Do We Claim to be Self-made or God-made?

​“But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.”
                               Deuteronomy 8:18 (KJV)
 




​Hi friends,
 
     How are you?  Recently, I started trying to set up email marketing and a way to sell digital products. I feel God is calling me to expand my way of business and to step outside of my comfort zone to do things unfamiliar to me.  As I have been looking into these things, I feel like my mind has been into finances way more than I would like.  (Call me an ostrich if you must, but I don’t like thinking about finances.  That isn’t to say that I am irresponsible with money. I just think my mind and soul does better pondering other things.)

     Anyway, I believe that it is a good reminder to look at what God’s Word says about money.  So, while I was praying for and looking for a verse to use for today’s blog post, God directed me to Deuteronomy 8:18.  

     Deuteronomy 8:18 starts off with a reminder that I really like, “But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth the power to get wealth....” Often times, we forget to include God or to thank our Heavenly Father.  Sometimes, we get to thinking about what “we” need to do in order to accomplish this or that and we don’t take time to pray or to consider that we can’t do anything without God’s help. 
 
     This may seem like “backwards thinking” in today’s society.  We are bombarded with phrases like “self-made man” and “independent person” that make us think that we decide what we make.  With phrases like these and statements like “You get out of it what you put into it,” makes it difficult to remember that God is in control and He is the one that gives us what we need to do things.

     So, does this mean that we need to sit back and wait for God to do things for us? No.  God often calls us to do something, before He guides us to our destination.  The saying, “God helps those who help themselves” may be close to how we are called to work.  We are more apt to make more money or be more successful if we put more into it.  Yet, the point is that we are to pray, to remember God, to know that we can’t do anything without God, and to thank God for all that we have and can do.  We aren’t to think that we did something by ourselves, even if we don’t see anyone else physically helping us.
 
Heavenly Father,
     Thank you for being our Heavenly Father.  Thank you for creating us and giving us all that we have.  Help us to remember you in all that we do.  Help us to thank you and not to take all the credit for something as if you weren’t a part of it.  Help us to include you in all that we do, to pray for your guidance, and to be thankful for all that you do for us.  I ask you this through your Son, Jesus.  Amen.
 
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Reflective Questions for Deuteronomy 8:18 (KJV):
*What does Deuteronomy 8:18 mean to me?
*Do I remember God in all that I am doing or trying to do?
*How can I better remember God in all that I do?
*Do I give God credit for all that I am able to accomplish or do I take all the
 credit? 
*Do I use phrases like “independent” and “self-made”?

Now, it is your turn.
     What are your thoughts?  How can we, as Christians, involve God more and dissuade ourselves and others in thinking we are "independent" or "self-made"?
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