Day 10: Handling God’s Money and Providing for the Poor

Welcome to Day 10 of Morning and Night: 21 Days of Praying for Your Ministry! Today, in the morning, we are praying for the Lord to help you and your ministry–and the people who whom you minister–to handle His money His way. And in the evening, we are asking the Lord to use you and your ministry to provide for the poor.

First, let’s talk for a moment about Biblical stewardship.

Everything in Heaven and earth belongs to God. Neither you nor I nor any other human own anything; we only steward things–money, items, and everything else–for Him. The shoes on your feet, the clothes on your back, the device you are using to read this article right now, and ALL the money you have or ever will have belong to God.

We read this in many places in the Bible. For example, look at Psalm 24:

“The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the waters” (Psalm 24:1-2 NKJV).

And also, look at 1 Chronicles 29:10-14:

You and I own nothing. We are merely stewards of what belongs to God.

And that means we get no vote about how to manage what He has entrusted to us. We are accountable to God, and He requires us to handle His money His way.

And since “His way” and His commandments are clearly laid out in the Bible, that means the only choice we have–if we want to submit to Jesus and call Him our Lord–is to obey what God’s Word says about money.

So what does God’s Word say about money?

Well, the Bible says that God is generous:

Psalm 51:12: “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit” (Psalm 51:12 NKJV).

… and this tells us that, if we desire to be like God, we must also become generous people who make generosity our way of living.

The Bible also tells us that God made generosity to be a key attribute of His church:

Acts 4:32: “Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common” (Acts 4:32 NKJV).

The Bible tells us that we are kings and priests unto God, and that kings are generous:

Esther 1:7: “And they served drinks in golden vessels, each vessel being different from the other, with royal wine in abundance, according to the generosity of the king” (Esther 1:7 NKJV).

Esther 2:18: “Then the king made a great feast, the Feast of Esther, for all his officials and servants; and he proclaimed a holiday in the provinces and gave gifts according to the generosity of a king” (Esther 2:18 NKJV).

The Bible tells us that, when we give, we shall receive in return:

Luke 6:38: “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom” (Luke 6:38 NKJV).

… And this Scripture also matches MANY other Scriptures that tell us that giving first is a REQUIREMENT if we want money to start flowing to us.

The Bible also tells us that we are to give God the first of everything, and that giving God the first sanctifies the rest.

This principle is all over the Bible. Check out Matthew 6:33:

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33 NKJV).

Whether it is the first of your time, the first of your effort, your first priority, the first of your livestock, or your firstborn child, all the FIRSTS belong to God–and we are supposed to give them back to Him.

This principle of giving God the first also applies to our finances.

And the Bible tells us from cover to cover that we are supposed to give God the first 10% of our gross increase in order to have the other 90% blessed. This process is called “tithing,” and the first 10% of your gross income is called “the tithe,” and God is clear that we are ROBBING God if we do not give Him His tithe:

Malachi 3:8-12: “Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation.

Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.

And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” says the Lord of hosts; “and all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of hosts” (Malachi 3:8-12 NKJV).

Again, remember that we don’t get a vote in whether or not we should tithe.

It’s God’s money, and we are God’s people. If you claim the name of Jesus as your Lord, that “Lordship” means you have agreed to do whatever He says. If you don’t obey Him, then you really weren’t serious when you said He was your Lord.

“But what if you can’t afford to tithe?” you ask?

I’ve heard people ask that same question for years, and the truth of God’s Word is the truth of God’s Word. I’ve also seen it played out in real life with 100% of the people. And this is the truth:

• You can’t afford to tithe because you’re not tithing. Your money is cursed because you didn’t dedicate it to God by giving Him His first 10% like He asked you to.
• In 100% of the cases, if you will begin tithing even if you can’t afford it, God PROMISES to come through and send you extra income (or remove your bills, or whatever it takes!) to provide for you.
• If you start tithing, you will find that you are suddenly able to afford it–because God makes it possible.

The very breakthrough you have been begging God for is wrapped up in your tithe!

Where is your tithe supposed to go?

The Word of God is clear: the tithe is to be paid into the storehouse, which is where you’re fed spiritually. If you’re fed at your local church, that’s where your tithe goes. If you’re fed somewhere else (like an online church), that’s where your tithe goes.

The tithe ALWAYS is to go into the storehouse, that there may be food in GOD’S house. It is not to go to the poor, or to your favorite cause; it is only to go to God’s house of bread–the place that feeds you the Word.

So, pray today over ALL aspects of managing the money He entrusts to you–and pray also for the people to whom you minister, that they would also obey God’s commands about money.

Let’s pray as follows:

• Tell the Father that you come before Him in Jesus’ name.
• Thank Him for being your Father; for saving you; for filling you with His Holy Spirit; and for entrusting many blessings to you to steward on this earth on His behalf.
• Praise Him for His extreme generosity toward you, your family, and your ministry.
• Admit and confess to Him out loud that realize and understand that you are only a steward of His stuff; that everything belongs to Him; and that you own nothing yourself.
• Repent to Him for any ways in which you have failed to honor His commands about how to steward His money. Confess any sins to Him in this area.
• Ask for His forgiveness, and ask Him to help you obey Him from now on in every area–including in the area of handling His money.
• Ask the Lord to fill you with His generous Holy Spirit today, and to make you generous like He is.
• Ask Him to make you a wise, anointed, and careful steward of all He has entrusted to you.
• Ask Him to get glory for Himself through your stewardship of His resources.
• Pray that the Lord would establish you and your ministry with a Kingdom mindset, that you would be willing to give and to share with all who are in need, as the Father leads.
• Ask the Lord to instruct you and teach you in the way you should go (see Psalm 32:8), especially when it comes to managing money.
• Ask the Lord to help you to operate in “the generosity of a king,” and that He would give you both seed to sow and bread for food, so that you can be as generous as you like, all day every day!
• Ask the Lord to help you give, and that it would be given to you as well–and that good gifts from Him (even through people as His vessels) would be put into your bosom with good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over!
• Ask the Lord to help you seek Him first in all things, including in your handling of money.
• Pray that He would prevent you from relying on your flesh, or on fleshly wisdom or logic, in any area–but especially in the area of stewardship. Pray that He would help you to walk in the Spirit in all things, especially in your handling of money!
• Ask the Lord to help you NEVER to rob Him in the area of tithes and offerings.
• Ask the Lord for boldness, faith, and courage to tithe and offer to Him–no matter what.
• Pray that, as you tithe and offer to Him, He would open the windows of Heaven for you and pour out so much blessing that His provision fills your need, floods all over your need, and obliterates/far surpasses your need.
• Ask Him to rebuke the devourer for your sake.
• Pray that everything that is supposed to bring you fruit/harvest and make you money would.
• Ask the Lord for all nations to call you blessed. (This is international influence for Christ.)
• Ask the Lord to make you a “delightful land,” and that you would have favor everywhere you go.

Then pray the same thing for the people you minister to. We are all required to do the same things in order to be holy, for God’s commands apply to us all!

In the evening, ask the Lord to use you and your ministry to provide for the poor.

This is one of my favorite things to pray about, and I don’t want you to be intimidated by this concept. If God is going to use you to provide for the poor, that means He is going to give you seed to sow so that you will be financially ABLE to provide for the poor!

I will tell you, though, based on decades of practicing this and walking in this ministry on a daily basis, that you nearly always have to give what’s in your hand first to start the ball rolling.

In other words, if you see someone with a need and you feel led to help, you will nearly always need to start the process by giving what you have that you need for yourself, and then God will come up behind you and replace what you gave (and usually give you more than you gave).

That’s just the way the Kingdom works, and it’s also what God says in the Bible in MANY passages. (See the first part of this article above.)

But look at these incredible Scriptures about provision for the poor:

John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 NKJV).

God so loved the world that He GAVE. Loving equals giving, and becoming like God means we also must give. (By the way, when you give with a right heart, in my experience you will always encounter God deeply–for you are in that moment being very like the God Who loves you and saved you, and you will sense His presence!)

Also, read these additional Scriptures:

John 6:26: “Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled” (John 6:26 NKJV).

… So giving to the poor is a huge way to win the lost and bring them to encounter with Jesus.

Also, if you give to the poor, you will not lack–but you WILL lack if you don’t:

Proverbs 28:27: “He who gives to the poor will not lack, but he who hides his eyes will have many curses” (Proverbs 28:27 NKJV).

Proverbs 22:9: “He who has a generous eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor” (Proverbs 22:9 NKJV).

Isaiah 32:8: “But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand” (Isaiah 32:8 NKJV).

“Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard” (Proverbs 21:13 NKJV).

Proverbs 19:17: “He who has pity on the poor lends to the lord, and He will pay back what he has given” (Proverbs 19:17 NKJV).

Proverbs 11:24-25: “There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself” (Proverbs 11:24-25 NKJV).

And if you want to honor God, it is absolutely REQUIRED to give to the poor:

Proverbs 14:31: “He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who honors Him has mercy on the needy” (Proverbs 14:31 NKJV).

And God will bring you joy when you give to the poor:

Proverbs 14:21: “He who despises his neighbor sins; but he who has mercy on the poor, happy is he” (Proverbs 14:21 NKJV).

And finally, God will provide for you to bless the poor:

Proverbs 13:22: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous” (Proverbs 13:22 NKJV).

“But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written:

‘He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.’

Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.

For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God, while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men, and by their prayer for you, who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you.

Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:6-15 NKJV, emphasis mine).

Hallelujah!

Beloved, God LOVES the poor, and He wants us to love the poor like He does … and do something about it.

Scripture is clear. And since we desire to yield to Jesus and obey Him 100%, let’s pray as follows:

• Confess to the Lord that you come to Him in Jesus’ name.
• Ask Him to help you pray rightly, and to pray in line with His will in this area!
• Ask the Lord to use you and your ministry to bless the poor and provide for the poor, however He wills.
• Ask the Lord to help you obey His written Word, not wait for some extra, additional supernatural experience in order to obey (since waiting for some additional trigger is just making excuses for disobedience).
• Repent to the Lord for any times you have hidden your eyes from the poor and have not been generous to people in need.
• Ask the Lord to provide seed for you to sow (seed for the sower) and bread for food; that He will take care of you abundantly as you give to the poor from what is in your hand.
• Remind the Lord of all the times you have given to the poor lately, and point out that His Word says you were lending to Him when you gave. Ask Him to repay you, abundantly and even with interest (by giving you extra)!
• Ask the Lord to bring you great joy when you give, and to make you like Him as you obey Him in this.
• Pray that the Lord would give you His heart and passion for the poor.
• Pray these same things for all the people you minister too as well, so that you can all share the Lord’s heart and pull together to help the poor as one Body!

Beloved, handling God’s money is a big responsibility.

He expects us to do certain things with it, and doing those things is called OBEDIENCE and HOLINESS. On the other hand, not doing those things is sin. It’s vital to ask the Lord for His help with your stewardship every day, and also to pray that the people you serve would choose to walk in holiness in this area also.

Is the Lord convicting you about something relating to stewardship today? Stop and add your own words to these prayers, surrendering 100% of your life to Jesus–even in your handling of His money!