The BIG reveal..."Empowered to Empower!"
The end of last year God gave me a vision of what He wanted from me for 2010. Often times we find ourselves making New Year's Resolutions and they usually are all about, "ME, ME, ME, ME, ME." "I gotta hit the gym, I gotta make more time for me, I gotta do this or I gotta do that..." and it typically pertains to ourselves.
But, this year, I wanted my resolution to be different. Specifically, I felt that the LORD wanted my resolution to be about me investing in others. A transfer of power and discipline of sorts. You see, financial freedom is more than just some marketable slogan, it is biblical and empowering. So, that is why I believe God gave me "Empowered to Empower." Here we go...
I got addicted to couponing only after humbling myself. See, I always saw couponing as for the less fortunate, the poor, and the needy. Since I did not see myself in any of those terms, using coupons was mentally written off as time consuming and "below" me. But, through the pruning of the Holy Spirit, God convicted me into a life-altering realization: those who use coupons were the WISE ones and I was the fool. They are wives, home makers, business women, concerned mothers, prudent souls who see frugality as not just a hobby or financial enigma, but as a lifestyle.
The ultimate back-breaking straw for me is found in Matthew 25:15 “To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability..." Now, we are all most likely familiar with this parable...but have we ever picked up on the last few words in this verse? God has given to each of us according to our individual abilities! Let me expand this passage a little. Some of you may have heard of "talents" in this passage paralleling "talent" today ( i.e. musical, athletic, etc.). In the Greek, this term literally meant physical possession of financial value. These inidividuals were challenged to invest/spend their money wisely. It is from there that the story and its lesson progresses. God definitely wants us to levy all of our talents for His kingdom as well...but, in this case, let's focus on the financial lesson to be learned.
God knows what it is we can handle and when we can handle it. How do we expect God to entrust us with any more than we can currently bear if we bear it in a way that doesn't honor him? We can't! That is, we can not until we show ourselves approved of our present financial situation. Showing ourselves approved is not merely tithing or giving the occasional offering, although this is the first cobblestone along the journey to financial breakthrough. Our financial well being is a wholistic approach rooted in the very mind of God and His Word.
My husband and I have come a long way over the last year, but I felt the nudge of God on this other issue: grocery shopping. And so, He birthed this idea out of me to share the passion that He has developed in me over the last few months. E2E will be a time of sharing, fellowship, laughter and maybe even some crying ;)! Ultimately, I desire for this group to be a haven for women who want more out of their finances. With God as the nucleus, I foresee this coupon club becoming more than a Friday or Saturday outing! I genuinely want those who attend to leave with a new perspective and a fresh outlook on their own ability and the "talents" God has given them.
This is my prophetic decree over you...
"Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations above the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God: Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out!"
"The Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless ALL the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations but you shall not borrow. And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you today, and are careful to observe them."
Deuteronomy 28:1-6 & 28:12-13
In Him,
~Jenni-Lynn~
P.S. I still have a special testimonial to share with you...so just keep checkin' in!
