2016-06-07

By Rev. Andre Butler

From awaiting the results of the economic stimulus and watching banks get billion dollar bailouts, to the soaring unemployment rate and home foreclosures, it’s hard for many to believe that the results of the recession won’t land on their doorstep.

Reverend Andre Butler, pastor of Faith Christian Center in Smyrna, Georgia, posits that God wants to bless believers in many ways, including financially. In his book, “Not In My House: The 28-Day Challenge to Recession Proof Your Future” he provides tips on how to beat the recession, by trusting putting trust in God.

Check out Rev. Butler’s nine tips on how to recession proof your future.

Just Say No to the Recession

The first thing you must do is make the decision that you are not going to participate in this recession or any other recession. The world may be in bad shape economically, but you can choose to be recession proof. That means that you can keep your job, your house, and even your money. God’s desire is that you experience increase even when everyone else around you is experiencing decrease. This will make you God’s instrument to minister to a world drowning in recession.

Believe that God Wants You Prosperous

Does God care about your financial well-being? Does God want you to be prosperous? These are questions that need to be answered before you can take the journey to become recession-proof. In order to do what is necessary to experience the increase in your financial life, you have to believe that God’s desire is for you to be prosperous—not just financially, but in every area of your life.

There are many instances in the Bible where God specifically promises to bless and prosper you, especially in the money arena. Many believe that the belief in God’s desire to prosper is a scheme designed to make some rich while keeping others poor. But you have to decide that God is a “Good Father” who wants to bless you and make you a blessing to others!

Find Out What the Bible Says

What does the Bible say about money? Do you even know? If the Bible was written by the inspiration of God, then rest assured that the words in that book come only from Him. It’s like He is speaking directly to you. Therefore, only what He says should matter.

You will find in the Word that God promised financial blessings to Abram, Isaac, Jacob, Solomon, and many others. If you say that God does not desire to prosper His people financially, then you would have to ignore the promises He made to these individuals, as well as discount the other scriptures on this topic found throughout the Bible. God’s Word is definitive when it comes to faith and finances.

Discover True Prosperity

The true message of prosperity is really a message of love. God so loved you that He gave His only Son to come to the Earth, die for your sins, and grant you eternal life. God also loves to bless you so that you can be a blessing to others. True prosperity is learning to live not in order to get, but in order to give. God wants to get money to you so that He can get it through you. It’s money with a mission—you have to get it to give it.

It’s time for you to allow God to prosper you so that you can finance the work of building the kingdom of God, and so that you can give, so that others can hear about the life-changing message of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Have Faith in God's Provision

You need to make a conscious decision during these uncertain times to remember that God is your source. He is your Father, your Healer, and your Protector—but He’s also your Provider. He will provide for you according to His riches in glory and make sure that you have everything you need and then some! Although it may be hard to do considering all that is going on around you, you have to decide that your source is not Wall Street, Washington, the bank, or even your job. Your source is God alone. You have to get your mind off of what is going on in the world, and focus instead on what God has to say in His word.

Find scriptures that talk about God meeting your needs and taking care of you. Once you find these scriptures: write them down, memorize them, and proclaim them.

Invest in the Bank of Heaven

Are you banking at the bank of heaven or the bank of the world? Do you know how these two banking systems work? The bank of the world operates on the principle that you can meet your own needs without God. In other words, you don’t need God’s help and therefore make financial decisions based on what is going on around you rather than rely on God as your source.

The bank of heaven exists to prosper and bless you so that you, in turn, can be a blessing to others.  When you switch to the bank of heaven, God becomes your source and you become consumed with giving. Invest in the bank of heaven, let Jesus be your banker, and watch the blessing that will come on your life!

Live Life 2.0

When you switch to the bank of heaven you can no longer operate by the world’s standard, referred to as Life 1.0. Life 1.0 involves spending the major part of your life pursuing the things of this world, (money, possessions, and success) without God. Life 1.0 is operating at a lower level of living, but Life 2.0 takes living to a higher level.

Life 2.0 first starts with choosing God as your source and Jesus as your banker. Once you do this, you will then be able to get money God’s way, seek the kingdom first, perform the assignment God has for you, willingly give tithes and offerings, and handle your finances properly. It’s not too late to switch banks and go to the next level.

Wage War on Debt

In order to become recession-proof, you must tackle the issue of debt. The world’s system operates on credit, or debt. God’s will is not that you are the borrower, but the lender. But to become the lender you must get rid of debt.

If you continually live off credit, you can find yourself not having money when you most need it. It is not a sin to be in debt, but it is certainly not God’s best for you because the borrower is always servant to the lender. Debt also hinders you from being able to give freely to finance the gospel and build the kingdom. If there’s debt in your house, you must make it your absolute priority to pay it off and get rid of it. Declare war!

Develop a Debt-Free Attitude

Getting out of debt is not done through good intentions alone. There are practical steps which must be taken to win the war.

The first thing that you must do is to change how you think about money. Your attitude determines your altitude. Once you can see money from God’s perspective, you will then be able to do what it takes to ensure that debt is removed from your house. Taking account of all the debt you owe, tracking your monthly expenses, developing a budget, and giving faithfully are just a few strategies that will take you from being the borrower to being the lender, when applied consistently with a debt-free mentality.

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