Wednesday, March 5, 2008

The Process of Prosperity

Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God. (Deuteronomy 28:1-2)
Prosperity requires process. It is not instant, nor it is automatic. Notice how this divine promise begins: “It shall come to pass.” “Come to pass” indicates process. It means that there is period of time between when the promise is implemented and it fully manifests, and that requires patience.

What is the process or prosperity? First and most importantly, it is diligently hearing and obeying the voice of the Lord. The Hebrew employs an idiom here to emphasize the point. The verb literally means to “hear with hearing.” We are to listen to the voice of the Lord, not idly or casually, but with great focus and intent, and a heart to obey. He also tells us to “observe carefully all His commandments.” The Hebrew verb means to attend to, to guard and protect, to have high regard for the commands of the Lord. This speaks of priority. Jesus put it simply, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). This is foundational to every form of prosperity, in the natural realm as well as the spiritual.
  • “Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country” (v. 3). This requires establishing a home base of operations, participating in the community and the marketplace, and managing our properties and business affairs.
  • “Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks” (v. 4). Here is the process of faithfully bringing up our children, and diligently overseeing our commodities.
  • “Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl” (v. 5). Do you have a “basket” ready for gathering in your harvest? Your “kneading bowl” may be blessed, but it still must be worked.
  • “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out” (v. 6). Going out and coming in speaks of purposefulness, not of idly wandering about.
  • “The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways” (v. 7). Are you prepared to stand and resist the enemy, the thief who comes to kill, steal and destroy? The Bible says that when we submit to God and resist the enemy (the devil), he will flee (James 4:7).
  • “The LORD will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you” (v. 8). The process here is to establish your storehouses and start setting your hand to various enterprises.
The LORD will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. And the LORD will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. The LORD will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them. (Deuteronomy 28:9-14)
All throughout, the process requires faithfully listening to the voice of the Lord and quickly obeying, making Him the priority in everything. Then you will not only be blessed, but you will become a blessing to all around you.

Prosperity is a process that lays hold of God's blessing.

Here is an audio reading (MP3) of this passage, with relaxing background music. It is called “Choosing Life” and is a bonus track on our Healing Scriptures and Prayers CD Volume 2.

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