Why Do I Still Feel Poor When God’s Given Me So Much?

Speaker A00:00:28

Let's start with today's listener question.Ralph I know God has blessed me in so many ways, but during the holidays I start comparing my life to others and just feel like I'm missing something. Why do I still feel poor when I'm actually blessed? Here's something you might not know.Nearly 60% of Americans admit they compare their lives to others on social media. 60%. And listen to this. During the holidays, one in three admit to overspending just to feel like they quote, fit in.See, we live in a culture that screams more and more and more, but it never tells you what you're really missing. And I'm going to tell you right now, what's missing isn't more stuff. It's peace. The kind that comes from gratitude.Because abundance isn't what's in your wallet. We can park right there for a second. It's what's already in your life.So let's talk about how to embrace the abundance we already have on today's show.

Speaker B00:01:23

This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight and faith driven tips to help you break the cycle of financial shame with confidence.

Speaker A00:01:34

Welcome to the show. I'm Ralph. Thank you so much for joining me today as we work to break that cycle of financial shame and do it with confidence.And in my career, I've been doing accounting and tax work for over 30 years. Makes me feel old when I say that. But here's the thing I will tell you. I've seen folks with six figure incomes.You would think, oh, these people have arrived. They don't want for anything. But they didn't have peace. They were still anxious, they were still striving after something.But I've also seen families with very little I'm talking about, you'd be like, man, those folks are poor. But they radiated a peace that I could only hope to achieve. And it helped me learn something.When I focus on God's provision and this is what I want you to do today, your heart fills faster than any bank account ever could. And I want to tell you a story. Today I work with a young couple.This young couple made modest incomes, but man, they were stewards of what God had given them. They lived debt free. They lived joyfully, they lived in peace. Never forget, they came in one time for getting their taxes done.And I said, you folks just have so much peace. They're always smiling at each other. You could tell this was a marriage. There was love, there was, there was a great deal of joy in this.And I said, you know what's your secret? And the wife, she said, ralph, I'll tell you what it is. She said, you're never going to believe it.She said, we stopped chasing what everyone else had and started counting what God already gave us. Just think about that for a second. That was the secret sauce. She stopped chasing what everyone else had. Are you chasing what everyone else has?I love what Pastor Andy Stanley said. Contentment isn't the achievement of all you want. It's the realization of all you already have.I want to say that again because you got to really lean into that. Contentment isn't the achievement of all you want. It's the realization of all you already have.See, I could stop recording right now because there's the answer. But let's get back to the question. Why do I still feel poor when I'm actually blessed? And I want to tell you why that is.But better than, I'm going to tell you how you can change that. It all starts with gratitude, because gratitude grows abundance. I'm gonna encourage you right now, pause to thank God.Thank him for what's already in your hands. It's real easy to say, well, Lord, I don't have what my neighbor has. I don't have what my friend at work has. I don't have that shiny new car.I don't have that beach house. I don't have those luxurious vacations. It's so easy not to say God, but I have a roof over my head. I have loving family. I have a job, my health.But when you pause and thank God, you're going to start to see something. You're going to start to see just how rich your life already is. And if you're hearing my voice right now, your life is already rich.Second thing, I'm going to encourage you to do what my client decided to do. Stop comparing. The comparison trap is destroying us. 60% of people admit they are comparing themselves with others.Every time you scroll and compare, guess what you're doing. You're subtracting from your joy. You're just giving it up. You're just saying, lord, I got to go find something else. I got to go look at other people.You have joy in your own blessings. Stop comparing yourself to everybody else. Now, listen, I know it's easy for me to say that, but let me connect my heart to you right now.I feel the same way you do because I find myself doing that same thing. I'm out there scrolling it. Why does this person have this? Why do they have this boy? They have the Perfect family. My family's a disaster.But then I have to just stop and say, wait a minute, that's their race. God's given me joy in other areas because we don't know what's going on behind a curtain, as they say. Which leads me to this.You got to stop defining your wealth in traditional cultural terms, because you can have money without meaning. My wealthy clients, a lot of them have money without meaning, but you can never have meaning without gratitude. Just think about that for a second.You can have all the world will ever give. You can have buckets of cash, you can have bank accounts full to the brim. But you'll never find meaning if you don't have gratitude.And it all begins with stewarding what the Lord has given you, because God has entrusted you with resources. I say this on the show all the time. What you have is not yours. People will send me emails. People will send me direct messages.Ralph, how dare you say that. I work hard for what I have. Fine. You work hard for what God has given you. Work hard to steward it. Well, he's teaching us faithfulness.He's not teaching us envy. That's the big hairy takeaway right now. When you're out there comparing yourself to other people, what are you really doing? You're building envy.The Lord doesn't want envy for you. He wants you to realize that he's given you these resources. He's given what you can handle. Now you might say, but, Lord, I want more.Okay, that's fine. But he may not give it to you. He's promised you provision, not comfort. But recognize God's abundance. Because think about peace.What peace do you have in your life? The breath. The very breath that you take when you put your feet on the floor this morning. The family that surrounds you.And maybe you're in a struggle. I was in that circle I talked about on yesterday's show when my wife and I separated and family felt far away.But there are times in my life I can tell you right now that maybe your family is Jesus Christ himself. And that's okay. He'll be there for you. He gives you purpose. All these things that wealth can never buy.You'll never find a credit card that will give you more than what the Lord can give you. Let's get right into the Bible today. I got two verses for you today. The first one's from First Timothy, chapter six, verse six.It says this, but godliness with contentment is great gain. Godliness with contentment. There's that word again. Contentment. Gratitude and Hebrews, chapter 13, verse 5.Keep your lives free from the love of money. A lot of people misquote that. Lives free from the love of money. Didn't say away from money.But let me continue and be content with what you have, because God has said, here's the bedrock you can rest your life on. Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you. Listen, that's a savings account. That's a high yield money market account right there, isn't it?I will never leave you, nor will I forsake you. Let's pray together, Lord, as we come right now. We know the assurance you've given us in your word.So open our eyes, Lord, to the abundance that we already have around us. Help us to find joy in what you've already provided. Not what I wish I had. Not that envy, not that comparison trap.Help me to understand that you've already given me so much, Lord, and I am truly grateful for those things. So teach me to measure wealth by peace, not possessions. Help me to start every day with gratitude. And I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.Okay, you ready for your action item for today? Each morning this week, I want you to do one simple thing. I want you to write down one blessing that you overlooked yesterday.Have a pad of paper, use your phone, whatever that looks like for you. Just write down one blessing that you didn't think about yesterday. And then thank God out loud.Before you do anything else today, just think of those things that the Lord has already blessed you with. Breath, peace, family, a roof over your head, a job, ability to do things that some people. Listen.There are people in the world right now that are struggling for a place to live. There are people right now in the world that are struggling from where their next meal is going to come from.If you don't struggle there, thank God for that. And if this message spoke to your heart today, I want you to join. We just launched a thing called the Financially Confident Christian Community.And it's more than just a way to support the show. Sure, you can support the show. There. There are ways to do that. It's bigger than that, though.It's a space where we can grow together, where we can share encouragement, we can lift each other up, and we can live out God's plan for financial freedom and true spiritual freedom. And you can learn more by going to financially confidentchristian.com join. And together we're helping other people find peace.We're helping people find purpose. But bigger than all those things, we're helping them find confidence in Christ again.That's at financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join why don't you join me today and remember this. The world says you don't have enough, but God says you already do. Gratitude turns not enough into more than enough.You're already rich in his provision. Let's all decide to live like it this week. Go out there today and be a financially confident Christian.Stay financially savvy, God bless you, and I'll see you on tomorrow's show.