Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet
Recently a man in India asked me to send him $10,000. He said he started to build a church building and he had spent everything he had and his congregation had spent everything they had and they could not complete the building.
I told him this is very sad.
The reason it is sad to me is it was obvious to me that this was not something God told him to do but something he thought to do. It created a terrible burden on himself and to everyone in his church group.
I explained to him that the early church did not have church buildings. The believers just met in houses.
I've seen this happen so many times when ministers put needless burdens on their congregations and on other people. They build buildings. They go on radio or TV and have to beg for money to pay the bills. They build orphanages and go past their ability to pay for the work. Usually all these works are done because the human feels it should be done. But for it to actually work without being a burden, the work must be authored by God and not by the flesh of man.
I was born again in 1975. One of the first things God taught me was to get out of debt and to stay out of debt. When God would tell me to do a work, I would ask HIM how I should pay for the work. Each time HE instructed me and the money for the work was there before the work was started. And if I didn't have the money, I waited until the money was there before doing the work. Consequently, for the past 30+ years, I have lived debt free and have not had to beg church people for money.
Luke 14 ... Jesus said ... For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? 29Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, 30Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
Faith is not based on what you want to do.
Faith is based on that which God instructs you to do.
Jesus said... Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Mt. 7
One preacher wrote to me asking me to send Bibles for his congregation. This really pulls at me. But I do not believe his request is from God. At the end of his form type letter, he said, "Jesus never fails." But he was asking me to do his works. I did not respond to his letter. But I was greatly troubled by him.
Faith is turning to God ... trusting God to show you the way ... and waiting on God rather than reaching out to other flesh.
But so many preachers are not really of God and their works are not really of God and when they have to beg me to pay for their works I know they are not following God.