If God can trust you with something small, He’ll trust you with more (see Luke 16:10, 2 Corinthians 9:6-11). But His blessings come with certain conditions, and here are four you need to honour. 1) Don’t try to claim credit for yourself. God told the Israelites, ‘You may say to yourself…“My hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the Lord…for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…If you ever forget…you will surely be destroyed’ (Deuteronomy 8:17-19 NIV). 2) Don’t forget others. The Bible commands ‘those who are rich in this present world…to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds…generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves’ (1 Timothy 6:17-19 NIV). 3) Don’t become arrogant. Jeremiah warns us, ‘Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong…of their strength or the rich…of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord’ (Jeremiah 9:23-24 NIV). 4) Don’t allow anything to take God’s place. ‘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?”’ (Proverbs 30:8-9 NIV). Remember, you don’t own anything – you’re just an administrator of God’s estate and an executor of His will. It’s an awesome responsibility, so make sure you do the best you can.
