Everybody wants to prosper financially, but did you know that your attitude is the key?
It’s not your job, what you inherited, or anything else. I’ve experienced both poverty and wealth, and I’ve come to realize that it’s a person’s mindset that makes the difference in financial stewardship.
You need to understand why it’s important to have an attitude of stewardship when it comes to finances and prosperity. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the word steward means:
"One who manages another’s property, finances, or other affairs."
If you adopt the attitude that everything you have and produce is actually a gift from God—that God is the one who gave you your health, your opportunities, and your talents—instead of looking at these things as yours, then you’ll have a stewardship mentality. That changes everything!
The Role of Attitude in Receiving God’s Provision
Having the right attitude releases the provision that God provided through Jesus. 2 Corinthians 8:9 tells us that Jesus became poor so that through His poverty, we might be made rich. This isn’t just talking about becoming rich emotionally or spiritually. That’s included, but so is becoming rich financially.
Part of the atonement of Jesus is to prosper you and meet your physical needs. If you aren’t prospering, then you’re missing out on part of what Jesus purchased for you. Receiving doesn’t just automatically happen. You have to believe and have the right attitude to release this provision.
When you’re a steward, you sow into the kingdom of God in faith. In 2 Corinthians 8:10–11, Paul was talking to people who had begged him to let them become a part of the offering. They didn’t have much, but they were generous, and they wanted to give. Paul told them to follow through and do what was in their hearts. I’m telling you, there are a lot of people who have a desire to be a blessing, but they’re fearful about doing it.
I believe God understands that just getting to where you trust Him in finances is hard on a lot of people, so He says to try it, prove Him, and see if it won’t work:
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
The Heart Behind the Gift
Some of you have a heart to be a giver—to put God’s kingdom first—but you just haven’t acted on it. I encourage you to listen to what God is telling you to do and give in faith.
In 2 Corinthians 8:12, Paul went on to say this:
For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
This verse refers to your heart attitude. You’ve got to first have a willing mind; then your gifts are accepted based on the heart attitude that’s behind it. First Corinthians 13:3 confirms this:
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
The heart attitude behind your gift is more important than the gift. Some people think it’s just as simple as putting a coin in a slot machine—you pull the handle and God comes out. People think, God, I’ve given to You. Now You’ve got to give back. No, it depends on your heart attitude. If you give with the wrong attitude—even to feed the poor—and are not motivated with the right attitude of love, it profits you nothing.
One final point I want to make comes from 2 Corinthians 9:6:
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Reaping Generosity: The Law of Sowing and Reaping
It’s amazing to me how many people are wanting God to supply big needs for them and yet they give just a tiny bit. That’s like a farmer who wants to reap a field of hundreds of acres and yet he’s only planted two or three seeds. You’re absolutely crazy if you think you’re going to reap hundreds of acres if you’ve only planted a few seeds. It doesn’t work that way. Yet there are people who believe God for big things when they’ve only given a very small amount.
It’s not about giving a specific dollar amount. Your giving should be proportional to what you have. For example, if you have ten dollars and you give five dollars, then you’ve given a 50-percent offering. That’s huge in the sight of God, and that’s going to produce a lot of fruit. You have to give generously if you want to receive generously. That’s just the way it works.
Some people might think this is manipulating God, but it’s not. It’s simply following the natural laws that God created. If you sow sparingly, you’re going to reap sparingly. If you sow bountifully, you’ll reap bountifully. God loves a cheerful giver. You are supposed to give as you purpose in your own heart.
Practical Steps for Financial Prosperity
To prosper financially, you need to have the right attitude. This means you see yourself as a steward of what God has given you and you give generously in faith and love.
I want each one of you to prosper. That’s why this blog emphasizes the importance of your heart attitude. However, I’m able to cover more about financial stewardship and go into more detail with many practical examples in my complete teaching on the subject, so I encourage you to get it.
My complete Financial Stewardship teaching is available as a full-size book, study guide, CD series, TV DVD series, and on USB. The book, booklet, and study guide are available in English and Spanish. We also have two Financial Breakthroughs DVDs that share stories of people who learned to have the right attitude toward finances and then received their financial breakthroughs.
To order, click the button below, or call our Helpline at 719-635-1111.
