The blessings of God being bestowed upon us can be turned into a great success, or failure because of our attitudes. Success for the Christian depends not so much on the amount of blessings received, but of the use we make of them, because God will grant us opportunities, but success has to do with what we do with those opportunities.
Some individuals, through diligence, dispatch, and wise management will make a million dollars out of mere pennies, and others, because of indolence and mismanagement will reduce a million to pennies. In most cases it is the attitude that we manifest which determines success or failure. One’s scant resources should not prevent us from exercising intelligence, ingenuity, or sound wisdom.
Some persons are blessed with multiple talents and gifts, and yet, these blessings remain unused for the most part. Then again, some are given one, or two talents, and by their attitude the gifts are multiplied a hundred-fold. Thus, in all that God bestows upon His people, He requires that Christians think big, not limiting or measuring our potential by conventional standards, but through faith in God, we are to reach for the stars.
As a general rule of thumb, our faith in God, and our concepts of His abilities, determine to a large extent what He can and will do for us. If we harbor a small concept of God, His blessings upon us will generally be commensurate with what we think. However, if we do not think restrictively of Him, we open up our hearts to receive much, for with God, nothing shall be impossible.
The following therefore are little snippets of truth pertaining to our attitudes in life which determine success or failure.
[Christian Service pp 238] Many who are qualified to do excellent work accomplish little because they attempt little. Throughout His life on earth, Jesus was an earnest, constant worker. He expected much, therefore, He attempted much.
Genesis 39:5 And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.
[Conflict and courage pp 74] The marked prosperity which attended everything placed under Joseph's care was not the result of a direct miracle; but his industry, care, and energy were crowned with the divine blessing. Joseph attributed his success to the favor of God; without steadfast, well-directed effort however, success could never have been attained.
[Christ Object lessons pp 331] Christ has given us no assurance that to attain perfection of character is an easy matter. A noble, all-round character is not inherited. It does not come to us by accident. A noble character is earned by individual effort through the merits and grace of Christ.
God gives the talents, the powers of the mind; we form the character. It is formed by hard, stern battles with self. Conflict after conflict must be waged against hereditary tendencies. We shall have to criticize ourselves closely and allow not one unfavorable trait to remain uncorrected.
2nd Peter 1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christians who really believe in God should always be growing, expanding, developing, and climbing Jacob’s ladder one rung at a time. In other words, if we were to think big, next year will not meet us in a stagnated position, where we were this year. There are new goals, higher heights, newer horizons, and challenges to surmount.
Thus, if we adopt a large, broad platform thinking we will find that output will increase dramatically, both in the spiritual and temporal realm. Enlarging our borders not only pertains to material pursuits; it also pertains to growing God’s kingdom, because, whatever attitudes we manifest and cultivate in the temporal realm, will also be translated in spiritual matters.
Character does not change with situation, place, or circumstances; instead, it runs as a common thread throughout the fabric of our experiences. A striking example of thinking big is given in the experience of a widowed woman, who ran into financial difficulty after the death of her husband.
Like many of us, the creditor was at the door, and the demand was made for payment or “else”. In her utter desperation she turns to God for help through the prophet Elisha, and what follows next is to serve as a scriptural instruction on thinking big.
Several spiritual lessons pertaining to our attitudes, our methods, and our concepts of God are given in the narrative, with the hope that wherever we may see ourselves falling short, we would buckle up our shoes and start to run. So, let’s lay the groundwork for the study by observing a few important pointers.
[1] Whenever we are in a difficult situation, the first step is to seek God, but we should bear in mind that our attitude would often make a huge difference in the outcome. Let’s read:
2nd Kings 4:1 Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the Lord: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.
Proverbs 3:4 So shalt thou find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
[2] Deliverance and blessings often begin with what we have at our disposal, because God often utilizes resources that are available, and He would multiply them, if we cooperate with Him. Thus, it was with the five barley loaves and two fishes that furnished food for thousands. God could have provided the raw material, but He usually doesn’t do this when any resources are available. Let’s read:
2nd Kings 4:2 And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not anything in the house, save a pot of oil.
[3] The size and the extent of the blessing is entirely in the woman’s hands. God has promised, He stands ready to work, but the size of His blessing will solely be dependent on the woman’s capacity to receive. God encourages her to think big, and not to limit His power, but He will not force her into thinking big.
Her faith must take hold of unseen realities, and the only limit will be what she believes, and thinks that God can and will do. In other words, we cannot out-think God’s blessings, for whatsoever the size of the blessing we may come up with, God could come up with more. If the widow was to borrow a hundred vessels, she will receive one hundred vessels worth of blessing.
But if she were to think big, and borrow a million vessels, she would then receive a million worth of blessings; it’s entirely up to her, the ball is entirely in her court. Now, there is a big difference between faith and greediness, therefore the two should not be mixed up.
Faith in God, in instances such as this, occurs when one doesn’t put a limit on God; greediness is when one can never be satisfied. God through His prophet encourages the woman to think big, because this is her golden opportunity.
With this one chance, she could retire with a huge nest egg, or by thinking small, she could become a slave to debt again. From here on out, it’s entirely dependent on her attitude, her faith, and her belief in the power of God. She could ask Elisha for help this once, or by her attitude she could be coming back again and again for help.
As a matter of fact, as far as God is concerned, this one blessing could be a one-time deal of a lifetime, that will not only solve her present problems, but it could cover her food, rent, medical bills, and college tuition for her sons, in the future, with vacations in Europe, or at Disney world. It’s all up to her because whatsoever she thinks, and believes, is what God stands ready to do.
Many Christians might not have known this about God, and as a result some have imposed finite and humanistic limitations on what God can and will do. To such Christ says, be it unto you according to your faith, or, by changing our attitude we can realize big changes in our blessings. It’s all up to us. Let’s read:
Ephesians 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundant above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus.
2nd Kings 4:3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
Neither God, or Elisha tells the woman how many vessels to burrow, for she isn’t given any specific number; all that is done, is that she is encouraged not to think small. “All thy neighbors” means every single neighbor she could think about, even those in the home-owners association who often snitch on other neighbors, and with whom she may not get along.
The words “Burrow not a few” also drives home the point that she should think big. God stands ready to work, Elisha has done his part by instructing, and encouraging her, but her faith must close the deal, either in an itsy-bitsy manner, or in spectacular way. The onus is now on her, for if anything falls short in this blessing, the fault will not be with God. Let’s read:
2nd kings 4:4 And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.
5 So she went from him and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.
In the privacy of her home the woman and her sons fill bottles upon bottles of oil, and they all relish the moment, as they witness first-hand, the miraculous power of God being exercised in their deliverance. All goes well until finally, they reach the last bottle, and here is where our Bible study begins. Let’s read:
2nd Kings 4:6 And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.
Obviously, there was room for more blessings, but when the widow finally realized what was actually taking place, the supply of vessels ran out, and thus, according to the measure of her faith, God dealt to her His blessing. Now, if for some reason she had ten thousand more bottles, the oil would still be flowing.
Very often in our Christian experience, God stands ready to do and bless much more than we expect, but our narrow views of His power effectively puts a limit on what will take place. Therefore, one of the most critical lessons for us to embrace is that we ought to think big, in our understanding of God.
Little concepts of God often breed little blessings, whereas great ideas of God breed great blessings. Saul and the other Israelites were harboring minute concepts of God, that is why Goliath could shake them down day after day as they cowered in fear. David on the other hand seemed to be eager for the opportunity to take down the giant, because he had trained his mind to always think big when dealing with God.
Same situation, same giant, but different concepts of God result in success or failure. It is true that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks so as we observe David and Saul’s attitude, let us learn our lessons well. Let’s read:
1st Samuel 17:23 And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them.
24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.
25 And the men of Israel said, Have you seen this man that is come up?
26 And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?
31 And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.
32 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.
33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.
However, there is something much deeper to the narrative of the widowed woman, that deserves our utmost attention. What Elisha said to the woman up front is just as important as what he did say after the fact, and as we read, questions may arise in our minds that would demand an answer. Let’s read:
2nd Kings 4:7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.
Question: Why did not Elisha tell her from the onset that this one blessing was to take care of herself and her children for the rest of their lives? Why not divulge this critical piece of info, upfront, so that the woman could realize the extent and the seriousness of this onetime act?
It is quite possible that if she had known of this up-front, she would have rented one of those big U-Haul trucks and filled it with vessels, because she would be looking at a blessing that was to take her to her grave. So again, we ask the question: why was that critically important piece of information withheld until the woman had made her move?
Answer: If Elisha had told her upfront that the blessing would be for her lifetime, then her actions would be based on fact, not on faith, because in most cases more information almost always results in the exercise of less faith.
Those who indulge the habit of clamoring for more and more information about God and His promises, usually act only when every risk and obstacle is removed. Thomas demanded more information and was later reproved by Christ for doing so. Let’s read:
John 20:24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.
26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.
27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.
29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
After the day of Pentecost the name of Thomas goes into oblivion because it’s never mentioned again in the scriptures. Thus, we have a lesson for all time, that the exercise of faith is not so much knowledge-based, as it is an attitude and a choice, even though knowledge is essential.
The Bible speaks of some folks who are always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. The same disposition of skepticism was manifested in the days of Christ when the leaders demanded of Him a sign. They would not believe, nor exercise that child-like faith in God, because doing so bruised their ego.
Even when Christ gave them indisputable proof of His Divinity, by raising Lazarus, they responded by desiring to put both Christ and Lazarus to death. Thus, an excessive amount of information can often stymie faith in God. So the question is, how much information and evidence we need before we believe?
When, like the widow woman in the story, God has promised to do great things for us, let us not encourage doubt and skepticism, but let us rather take hold of the arm of omnipotence, for as we have stated over and over again, God is a Spirit, and therefore an attitude of belief on our part is much more pleasing to Him, than the “Thomas” disposition that keeps on demanding proof.
Let us then take God at His word, and be not faithless, but believing, for He is faithful who has promised, and will bless us abundantly if we think big, and when He sees we can handle it. We therefore end with a passage of scripture that encourages us to always exercise a living faith in God. Let’s read:
Matthew 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
God bless!