Messy living room by StockCake A poverty spirit is not limited to only the poorest in our world. It can be found in all income levels.
There is a difference between being poor—having little or no income—and having a poverty spirit. But before we can overcome it, we must recognize it!
How does a poverty spirit manifest in a life?
A poverty spirit devours everything in its control. We have all heard news stories about someone winning millions of dollars in the lottery and within a year or so they are broke, bankrupt and worse off than before they won the lottery. They have lost their money, their possessions and most likely their marriage and most of their friends. That is a poverty spirit. As with lust, a poverty spirit is never satisfied. It always wants more and always lives beyond its means.
A poverty spirit is selfish, only concerned with itself. It doesn't give freely. It says "mine" "my money" "my stuff". It doesn't give. It clenches money in their hands and only releases it to buy "stuff". Then it will clench and hoard the "stuff".
A poverty spirit is destructive. Show me a home and the possessions of a person and I can tell you if a poverty spirit is at work. If their home and possessions are a mess, unkempt, in disrepair and heading toward ruin, that is a poverty spirit. It may seem that everything they touch gets destroyed! You can live in a tiny one-room shack and keep it clean, swept and neat. Being poor does not mean being dirty and trashy; living with a poverty spirit does.
Recognize—Renounce—Renew your mind!
If you recognize that poverty spirit wreaking havoc in your life, renounce it with your speech and actions! Tell it to GO in Jesus' name. Tell it to loose its hold over your life. Daily renew your mind. Change your thoughts, find the blessings in your life, and meditate on those things and thank God for them. Cultivate an attitude of gratefulness. Remember that the billionaire who is dying would gladly trade his wealth for your health. He knows that he can always make more money, but time and health are priceless!
Be a good steward of all you have at this time. Recognize that everything you have comes from the Lord God and should be used with that attitude! If you don't handle the "little" that you have now, why would God bless you with more? “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.
“The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.
“After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’
“The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’
“The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’
“But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’
“Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Matthew 25:14-29
“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?
“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.” Luke 16:10-13
Cultivate a giving heart and a listening ear to God's leading. Remember that it is all the Father's and we "own" nothing. You have access to it and may freely use it, but God owns it all. When God tells you to help someone, do it. When He tells you to give to a ministry, do it. When God sees your obedience, He can release more finances into your life because you submit your will to His Will. We can make our own plans, but the Lord gives the right answer. People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives. Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:1-3
Cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Whatever your situation, you have things to be thankful for. Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little; For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:11-13
Yes, be a good steward of what God HAS already entrusted to you. As much as it is in your power, keep your possessions—your home—neat, clean and in good repair. If you are living in a government subsidized rent apartment, it can still be clean and neat. It is God's property for you, you are the steward of it! It is only a "dump" if you aren't a good steward of what you have.
Look around at everything that is under your control. Honestly ask yourself if you are being a good steward of all that God has given you. Remember the parable we just read. Would God give you more or remove what you have now, according to how good a steward you are?
Lastly, cultivate an attitude of saving. I know all too well about living paycheck-to-paycheck. But to cultivate an attitude of saving, you just have to start somewhere. Even $5.00 a week. In time, that will increase as you change your mind from being a consumer to a saver. Try it and see! When you see your income as being given to you by the Lord God there is a stronger weight of responsibility in how you handle that income. The poverty spirit says, “It’s MY money!”, holding it tightly in its grasp.
A poverty spirit will never admit that it is ALL God’s money.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. I Timothy 6:10
Money isn't evil, but the LOVE of money is evil. Money is a tool. Remember, if you are clenching what you have, tightly in your hands, you aren't able to grab hold of all that God has to give you.
When we trust God, we don’t fear or worry about lack.
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:31-33
Be a Kingdom light shining in the darkness,
Deborah A. Luchie
www.kingdomcitizens.org
All scriptures are NLT unless otherwise noted.
This article may only be reproduced, in print or on the internet, if the author's name and website address are included at the end of the article as originally placed. Thank you
There is a difference between being poor—having little or no income—and having a poverty spirit. But before we can overcome it, we must recognize it!
How does a poverty spirit manifest in a life?
A poverty spirit devours everything in its control. We have all heard news stories about someone winning millions of dollars in the lottery and within a year or so they are broke, bankrupt and worse off than before they won the lottery. They have lost their money, their possessions and most likely their marriage and most of their friends. That is a poverty spirit. As with lust, a poverty spirit is never satisfied. It always wants more and always lives beyond its means.
A poverty spirit is selfish, only concerned with itself. It doesn't give freely. It says "mine" "my money" "my stuff". It doesn't give. It clenches money in their hands and only releases it to buy "stuff". Then it will clench and hoard the "stuff".
A poverty spirit is destructive. Show me a home and the possessions of a person and I can tell you if a poverty spirit is at work. If their home and possessions are a mess, unkempt, in disrepair and heading toward ruin, that is a poverty spirit. It may seem that everything they touch gets destroyed! You can live in a tiny one-room shack and keep it clean, swept and neat. Being poor does not mean being dirty and trashy; living with a poverty spirit does.
Recognize—Renounce—Renew your mind!
If you recognize that poverty spirit wreaking havoc in your life, renounce it with your speech and actions! Tell it to GO in Jesus' name. Tell it to loose its hold over your life. Daily renew your mind. Change your thoughts, find the blessings in your life, and meditate on those things and thank God for them. Cultivate an attitude of gratefulness. Remember that the billionaire who is dying would gladly trade his wealth for your health. He knows that he can always make more money, but time and health are priceless!
Be a good steward of all you have at this time. Recognize that everything you have comes from the Lord God and should be used with that attitude! If you don't handle the "little" that you have now, why would God bless you with more? “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.
“The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.
“After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’
“The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’
“The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
“Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’
“But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’
“Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Matthew 25:14-29
“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?
“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.” Luke 16:10-13
Cultivate a giving heart and a listening ear to God's leading. Remember that it is all the Father's and we "own" nothing. You have access to it and may freely use it, but God owns it all. When God tells you to help someone, do it. When He tells you to give to a ministry, do it. When God sees your obedience, He can release more finances into your life because you submit your will to His Will. We can make our own plans, but the Lord gives the right answer. People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives. Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:1-3
Cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Whatever your situation, you have things to be thankful for. Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little; For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:11-13
Yes, be a good steward of what God HAS already entrusted to you. As much as it is in your power, keep your possessions—your home—neat, clean and in good repair. If you are living in a government subsidized rent apartment, it can still be clean and neat. It is God's property for you, you are the steward of it! It is only a "dump" if you aren't a good steward of what you have.
Look around at everything that is under your control. Honestly ask yourself if you are being a good steward of all that God has given you. Remember the parable we just read. Would God give you more or remove what you have now, according to how good a steward you are?
Lastly, cultivate an attitude of saving. I know all too well about living paycheck-to-paycheck. But to cultivate an attitude of saving, you just have to start somewhere. Even $5.00 a week. In time, that will increase as you change your mind from being a consumer to a saver. Try it and see! When you see your income as being given to you by the Lord God there is a stronger weight of responsibility in how you handle that income. The poverty spirit says, “It’s MY money!”, holding it tightly in its grasp.
A poverty spirit will never admit that it is ALL God’s money.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. I Timothy 6:10
Money isn't evil, but the LOVE of money is evil. Money is a tool. Remember, if you are clenching what you have, tightly in your hands, you aren't able to grab hold of all that God has to give you.
When we trust God, we don’t fear or worry about lack.
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:31-33
Be a Kingdom light shining in the darkness,
Deborah A. Luchie
www.kingdomcitizens.org
All scriptures are NLT unless otherwise noted.
This article may only be reproduced, in print or on the internet, if the author's name and website address are included at the end of the article as originally placed. Thank you
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