Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers (3 John 2).
Introduction: The word translated to soul in this passage could also mean spirit. Therefore it can be rendered as ‘Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your spirit prospers. Divine prosperity is according to the spirituality of individuals. The closer you walk with the Holy Spirit and obey his voice, the more ideas you receive and the more flourishing your life becomes. Don’t think your hope for prosperity lies in something outside you; it will come from inside you out. God works from the inside out not from outside in. God is able to reveal the spiritual secrets that will open the door of success to you. You must dedicate enough time to just be with God alone studying his word and praying. He will not force you to hear his voice; he will wait until you prepare yourself to give him enough attention.
There are several opportunities to make money even in the midst of the ‘scarcity’ in our nation today. When you pay attention to the things of God, you will have enough spiritual sense to see the things that will lead to your own financial harvest. Otherwise, you may never see the opportunities that God has positioned all around you.
Acquire Knowledge
God himself said His people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. God wants you to be knowledgeable about his promises, his blessings and their benefits. Prov.11:9. You have a right to the blessings of God but any aspect that you don’t know cannot be enjoyed fully. If you don’t know them and want to enjoy them, that means you expect him to bless you unconsciously and he would not do that. God would not want to violate your will.
Remember that understanding is a well spring of life (Prov. 16:22), that means understanding in an area of life yields practical benefits to you; therefore don’t stop at superficial knowledge; get full understanding of the word of God concerning each promise. Don’t rely on religious sentiments or what you learnt in Sunday school several years ago. Read, study and meditate on scriptures personally especially the ones that deal with prosperity.
The process of reading, meditating and acting on prosperity scriptures is like planting seeds of prosperity in your life. Those seeds will germinate after some time and you will reap a harvest of financial prosperity no matter what is going on in your environment. God blesses you as your soul prospers on his word.
Acquire knowledge about finances as well. Learn and practice saving and investing but don’t hesitate to get expert ideas, opinions and services about investments.
Exercise faith in the word of God
If you cannot see the blessing in your mind, you cannot experience them in your future. Don’t think of your financial level/potential in terms of your salary or the prevailing circumstance sin your country. God’s ways are higher than our ways. Remember that in 2 Kings Chapter 6, it was the man who did not believe that God could turn around the situation in Samaria that could not experience the abundance. Right in the midst of economic meltdown/recession, many people including non-Christians are making more money, therefore why can it not be you. Think possibility, not the way things appear physically!! When your thinking changes, your words and actions will change and produce results.
You should let the word of God dwell in you to an extent of forming pictures of what you expect in your heart and you can visualize it. This is faith. You need this level of assurance in your heart to be able to receive anything from God. Stop thinking about what you don’t have.
Learn and confess God’s promises about prosperity
Keep on confessing what you want and don’t consider the circumstances around you. Take positive actions in line with your desire. Don’t listen to negative comments about the economy or your line of business or the instruction God has given you. Stop speaking lack so that people will think you don’t have much money. Speak prosperity; the worse is that they will expect you to give to them. Remember that giving to people is just an avenue to sow seeds that will germinate more fruits to your account and make you richer.
Be prayerful generally & pray specifically for the manifestation of your blessings.
God has already given us everything that pertains to life and godliness through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue (2 Peter 1:3) but you need to pray to God to let him know the exact thing you really want to manifest in your life.
In Isaiah chapter 31, v1, the bible says ‘Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD!. God wants us to work hard, be diligent, make connections with important people that can make our businesses and career to prosper but most importantly he wants his children to seek his face and rely on Him; he doesn’t want us to do all those things in our own way. He wants to direct us to the particular work and people to connect with.
Maintain God’s presence and receive work/business ideas
Learn to maintain a close walk with God; he would command his blessing on you. God‘s presence was with Joseph and he was blessed. This blessing made Joseph to prosper in Portiphar’s house though he was a slave (Gen 39:2-4), in the prison though he was a prisoner (Gen 39: 21-23) and in the palace as a deputy to the King (Gen 41: 40—45).
In Psalm 1: 1-3, the bible says, ‘Blessed is the man that does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and whose mind is on his law day and night. He will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time, whose leaves will ever be green; and he will do well in all his undertakings.
In God’s presence, you will get ideas and direction concerning how to activate God’s blessings in your life. God is a big God, he thinks big. If you hang around him long enough, he will give you great ideas that will bring in a lot of money and other benefits. Many times the ideas God will give you will yield multiple benefits. I have received business ideas while staying in God’s presence and these ideas have created opportunities to minister to children of God in different places, granted me connections with people in high places and have also brought in money and materials. Don’t allow sin or anything to destroy your relationship with God because every blessing and benefits you need in this life are available and connected to Him.
The Holy Spirit is a revealer
The Holy Spirit reveals secrets and therefore a great resource for all Christians. In John 16:13, Jesus said the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. !!!!. If you walk closely with him, you will have access to deep secrets of wealth and will be ahead of others because he will talk to you about the future.
He has revealed areas of concentrations in exams to me several times when I was a student. He has revealed area of sub-specialization that is relevant in my profession when many people were not thinking about that area. My husband has had to solve many accounting issues by revelations from the Holy Spirit. If you trust him for revelations, he will reveal solutions to your finances to you.
Business men can receive revelations on how to maximize profit and reduce their expenses. Inventors can receive revelations of a product that will bring them to lime light. God can give you an idea of a new product that will make you start your own company.
Don’t assume, always seek revelations on the next line of action
The situation of your environment or country can affect you even though you are born again, unless you can receive directions from God clearly. God is not moved by your environment, he is moved by the amount and accuracy of your revelations.
Many people in third world countries still think they can go to school, study and hope to get a job. The cheese has moved. You can’t afford to keep thinking in a traditional way; you must accurately discern what God would want you to do for your prosperity to manifest. The employment rate in a country like Nigeria is very low and those who have political connections get most of the available jobs. If a Christian does not get well connected to God who is greater than any politician and get clarity from Him on the exact source of income, he may seek for employment for decades while his age mates are making millions from carting away refuse. Even in situation where someone is already in paid employment, he should receive other sources of income from God and keep asking Him what next to do.
If Prophet Elijah did not get any direction to go to the brook Cherith, after he declared that there will be no rain in the land, he would have been hungry! When the brook dried up, note that the solution was not to pray that there should be miraculous water coming out of the brook, but to go to a widow. Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Elijah had received a word from the lord on the next source of provison and it was to go to a widow in Zarephath to feed him (1 King Ch 17). What God would direct you to release your wealth might sound or look ridiculous to everyone including you but make sure you do it; otherwise you will keep going round in circles, always getting broke.
Don’t just pray for prosperity, expecting money to develop legs and walk to your house, ask God to guide you concerning what you should do to generate income.
Obey every part of the word of God.
If you really want God’s blessings, you must be obedient to the written and spoken word of God concerning every aspect of your life. Don’t just receive revelations and keep them or be sharing them with others. Take actions quickly.
In Genesis 26:1-14, there was a great famine in the land and everybody went to Egypt. God told Isaac to dwell in the land that he would show him and he obeyed. God pronounced his blessing on him again in that land (Gen 26:12) and made him exceedingly great. He prospered so much that the whole country of the Philistines envied him. Many Christians pray that they will reap hundred fold of their investments like Isaac but they may not know that obedience to God’s instruction activated the blessing in Isaac’s life. If you learn to obey every written word of God and listen for his specific instructions concerning all aspects of your life, you will surely prosper.
Conclusion: Maintain God’s presence through prayers, studying and obeying His word; receive revelations concerning your finances and take actions on them to enjoy divine prosperity.