Trust, prayer, planning can help with financial stress

By Howard Dayton
Co-founder, Crown Financial Ministries

Remember, God assures us He will always supply our needs, but He has not promised to supply all of the wants that our society identifies as needs. God may choose to answer in a way we don’t want or expect. And His answer could very well be “no” so that we can develop maturity and learn how to rely totally on Him.

There are a variety of reasons that God may not answer the way we expect. Perhaps we may ask with the wrong motives (see James 4:3), or the timing may not be right according to God’s will and purpose. Or it may simply be contrary to His overall plan (see Acts 21:13–14).

Here are some steps to follow in order to trust God with the present and the future.

Find God’s direction for your life. Most frustrations experienced by Christians come from patterning their lives after someone else’s. Instead, through prayer and study, find God’s direction for your life.

Trust God

Develop a conscious effort to trust God. Put thoughts, words and commitments into action. Trust God and do not buy on credit or hoard. Wait for God to supply and plan ahead.

Develop a long-range viewpoint. Trust God’s biblical directives and guidance, even though you cannot always see the end result or understand why He is doing it that way (see Matt. 6:34).

Pray diligently. Prayer is the key that unlocks God’s blessings, power and direction for your life (see 1 Thess. 5:17–18).

Perhaps it’s impossible to forecast when economic problems may occur or how to protect our holdings when it happens. But God knows and we can trust His guidance.

As Larry Burkett used to say, “We must decide if we truly believe God is able to supply our needs or if we are just saying we believe it.”

We aren’t able to control the world economy, but we can allow God to control our lives, and we can live our lives for His glory. That is all God asks of each of us.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Howard Dayton is co-founder of Crown Financial Ministries. This is an excerpt from an article that ran in a 2008 issue of The Alabama Baptist. (BP)