“The message flickered into C.F’s living room each night: ‘Be faithful in how you live and how you give, the television preachers said, and God will shower you with material riches.’”²

And so the TV listener pledged $500 a year to one TV evangelist and wrote checks to a flamboyant faith healer, and another to a local preacher-made-good. Only the promised blessings didn’t come. C.F. ended up having to borrow money to buy food. The explanation given on TV implied that she didn’t have enough faith. Now she is understandably disillusioned with all TV ministries. Undoubtedly, unlimited numbers have suffered the same fate.

As Michael Palmer, dean of the divinity school at Regent University, founded by Pat Robertson, said, “More and more people are desperate and grasping at straws and want something that will alleviate their pain or financial crisis.”³

Sadly, there is no shortage of TV preachers who, primarily for their own gain, are ready to offer these people false promises under the guise of it being a part of the Christian gospel.

One teacher I know fittingly calls the “Name it and claim it gospel” the “blab it and grab it gospel”—which of course, is NOT the gospel of Jesus Christ.

When God promised the ancient Israelites prosperity and good success,⁴ he was stating that if the entire nation—as a whole—lived in harmony with God’s will and obeyed his commandments, then they would be prosperous and have good success. This was a message to the nation—not to individuals. Furthermore, prosperity and success according to God can be totally different to what man thinks prosperity and good success is; which to many, at least here in the U.S. and other Western nations, means material prosperity. Sadly, many of these people may very well be spiritual and emotional paupers.

Furthermore, do these “prosperity gospel” preachers take their message to the starving masses in India and South Africa and to other extremely needy parts of the world? I don’t think so.

Don’t misunderstand me; I am not implying that we have to be poor to be a true follower of Jesus Christ. For those of us who live in developed countries we have the opportunity to work hard and be financially prosperous which is wonderful. However, the important issue is: what is our motive for making money and for what purpose are we using it? It does take money to get God’s work on earth done—not for TV evangelists to own private jets. Giving is very important. It is one of the major resources for doing God’s work on earth—to help the poor, to aid the suffering, and to proclaim the true gospel of Jesus Christ to all the world.

However, in our giving, let us pray for guidance and give to churches and organizations who are truly committed to doing God’s work on earth, and not to those who are seeking to build up their own empire and/or ego by offering an easy-believeism, feel-good, non-committed, name it and claim it false prosperity gospel.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please give me the desire to know what your Word teaches, the wisdom to live by it, the discernment to identify all false teachings, and the courage to stand up for truth. And please give me a grateful heart for all your blessings, and a generous spirit to support your work on earth. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. John 16:33 (NIV).
2. Eric Gorski, religion writer for the Denver Post.
3. Ibid.
4. See Joshua 1:6-9 (NIV).

“A peach tree stands in our back yard,” wrote K. Marshall Strom. “Unpruned, the tree grew big and leafy. It was loaded with peaches, although the fruit was disappointingly small and tasteless.

“The year my husband, Larry, was out of work, he went to work on the tree. When I came home from school one day and saw how far back he had pruned it, I stared in shock. ‘You’ve killed it,’ I cried. ‘Now we won’t have any peaches at all.’

“I was wrong. That spring the pruned branches burst forth with a beautiful blanketing of pink blossoms. Some little green peaches replaced the blossoms. ‘Leave them alone,’ I begged. Larry ignored me and thinned the fruit.

“By the end of summer the branches were so heavily laden with fruit they had to be propped up. And the peaches—how large, sweet and juicy they were! There was no denying it: the tree was far better off from the painful cutting it endured.”²

I like to constantly emphasize that God’s goal is not to make us good but to make us whole. The result will be that genuine goodness will be the outcome of being made whole. But to be made whole usually takes a lot of “pruning” (discipline) by God. Speaking personally, the only time I ever take a look at myself and break through some defense I have been using to hide some sin or fault, is when I am hurting bad enough. I mean, who wants to change when everything is going great. Not me! I may not like the “pruning” process but I certainly appreciate the result … fruit!

So, if you are going through a rough time right now, ask God to help you see if there is some lesson he is teaching you, some issue he is wanting you to deal with, or some change he sees you need to make.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that your goal is to make me whole. Please help me to accept and submit to your pruning and discipline and, because of them, please make me a better, more whole person. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Hebrews 12:11 (NIV).
2. Cited on KneEmail, http://www.oakhillcoc.org

When my sons were born, we wanted to give them meaningful names. My oldest son’s name is Brent, which means “upright.” My youngest son’s name is Mark which means “noble warrior.” Their middle names are also meaningful. When Mark was studying overseas, he struggled because he is bi-polar. At the time I told him that he was very courageous in what he was doing and reminded him that his name means “noble warrior” and that his middle name, Shaun (Irish for John), means “sent from God.” I also told him that I believed in him.

One tragedy is when a parent repeatedly calls his/her child a negative name such as “stupid” or “clumsy.” Chances are, the child will grow up to believe that this is true, act accordingly, and also have a very poor self-image. Calling anyone a bad name is very destructive. The exact opposite is true when parents call their children positive and affirming names.

In days of yesteryear, a person’s name had much to do with what he/she did. John Baker, for example, would have been a baker. Fred Shumaker, a shoemaker, and so on.

The greatest name of all was Jesus. His name means Savior. He was given this name by God, showing to all who hear or use his name who he is. As another has said, his name “teaches us the purpose of his incarnation. It is his human name reminding us that he who is God also became man. Peter made much of this name in the healing of the crippled beggar, and declared that there is no other name sufficient for our salvation.”

Speaking about Jesus, Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “His name is not so much written but plowed into the history of the world.”

For those of us who have invited Jesus into our heart and life as personal Savior and Lord, it is of great comfort to know that he has written our name in his Book of Life. It will be interesting to know what meaning he has given to it. I believe it will describe who he wants us to be and what he wants us to do. Whatever it is, may he help us to discern that and live up to it!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you for giving your Son, Jesus, to be the Savior of the world. Because I have accepted him as my Savior, I thank you that you have my name written in your book of life. Help me to discern what meaning you have given to my name and with your help, live up to it for your glory. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife, enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter.

“This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.”

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized it, we would have done it differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It’s the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.”

Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.²

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to live with eternity’s values in view and to build a life that will not only be rewarding for me but, more importantly, bring glory to you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

1. Colossians 3:23 (NASB).
2. Author Unknown.

For today’s Daily Encounter I would like to use the Prayer of St. Francis both for the devotional and the prayer:

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light, and
Where there is sadness, joy.

“O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much
Seek to be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.”

“Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

1. James 3:18 (NIV).