would be wise for you to begin to do so.

At this point, you may be thinking to yourself, “But, I have to have a home. And, there’s no way I can pay cash for it given my current means. What am I supposed to do?

The answer is that you DON’T buy a $200,000 house with a 30-year mortgage. Instead, you buy a $75,000 house with a 10 or 15-year mortgage. Your interest rate will be lower and the payment amount is one that you can much more easily afford to pay. From there, you pay as much as you can towards the principle loan amount and you make as many IMPROVEMENTS TO THE HOME as you can. With appropriate improvements, in one to three years you should be able to easily sell the home for a nice $10,000 – $30,000 profit.

Then, you take this profit and roll it into another $75,000 house – except this time, you have a smaller mortgage. In 10 years or less (usually less), you can work your way all the way up to the same $200,000 home that I gave in the example above – except you’ll be able to pay cash for it.

Think of that, paying cash for your $200,000 dollar home in 10 years while all your friends will be into their retirement years before they get theirs paid off.

Yes, your friends may laugh at you early on for buying a $75,000 “fixer-upper”. But at the end, you’ll be the one laughing, not them. And, as the old saying goes, “He who laughs last, laughs best.

While your friends are struggling with their debt, your dealing with how to best invest that extra $315,000 THAT YOU HAVE that they are giving away to someone else.

You’re making YOU RICH.

They’re making SOMEONE ELSE RICH.

Which model do you like better?

Let me shift the topic a bit…

People often ask me if debt is ever appropriate. In my opinion, unless a debt is a carefully calculated business investment – meaning the “cost” of the money is “calculatably”, logically, and real-worldly (think Murphy’s Law) less than the return on the use of the money, it should be avoided.

Even when the cost of money is less than the return, it is my viewpoint to look for alternative approaches and means besides using debt.

Why?

Because I value my FREEDOM. And, when I owe someone, I am REQUIRED to make considerations, choices, and decisions that I otherwise would not make! Specifically, I choose to serve God rather than man.

However you choose to look at it, what I can for sure say is thatANY DEBT THAT DOES NOT MAKE YOU MONEY IS BAD FOR YOUR FINANCIAL HEALTH.

Here’s something else for you to keep in mind…

You don’t deal with darkness by “fighting” with darkness. Instead, you focus on creating light and the darkness disappears. Similarly, you don’t deal with coldness by “fighting” with it. Rather, you create heat and the coldness goes away.

I say this to point out that although I’m about to give you a process to eliminate debt, at some point you don’t so much deal with the debt as much as you focus on creating wealth – and if you operate as God would have you operate according to the Bible – the debt just “goes away” and wealth is left in place.

In some cases, the amount of debt can be so LARGE that a person can quite literally never be able to “pay it off” via normal means. In this case, the ONLY solution is to devote all of your God-given creative ability towards creating a LARGER amount of money – one that will not only take care of the debt but also leave you an overage that can be used to create additional wealth.

Lastly, remember that no one gets into a bad debt position overnight and no one gets out of it overnight. Becoming debt-free is a process of discipline and time. And, these two are inversely related – the more disciplined you are, the less time that’s needed. Conversely, the less disciplined you are, the more time that’s needed to eliminate the debt.

Think of it this way, to bring about anything good requires a “gestation period”. And usually, that gestation period isn’t the most comfortable experience (just ask any pregnant woman). But, when the good has “birthed”, you forget all about the unpleasantness of gestation for the joy of the good that has been born. (John 16:21)

Now, here’s a proven process for getting out of debt:

  1. From this point forward you do NOT buy anything unless you can pay cash for it. If you do not have the cash for it, you do not buy it, do it, or go there.
  2. List out each of your debts – from the smallest, most trivial item all the way up to your biggest items such as your mortgage – with their respective balance owed, interest rate, monthly payment amount, and number of payments remaining. From this information, sort your debts in an intelligent pay off order. (Usually, it makes the most sense to put those debts that have the smallest number of payments remaining at the top and those with the greatest number of payments remaining at the bottom.)
  3. For the debt that is at the top of the list, you pay AS MUCH AS YOU CAN POSSIBLY PAY on that debt each month and the absolute minimum payment on EVERYTHING ELSE.
  4. Once you have paid off the first debt, you then take what you were paying on the first debt and add that amount to what you’re paying on the second debt – the second debt now being the primary target of elimination. Again, you continue to pay the absolute minimum payment on everything else that’s lower on the list. (This is where most people dig themselves into a deeper hole – once they pay off a debt, they go get their “next toy” and take on another, usually bigger debt.)
  5. Once debt number two is paid off, then the payment amount that WAS going towards the first debt PLUS the payment amount that WAS going towards the second debt now gets added to the minimum payment of debt number three. As you can see, what you’re doing is doubling, tripling, quadrupling, etc the payment you’re making on each successive debt. The net result is that the debt elimination starts out slow but quickly gains speed and momentum with the payoff of each debt.
  6. You continue this simple process until your every debt is gone. By zealously following this process, a family can take 30+ years of debt – including their mortgage – and pay all of it off in less than 10 years.
  7. Once all debts are eliminated, you take the monthly payment that was going towards debt and you start paying that amount into your very own wealth-building account. Because of the amount of these payments you can begin accruing wealth quite quickly.

At this point, I want you to take a moment and consider the difference between the person who has followed this debt-elimination process and the person I described above who avoided debt as much as possible. The Lord willing, they’re both going to pass through the 10 years. The difference is their position at the end of the 10 years.

The person who has USED debt extensively must use the 10 years to build OTHER PEOPLES wealth. In contrast, the person who has AVOIDED debt as much as possible can begin building his or her own wealth almost immediately.

Now, let me address a common problem… If you’re having a hard time paying all of your bills, consider these points:

  1. DO put smart thought into a plan and then take decisive action. As an example, it makes NO sense to “hole up in your house” and “hide from the world” if you’re headed for foreclosure. Not only does it not make any sense, it’s just plain dumb to set there until the sheriff’s deputy shows up to evict you. Even if the only plan you can come up with is to sell the house, at least you’re doing something to move yourself into a more positive position.
  2. DO communicate frequently, firmly, and professionally with creditors. Explain to them what your current plans and actions are. Explain to them all the things that you are doing to rectify the problem. Reassure them that you WILL pay them everything you owe them. To avoid communicating with creditors is to make the problem WORSE. For example, it’s not wise to avoid a creditor until he or she finally sues you for wage garnishment of the debt PLUS court costs and legal fees.
  3. Ask creditors if they can restructure or rewrite the debt so that you have lower payments. Of course, this will result in a higher interest rate and a longer payoff term but at least you give yourself some breathing room and the space to get back up on your feet where you can pay what you owe.
  4. DO seriously consider liquidating everything that you possibly can. Sometimes the best solution is to set your ego and emotional attachments aside, sell your house, sell your cars, sell your boat, sell your whatever, and rent a small place until you can get back on your feet. Rather than view this as embarrassing and humiliating, view it as an adventure that didn’t work out so well and now you are embarking on a new adventure.

As a last resort, you can consider seeking assistance from:

  1. Credit counselors – These people will analyze your situation, make recommendations, and will even call creditors on your behalf and get them to agree to extended payment terms. Usually, in this model you pay one payment to the credit counselor’s agency and they disburse payments to the various creditors. Of course, there is a fee for the credit counselor’s agency to do all of this for you. Also, just so you are aware, the fact that you’ve sought assistance from a credit counselor will show up on your credit report.
  2. Loan consolidators – These are private businesses who lend you money so that you can pay off all of your debts and then you owe just one creditor – the new lender. Unfortunately, if your situation is in too big of a mess (i.e. your credit is too bad), you may not qualify for the loan. Also, watch out for prepayment penalties. These types of companies usually make their money by getting you to agree to a long-term payment plan at a high interest rate – and they’re not interested in you “taking money out of their pocket” by paying your loan off early.

WARNING: Carefully and prayerfully evaluate any third-party solutions as there ARE those who are scammers and con-artists looking to take as much money from you as they can and then “disappear”. Be particularly cautious when the word “free” is used.

Now, there’s one more thing I feel obligated to tell you…

The “world’s” system is your financial enemy. Society’s financial messages are NOT for your good.

Consider the Visa advertisements that play adrenalin-pumping music as hordes of people use their credit card. And then, one lone guy pulls out his wallet and attempts to pay with cash. Immediately, the music stops and the hordes of people place their look of disapproval upon the one guy (click here for an example).

This message of “buy on credit” is hammered into millions of people’s heads every night…

Yes, they make it look fun and yes they cover it up with the guise that it’s “faster” and “safer”…

Yes, these hordes of people buying on credit are the 95% of the population who die dead-broke…

Yes, these hordes of people never get to enjoy time-freedom and financial independence…

They are another man’s servant…

Money is their master…for they never learned to master money…

They spent their life dancing to the beat of the wrong drum…

Consider the words of Solomon in Proverbs 28:22, “He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.

With this verse in mind, ask yourself this question; “Is the use of credit anything more than just another way to hurry up and be rich?

Isn’t it true that the use of credit is nothing more than the desire to “live rich” and “be rich” now rather than later?

Consider another verse found in Proverbs 13:11, “Wealth gotten by vanity (debt) shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase.

Going back to the choice I mentioned at the beginning…

“The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” – Proverbs 22:7

Do you now choose to operate with cash only and be rich? Or, do you choose to operate on credit and be a servant?

Here’s God’s will for your life… “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another” – Romans 13:8

Take these words to God in prayer and ask Him to lead you into all truth.

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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

Wanting a Blessing While Cursing Everything…

Have you ever noticed…

When you’re attending a church service, it’s EASY to BLESS the Lord and to thank Him for His many blessings…

But, from the time you step outside your church’s doors until the time you step back inside them, it’s EASY to CURSE everything in your life?

Nobody means to…

Often, people don’t even realize they’re doing it…

They gripe about ________.

They complain about ________.

They’re unhappy about ________ and they tell everyone so.

You’ve heard them…

Maybe, you’ve heard yourself…

“That stupid ________ never works. I hate that thing!”

“That neighbor of ours is such an idiot. He’s going to mess around and tear up our ________.”

“You kids haven’t got a brain in your head do you? All you know how to do is destroy ________.”

“My boss thinks his sole purpose in life is to make my life miserable!”

“Come on you piece of junk car, start!”

“This economy is killing my business!”

“One more down-slide on my stocks and I’m going to be ruined!”

“I can’t get rid of this headache!”

As Jesus told Saul (Paul) in Acts 9:5, “It’s hard for thee to kick against the pricks”.

As it pertains to you and I…

It’s hard for us to attract blessings into our life if we are actively cursing – no matter how hard or soft – no matter how direct or indirect – everything that’s currently in our experience.

Let’s make a change. Let’s do this instead…

Let’s bless everybody and everything for good – both in church and out of church.

Remember, “ALL things work together FOR GOOD to them that love God”.

You love God, right?

That means that no matter how things “appear” in your experience, you can KNOW that it’s a “package of GOOD” specially-prepared by God for YOU.

So, if you can go ahead and BLESS EVERYTHING in your experience, that good can get to you – faster.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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 This Happens, Which Way Do You Go?

It can be one of the hardest changes you’ll ever make in yourself…

…the ability to consistently focus on and be grateful for what you do have and what you can do…

…in the midst of so many things that you don’t have, don’t want, and can’t do.

And yet, it’s one of the most critically-important personal changes you’ll ever make.

Let a problem in some area of your life crop up – one that’s big enough to generate emotions within you – be it a financial problem, a relationship problem, a health problem, or any other kind of problem…

And what do you do?

Really, what do you do?

Unsuccessful people tend to promptly forget about all the so many things that ARE good and right in their life and they put all of their focus and energy into feeling bad about the problem that has arisen. And, they tend to stay in this state as long as they possibly can.

You do realize that what you focus on is what you’re believing for more of, don’t you?

That’s why, when a problem crops up in successful people’s lives, they CONSCIOUSLY and IMMEDIATELY begin to focus all of their attention and energy into being grateful for all the things that are right and that are good.

Then, they begin to express their gratefulness for all the options they have. Or, if they can’t yet see any options, then they begin to express their gratefulness for the excellent options that are sure to show up and the wonderful goodness that is certain to come out of this situation…

…which leads them on to curiously imagining and wondering just how many good things could possibly arise from this circumstance they find themselves in and exactly what those good things might be.

Do you see the difference?

One “goes” to the bad and the other “goes” to the good.

Doesn’t that make it blatantly obvious why successful people get far better outcomes in life than do unsuccessful people?

More importantly, can you make the shift in your thinking-focus? Even when it looks bad? Even when emotionally, it hurts?

It’ll make a hugely positive difference in your entire life if you can.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

On the subject of useful perspectives…

Today, a person asked me the question, “Do you think that everyone has the same opportunities that you have had?” And then, indirectly, they asked me, “Do you think that everyone gets the same lucky breaks that you get?

I have to tell you… I’m always amazed at how strongly unsuccessful people believe that they get only the “UNlucky breaks” while simultaneously assuming that successful people must be successful because they get only the “lucky breaks”.

I’m fascinated by how they think that successful people have had it so easy and so good that they have no clue what it’s like in the “real” world for “normal” (i.e. unsuccessful) people.

In the Bible we find that it rains on the just and on the unjust.

In like fashion, lucky breaks AND UNlucky breaks happen to EVERYBODY!

That’s the simple, unvarnished truth.

What separates the successful from the unsuccessful is HOW they THINK about and WHAT they DO with BOTH the lucky and the UNlucky breaks.

In fact, having spent a lot of time with both successful and unsuccessful people my observation is that successful people have almost always went through far worse circumstances and situations than have unsuccessful people.

You don’t believe me?

While one’s level of money is certainly no gauge of whether they are successful or not, it will serve to illustrate my point. Go do a little background research on the Forbes 400 wealthiest people in America and you’ll find that most of them have been through gut-wrenching, heart-breaking circumstances that would cause many people to have a nervous meltdown.

And yet, when you listen to these people talk, you’d think they’d never had a bad break in their life – that everything was perfect and rosy for them…

EXACTLY!

That’s a part of why they’re so successful.

And, when you listen to the unsuccessful person talk, they tell you about how hard they’ve worked and how certain bad things have happened to them and how much they “deserve” a break…

EXACTLY!

That’s a part of why they’re so unsuccessful.

It’s a matter of perception…

Do you realize how critically important your perspective is?

The person who asked me the questions I quoted above also pointed out to me EXACTLY how many lending companies have gone out of business in the last year and how so many builders are going under and how no one is building homes. Their PERSPECTIVE was one that MATCHED and MIRRORED what they see, read, and hear in the news media.

In contrast, in a separate conversation with a successful person, he was talking about how much building he has going on and how he can’t even keep up with the demand and how he’s back-logged for easily the next year.

Incidentally, this person does NOT live in a “hot-bed”, “growth” area. He just does a really good job of marketing, sales, and customer service. When customers deal with him, they GET VALUE!

And, when I asked him of his opinion of all the bad news being broadcasted by the media, he told me, “I feel for those people who are going through all that stuff…but I myself don’t pay much attention to the news anymore…I used to…and when I did, my business would inevitably suffer. Now, I choose not to listen to all that and instead, I stay focused on doing all the simple, basic, and important things that I know I should be doing. And you know what? As I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing, my outcomes are 180 degrees opposite that being broadcasted in the news.

Friends, that’s POWERFUL!

That’s a USEFUL perspective, don’t you think?

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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

Positive Thinking Is NOT Enough…

hink.

Those thoughts that are good and wholesome and beneficial for both yourself and others are positive.

All other thoughts are negative and should be eradicated from your mind.

Positive thinking is good.

Positive thinking is important.

Positive thinking is NOT enough.

To be wealthy, you need more…

You need a focused, no time for distractions, all waste of any kind must be eliminated, action-oriented, get started, get finished, get it packaged, tell everyone about it, sell it to everyone, successful-outcome expected kind of thinking.

WHAT you think is important.

HOW you think is even more important.

Remember, DOING something USEFUL with positive thoughts is more meaningful than just having positive thoughts.

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© 2010 – 2015, MillionairesForJesus.com. All rights reserved worldwide.

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