DAY 5 - PROVISION

Have you ever seen photos of some flashy American pastor wearing shoes that cost more than a family car and jewellery worth more than a small house, and thought, “Something’s wrong here”? Or perhaps you’ve seen televangelists asking for you to sow a “thousand dollar minimum seed” into their ministry, while they travel around in yachts and private jets. It makes us cringe at the very least, or possibly get pretty hot under the collar, because it’s simply impossible to imagine Jesus and His followers living like that. We know that we’re called to live lives of radical generosity. We’re not to store up treasures on earth, but rather treasures in heaven, “where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:20). We’ve heard that “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10), and so we try to check our hearts regularly, making sure we don’t fall into the trap of greed and materialism. This is good and wise, and something that I think God calls us to do.

But sometimes in reaction to the opulence we see, we allow the pendulum to swing so far the other way that we do not bring our financial needs to God. We fear getting it wrong, so we stop bringing money to Him at all. I know I’ve certainly done this before. I’ve caught myself asking God about the supposed “spiritual stuff”, and just worrying like normal about the “unspiritual stuff”. But guess what? It’s all spiritual. There is nothing in the world that is not God’s. Psalm 24:1 tells us, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” Haggai 2:8 puts it more bluntly, saying, “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts.” We serve a God who is not short on cash, as Bono famously said. 

My three children have no hesitation in coming to my wife or me to ask us to provide for them. In fact, they assume the best. They ask for food, for gifts, for art supplies, for sporting tickets, for the ability to try new things or go to new places. Sometimes we can see the bigger picture, and say “no” to them. But when it’s for their good, we delight in blessing them and watching them experience the amazing things God has created. If this is what humans are like, how much more does God delight in looking after us?! Jesus prompts us to “Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!” (Luke 12:24).

As followers of Jesus, we are invited to bring all of life before God—including our finances, needs, hopes, and worries—not with fear or entitlement, but with trust in a loving Father. Scripture reminds us that “my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). God’s call is not to anxiety or accumulation, but to surrender. As we acknowledge that everything belongs to Him, we are freed to ask, to trust, and to rest, confident that He is both generous and wise, and that He delights in blessing His children.

Thank you, Lord, for the blessings we experience every single day. We bring our financial needs before You, trusting that You are our provider. Meet us in practical ways—through work, housing, freedom from debt, and financial wisdom—and shape our hearts to live generously. May what You place in our hands be used to bless others and to build a legacy of faith for generations to come, so that our ceiling becomes their floor. Amen.