Last week, I gave three foundational steps to get out of debt and break poverty over your life. Here they are in review, but for more details read last week’s blog.

1. Believe that God is a debt canceling God.

2. All poverty and debt is rooted in sin.

3. Review your spending habits.

4. Today I will start with step 4, which is tithing. Tithing is the key to having God’s provision released in our life. This godly principle is the one that Satan opposes the most in a Christian’s life. It pertains to the “law of the first fruits” which sim­ply says that the first part of any fruit you produce belongs to God. Tithing is part of that law. The first fruit of our income (10%) be­longs to God and the 90% that is left is ours.

In the book of Malachi, God promises that if we don’t rob Him and we give what rightfully belongs to Him, He will release His abundance, provisions and protection. Always remember: God’s ways are not our ways. If we expect God’s word to fit our logic and understanding, we’ll miss Him every time.

It comes down to these two questions about our tithes: Is Jesus really Lord over our life? Do we really want to get out of debt?

5. Break the curse. Poverty and debt are curses that won’t go away unless forcefully broken. Matthew 12:11 says, “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers vio­lence, and the violent take it by force.” In other words, Satan and his demons must be forcibly removed from our life in the name of Jesus.

We can assume that we are under the effects of a curse if we experience a cycle of negative events repeating over and over again. We break free, only to fall back into the debt cycle again. Some­times expenses rise out of nowhere, our car breaks down, we lose a job, etc. If they happen consistently, it is a sign that a curse of debt and poverty is over your life. Here is how to break it according to God’s word.

Identify that it’s a curse. Galatians 3:13 and 14 tells us Jesus became a curse for us so that we could have the blessings of Abraham (in­cluding prosperity). 

Declare, “In Jesus’ name I break the curse of poverty, lack and debt over my life!” If you haven’t done step two from my last message, add it in this prayer and declaration.

Release the blessing of prosperity, abundance and multiplica­tion in the name of Jesus. This is a war that must be fought in the spiritual realm and the weapons of warfare are not carnal—they are spiritual.

6. Constantly renew your mind with God’s word. Remind your­self that you live in God’s kingdom, not Satan’s anymore. Your God is generous and desires that you live the abundant life Jesus pur­chased for you. He made provision for you to be prosperous for His kingdom purposes (if you are doing His works, not your own).

Ask yourself, “Why do I want to get out of debt and have poverty bro­ken off my life?” If your answer doesn’t include something like be­ing Jesus Christ’s representative, you’ve missed the whole purpose of your redemption!

By applying all six steps to your everyday life; deliverance from poverty and living in debt is a sure thing. The greatest challenge is to recognize that Satan doesn’t want you to be financially free because then he can’t control your life. This is war and you must be in it to win it! Stay in the fight and don’t give up. BECAUSE OF JESUS WE WIN!  …

The men of a certain city called on Elisha the prophet to heal their water supply saying, “Please notice, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the ground barren (2Kings 2:19).” Many Christians are like that city. We look pleasant from the outside, but we are barren and fruitless. We come to church and shout Hallelujah!, but something is not right.

We trust a god of our imagination—not the true and living God of the Bible. God gives us His Word but, like the tribes of Israel who molded a golden calf while Moses tarried on the mountain, we have created a faulty image of God that cannot help or save us.

The Bible says. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.” Yet, we wake up in the morning and the first thing we think of is the problems and people we must face that day. We bellyache and complain all day and, if anything, we give Him the leftovers. When it comes down to it, we believe the world system more than God.

If you don’t speak to the mountain, the mountain will speak to you.

With the devil’s help, we’re missing out on God’s great and precious promises. Satan blinds our minds to the light of the glorious gospel. The truth is we can be free. The Book of James tells us: “ Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church… And the prayer of faith will save the sick… (James 5:14, 15).” Instead of calling the elders, today’s Christians call for the ambulance!

If what you need is a right-now miracle, the way we live now cannot attain it! Why?

1. Our motives are wrong. Our prayers are more about us than about God and His kingdom. Therefore, they don’t touch God’s heart. It’s really about His kingdom and His glory. God loves you, but He won’t bless you just because He loves you. He will bless you because of His word. The way of escape is in His word.

2. We pray about things we should be speaking to. The Bible tells us to speak to the mountains in our lives (Mark 11:23). Meanwhile, we pray: “Oh, God take this sickness away from me,” when we should be saying, “By Jesus’ stripes I’m healed. Mountain of cancer, be gone!” If you don’t speak to the mountain, the mountain will speak to you. Poverty will say Forget it. You’ll never get ahead. Your marriage says It’s all over. File for divorce. Sickness says There’s no hope. You might as well plan your funeral. You and I need to:

3. Get fully persuaded. Do you see yourself healed? Your marriage restored? You are at war—but it’s not with the devil. The war is between the belief system you now have and the one God wants you to have. If you can see it, you can have it. Belief is what catapults your faith to tear down the strongholds of the enemy.

Next week, I’ll give you the final 3 tips to getting your right-now miracle.…

A cute story

I heard a cute story about a lady who bought a singing parrot at a pet store. However, she returned it the next day, explaining that the parrot didn’t sing. The pet store owner asked if the parrot had a mirror, since parrots like to look at themselves. So she bought a mirror and took the parrot back home. The next morning she was back again. The mirror hadn’t helped; the parrot still hadn’t sung or spoken a word.

The store owner then asked if she had a ladder, since parrots like to climb up and down. So she bought the parrot a ladder. The next day she brought him back again and told the owner he still wouldn’t sing.

He asked, “Well, do you have a swing in the cage? Parrots love to swing; it makes them happy. He’ll certainly start singing and speaking then.”

However, the next day the woman was back! The store owner asked, “Did the parrot sing or speak yet?” “No,” she replied. “He died last night!”

The owner said, “I’m so sorry to hear that. Did he say anything before he died?” “Yes,” the woman replied. “He said, ‘Don’t they sell any food down there at the pet store?’”

Like this parrot owner, we often ask God for things that we want, rather than what we need. Instead, most of our requests are to fulfill our fleshly desires.

Business before pleasure

In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus promises that if we take care of His business here on earth, He will take care of our wants. In verse 33 He says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” God will supply anything necessary to fulfill His mandate in our life.

In Luke 11:1-3, Jesus gives us the prototype for prayer. Yes, God does care about our wants. Yes, He encourages us to pray, but we should do so with His heart in mind. In His model prayer, Jesus states that we can ask Him for our daily needs (bread) and He will meet those needs.

Our purpose in praying is to release His will, desire and kingdom authority here on earth and in our sphere of influence. That means we are to omit any requests that just fulfill our own wants.

Answered prayer rocks!

Whenever our prayers align with God’s heart, they are answered, and answered prayer is exciting! It releases a desire to pray more. But prayer without results is boring. James 4:3 says: “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.”

Let’s stop being selfish in prayer. Look around and see how to advance the cause of Jesus Christ in our families, workplaces, relationships and, yes, our churches!

Let’s ask for whatever it takes to see His will “on earth as it is in heaven”. He will surely supply everything we need—money, health, wisdom, joy, jobs, places to live…—when that’s our goal. Ask for what you need to fulfill God’s plan in and through your life. Then watch heaven open and release the answers to your prayers. Prayer can once again be very exciting if we ask for what we need and not what we want!…