Jesus, You said in Matthew 6:24 (NIV) “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

Jesus, even if I don’t care all that much about the money itself, I still like what it can do for me. I don’t sit around at night counting my money and stacking in special rows. It seems to me that I don’t actually love money. I don’t feel like I qualify as a person who is trying to serve it. I have bills to pay, things I have to buy, a job I have to show up for, and responsibilities I have to fulfill. Of course, because of all that, I spend most of my time doing those things that involve money.

Mat 6:33 (NIV) But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these THINGS will be given to you as well. Jesus, help me see that this is REALLY true. Could I spend all my time reading the Bible, praying, reading Christian books, going to church, and memorizing Scriptures and all the THINGS I need just show up at the door? What do You mean by, seek first His (God’s) kingdom and His (God’s) righteousness?

Jesus, show me that the purpose of most classes is revealed in the questions on the test. The instructor reveals what their true purpose was when they test me on what I learned. Help me see that You are going to test me after this world system is cancelled. If I can know what You are going to put on Your final exam, I will better know what You meant by, seek first His (God’s) kingdom and His (God’s) righteousness.

Mat 25:31-33 (NIV) When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left. Jesus, help me understand that the “sheep” got a passing grade; and, the “goats” flunked their life classes.

Jesus, make it clear to me that this final exam isn’t an insignificant test. Show me that it decides where I spend eternity. Help me listen to this: Mat 25:46 (NIV) “Then they (the goats) will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous (the sheep) to eternal life.” Help me, train me, empower me, and guide me so I DO NOT flunk THIS EXAM!

Mat 25:35-36 (NIV) For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited Me in, I needed clothes and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you came to visit Me.

Jesus, I can see where a certain amount of these people’s money went. These people weren’t too busy, too in debt, too selfish, too caught up in getting ahead, too busy working on their career, too occupied with their retirement plan, too involved with their vacation plans, or too overwhelmed with the issues of life. Like them, help me change what is first in my life and help me seek first His (God’s) kingdom and His (God’s) righteousness.

Phil 4:19 (NIV) And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Jesus, does that mean that if I spend all my time praying, reading my Bible, going to church, and memorizing Scripture that God will knock on my door and hand me money? No! 2 Th 3:10 (NIV) For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.”

Jesus, if God will meet all my needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus, then help it become obvious to me that He will have to pick the SOURCE for sending me my resources. He would have to pick my career, my jobs, my work involvement, my commitments, my contracts, my involvements of the day, and my projects. Show me how this works.

Luke 12:16 (NIV) And He told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. Jesus, show me that this is a successful business man. All of a sudden he is blessed, prospered, and wealthy. But, help me see that what he didn’t know from all his business training, personal career experiences, and all his financial planning was, why all this wealth came his way. Help me not get the impression that God is against properity from this spiritual illustration.

Jesus, help me see that the point is best understood through the final exam I am going to be taking in my near future. When God propers you, what was HIS purpose. Sure, you know exactly what you want to do with a big windfall. But, will your plan measure up with Jesus’ final exam?

Luke 12:17 (NIV) He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ Jesus, help me see that my biggest clue for where this man went wrong was: He thought to himself. Why did God put me here? What is His plan for my life? What do I need to do to be pleasing to God? Am I currently on target with God’s will for my life? Make me aware that God expects me to accomplish something before I die. Help me know what IT is.

Jesus, help me adequately answer all the above questions by regularly asking You. Show me that You hold all the answers to all these and many more VERY important questions. AND, I really need the answers as soon as possible. Help me stop being busy thinking to myself rather than asking You what to do so I won’t be heading down the same path this man was.

Luke 12:18 (NIV) “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. Jesus, teach me that this is this man’s second mistake: Then he said, “This is what I’ll do.”

Jesus, help me always consult You rather than me coming up with my own plan. Help me see that the chance of me making a wrong decision is great. The chance of me making a decision by consulting my own mind and it being life-destroying is very likely. Is it possible that I am currently off track from where I should be. Is it possible that I am getting ready to make some decisions that would create a chain of damaging events, How should I keep from making decisions that hurt me in the long run? Make it clear to me that I should ASK GOD!

Luke 12:19 (NIV) And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” Jesus, out of all the times I have spent my entire day consulting myself, show me how I should have invited You into my thought processes. Help me turn my attention to You while thinking. Help me ask You what You want me to do. Rather than me saying all these things to myself, help me always invite You into the discussion.

Jesus, this man could have turned to God and ran the plan past Him. Then rather than the man finding that the plan was a bad one when it was too late to change, he would have received a brilliant plan from God. Help me find out what God would have told this man to do with his money.

Jesus, I know the difference between a river and a lake. Show me that this man was building a lake for his money. Teach me that what God wants me to do is put it inside two banks of earth and let it run like a river. Teach me that if I build a lake with my money, then I am concerned that this is all the money I may get in the future. So I store it up for my future. If I put it into a river system, I take what I need for this time in my life and let the rest go on out to the needs of others. Then, IF GOD COMES THROUGH, as that money flows out to other’s needs, more money flows in to take its place.

Luke 12:20 (NIV) “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

Jesus, show me that it isn’t like God can’t talk to me; just like this man didn’t have any problem hearing from God, help me see that He WILL tell me those things He wants me to know. But, help me hear from God before I make a life-shaking decision. This man’s life is over; he has just been declared a “goat” and will end up in eternal punishment. But, help me realize that he didn’t have to go the path he went. He didn’t have to decide to make all his plans by consulting himself rather than including You in his decision making procedures.

Luke 12:21 (NIV) This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God. Jesus, show me what Your purpose was for giving this spiritual illustration. Help me understand that You were giving everyone the rules of life. You were making it clear what You expect of people as they go about their life, as they go about planning their future, as they set up their career, as they make their investments, as they make decisions that will make them a “sheep” or a “goat.” Help me make those decisions that make me one of Your sheep.

Jesus, teach me why this man got money (crops)? He got it so he could secure his future. But, help me see that it didn’t secure his future. Teach me that once I forget that eternity is my future, I start making the wrong plans for securing my future.