Giver of Good Gifts

The prosperity gospel is without a doubt one of the most toxic and dangerous false doctrines of our day. The idea that God exists to give people health, wealth, and prosperity lies in stark contradiction to the saints of old who endured beatings, being stoned, brutal imprisonment, banishment, and battling for their lives. It does not align with the picture of Jesus, who was sent to earth, falsely accused, beaten, mocked, and crucified. Time and time again, Scripture tells stories of people who committed their lives to God and lost everything as a result.

Of course, God is not a genie who only grants health and wealth. If we buy into that lie, we will immediately turn away from Him the second that our health fails or our bank account declines.

It's dangerous.

But I think an equally dangerous ditch to fall into is the idea that God just doles out pain and suffering and doesn't want us to be well. Sometimes I work so hard to remind myself that life isn't all about being healthy and well that I don't even pray for healing. I try so hard to avoid the prosperity gospel that I end up throwing the baby out with the bathwater and sacrificing the promises of God! 

Scripture is laden with verses about God's providence: 

"...No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly." Psalm 84:11

"Those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." Psalm 34:10

"If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” Luke 11:13

But a lot of times I don't ask. Maybe I believe that he doesn't really want to give me anything. Or maybe I think he can't? Maybe I don't call on him because I don't want to accidentally toe the line of praying prosperity, thus causing me to neglect prayer and dependence on our good God.

I think of my student who came to class without a pencil. It was forty minutes into the period on an exam day, and when I walked around to see how everyone was doing, he hadn't started. 

"What's going on?" I asked.

"I don't have a pencil." He looked ashamed.

I was shocked that he opted to just sit in silence for forty minutes. Then, I was saddened. Why didn't you say something? I thought. I have tons of pencils. I would love to help you.

And in that moment, I think I caught a glimpse of the heart of our God. God has everything we could ever need. In fact, God is everything we could ever need. And sometimes, the thing that he has (and the things we lack) is exactly what is holding us back from living out our purposes on this earth. That might be confusing, but think about it this way:

My student's purpose coming into my class that day was to take a test. On his own, he didn't have what he needed to fulfill that purpose. Once he asked for help, he was able to complete what he came for. In the same wave, our purpose on this earth is to glorify God and live for him. We need the Holy Spirit for help with that. We need a hunger for His word. We need hearts that are willing to serve. Dare I say, sometimes we might even need a little financial help or healing from an illness. 

I imagine God's reaction being the same when we need something and don't ask for it. "Why didn't you say something? I have everything you need. I would love to help you." And I can't help but wonder, why didn't I just ask?

Now of course, this analogy is not perfect. God knows exactly what we need, whereas I was completely oblivious to my pencil-lacking pupil. He also knows our future, so he knows that sometimes his glory is best displayed when we are sick, or broke, or broken. So our prayers might not always be answered the way we hope. But another way that God is glorified is when we go running to him in prayer. When we ask him for our needs. When we express our dependence on him. 

So it's time to start asking! Approach the throne in confidence, knowing that our God who saves is able to meet our every need! He knows my lack and fills those gaps. That's not the prosperity gospel - its trusting in the promises of Jesus! Just last week, I had eaten so much pineapple from the Whole30 that the sides of my mouth had cracked under the acidic zest. My mouth was in so much pain and I tried all types of ointments (all types of trying to solve the problem on my own) and found no healing. Somehow, finally, after far too long, I remembered to pray.

"God, this is so silly and so small...my mouth hurts. Could you heal it, God?" Sure enough, the next day, a scab had filled the cracked skin and my mouth was healed by the morning. That wasn't belief in prosperity or buying into the lie that following God will make me only healthy. No, it was trusting that God is who he says he is and we can go running to him with ALL of our needs. 

Life with God doesn't mean we will have all the health and wealth in the world. It means we will have HIM, and that is more than we deserve and all that we need. Let us not avoid running to him, for he knows how to give good gifts and surely delights in giving them. 

All glory to Him!

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