Beware of debt! ...
So many ministers go into debt thinking God has told them to do a work and to do that work they take on debt.
This is not the Spirit of God leading them ... When God tells us to do something, "His yoke is easy ... His burden is light." Mt. 11
We are warned ... Believe not every spirit but try the spirits whether they are of God. I Jn. 4
Spirits send thoughts, ideas to us ... The Holy Spirit also sends ideas to us ...
We must not jump out and follow a spirit just because it seems like a good work ... many do this and get into trouble and the work is not authored by God.
Satan appears to us as an "angel of light" ... bringing ideas which seem good. II Cor. 11:14
Keep a close reign on money ... debt can turn you into a beggar ...
We have about 10 people in our little church group who give tithes and offerings ... I do not ask them for money ... But they send money faithfully monthly.
Recently a woman who had been with us many years left us ...
I Jn. 2 ... Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.
This happens ...
This decreased our monthly income.
We
write on Internet without cost ... but there are so many writings on Internet in
order to become more visible so people around the world can find us, we
pay for advertising on Google. Recently I was praying about this. Asking God, should we
keep paying for ad or should we stop. I felt led to write those
booklets ... they need to be available to the church ... so I felt I
should increase the amount we were spending on the ad so we would have
even more visibility. (We had money at time so I knew we could
pay for the ad at least for a few months and if I had to, I could cut
back at any time.) I increased our spending from $150 month to $620
month ... Page views per day had been around 50 ... they increased to
over 300 almost at once when we increased advertising. Then we received
an unexpected offering which should allow us the cushion to keep paying
this increase for several months.
When something is the way of God, I find it just all comes in line and it is not a burden on anyone.
Be
careful about adding a bunch of works that seem good when you are not
able to pay for these. It is not faith to do this. So many ministers
fall into trap of thinking this is faith. It is not faith.
When God authors the work, the way to do the work is there and it is not a burden on anyone.
When
you, as a minister, have to try to get money from other people to pay for your
work, that work is not of God. Prove this by looking at New
Testament. There is no place in NT where ministers went to the people
to get them to pay for a
work. Nor is there any example in NT where a minister contacted another minister asking for money (or Bibles). This just is not done in NT which is an example for the church today in godliness.
Jesus says ... Mt. 7 ... 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.
If God has authored the work, God will provide the way and the means. But if God has not authored the "good work", and you have just copied another minister or have decided in your own mind the work is good, then you are in danger both on this earth and also at the day of judgment. It is a very serious matter.