Let The Lord Decide

Regardless of where you live, you or someone around you has prayed for success. Prayed for financial help. Prayed for wealth. Or something similar.

And why not, financial success or at least financial improvement is a normal thing to pray for. And sometimes it's out of desperation and poverty that we want to climb out of.

And to you, who are struggling, this is probably not for you.

But to you, who are middle class, to you who are rich, or to you who is living with a home and stuff but living paycheck to paycheck... this might be for you.

“Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭30‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/111/pro.30.8-9.NIV

This passage stood out to me this year. "give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread."

Did you catch that "only" in there? I did this year. But I did not catch it any of the previous times reading through this Proverb...

Only... my daily bread

A strange sentiment when you have a home, have food, have aspirations, have needs... "only my daily bread"

I spent some time thinking and praying on this. And arrived at an uncomfortable realization.

Let the lord decide what you own and prosper. Neither riches NOR poverty.

It's a strange concept to just accept what The Lord plans for you. Perhaps he plans riches, perhaps he plans poverty. Perhaps... he plans the middle for you, for me, for whoever.

It’s both the middle and not the middle. To not be rich, and not be poor.

It's contentment when you think about it. And to be clear you can have contentment and drive. You can have contentment and aspirations. They don't counter each other. They can easily coexist inside you.

Desire to achieve more while being able to be fully content in what you are given.

Notice that I did not say "what you have". But rather "what you are given".

This is one of the critical things. What you have, regardless of how much or how hard you worked is not from you. It's from The Lord. And when you realize that, truly actually emotionally realize that... things get easier and better.

But if you hold fast to the idea that you earned it, you will have unending struggles today and tomorrow.