Prophetic Ministries International

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 3:10-11 (KJV)

For as long as I can remember I have been taught this scripture. I have been taught it, and I have taught it to others. I have come down hard and I have argued - if you bring the tithe, God rebukes the devourer.

And at the end of the day, as I lay in bed pondering the days discussions, I would always come back to this thought - "Am I paying protection money?"

You see, I know God to be a kind, loving and caring father. A man who sent His own son to die for me. Why then would He require me to pay Him off to avoid "the devourer"?

Two days ago, God opened my eyes. I received the above scripture in my email and I knew - immediately - what He meant. My mouth literally fell open!

Let's go thru this scripture piece by piece:

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse,
What is the storehouse from a Promised Land Perspective? According to 2 Cor. 9:10, the store is something we control. It is essentially - our bank.

that there may be meat in mine house,
In the Promised Land, we must ask ourselves "where does God live?" According to 1 Cor. 3:16, You are the temple - God lives in you.

and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
Lets now take a look at our past... how many of us have tried this scripture - proven God - and although things may be acceptable, they are far from "not enough room".

And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
And lastly - the condemnation - if I don't pay for some reason, bam! the hoodlums are gonna come and beat me up! Is this really what God means?

So I present to you another scenario. One which more closely fits the scriptures - IF we allow ourselves to think (oh no - not that!) and honestly compare the scripture to itself (i.e. - this one scripture to the whole of the Word of God).

I present to you that God is actually saying:

"Set aside a consistent amount from each pay (the tithe) and put it into an investment (bank, savings, CD, stocks, etc).
Do this so that there may be meat in your house (i.e. - something good and full of protein that may be drawn from to sustain you in the future).
And because you are my children, I will multiply this (2 Cor. 9) and your investments will grow, and you will be called prosperous and those around you will be in awe!

You see - this scripture is identical in concept to 2 Cor. 9: 10-14!!

If we set aside an amount for our own future, God promises to multiply that seed sown. We can then draw upon this in the future - for expansion of our business, for the kids college fund, for retirement. Whatever we may need "meat" for.

But you ask - what about the church? They need the tithe!

And I present to you - they need the GIVING!

"Give and it will be given..."
"God loves a cheerful giver..."

The list goes on - you are called to be a giver! Not a tither (limited by law to 10%). Think about this - IF God actually did what He said - and poured out such a great blessing that you couldn't contain it - wouldn't you give MORE than 10%?

Simply replace the concept of "tithe" with the concept of "giving". Give to your church. Give to the ministry. GIVE GIVE GIVE. But tithe to your own storehouse....

As I always say: "God wants you to have more than enough - isn't it time you tried something different?"
Prophet Bill

One of the issues we need to bring out when living in The Promised Land is this - where are you sowing seed, and what is the result?

When we begin reaping the fruit of Promised Land Living, we begin to walk in and experience true prosperity. However, this increase of wealth brings with it some additional concerns.

Prior to this wealth, our options on how much to spend and where to spend it were limited by the very nature of lack. But now, without lack, we are free spend more wherever we choose.

There is nothing wrong with taking some time off, and enjoying life by spending money. If you want to go to a casino, spend a few days and dollars - do so.

However, we must also remain on our guard. We must ask ourselves - am I spending to much time here? Am I spending to many dollars here? Am I misusing the blessing by not sowing my seed in the proper fields - places where God will get the glory?

Not everything we do will always result in people giving thanks to God on our behalf. However, the majority of time, this should be what we're striving to accomplish.

So - go ahead and enjoy yourself. Enjoy the life God has opened up for you. But don't forget to give - give so that God gets the Glory - so that the receiver gives thanks to God on your behalf.

If you neglect that, you will find yourself beginning to lack again...

Prophet Bill

A few months ago, God spoke to me these words: "One of the ways to really make it is to not get paid by the hour."

And one of the ways to move yourself from hourly to non-hourly cash flow, is to diversify your income streams.

Now, by diversify, I don't mean working more jobs. Rather, I mean locating and tapping into additional income streams that will take little (if any) of your time.

Like what?

Well - sell items on eBay, become an affiliate marketer for some company, write blog articles. Thats only a few ideas, but fortunately, what separates us as Christians from the rest of the world - is that we can pray, and God will show us areas that could work.

If you ask God during your prayer time for ideas on how to diversify your income stream so that your not generating cash flow based on hours worked, guess what - He will give them to you!

God doesn't want you working yourself to the bone - 2,3 jobs - trying to make ends meet - all so your family and spiritual life can suffer. NO!

What does God want?
God wants you to have more than enough. Isn't it time you tried something different?

Bill

So much has happened to us (my family) over the last two years... and yet, some things seem to remain the same.

Recently I found myself arguing with God again about money. I was asking Him - why does it seem I continue to run out of money each week? I mean, I now make ALOT more than last year, yet it still seems there is a hole in my pocket.

His response - "Use one of your credit cards. Do not use your bank check/debit card. Budget $1000 per month for anything you want. And pay that card off each month."

My response - $1000!! A month! To spend as I want??? God - are you sure? I mean, that's a lot of money, and many people don't ever have that much to spend on themselves...

But - God is faithful. He has enabled me to enjoy life and buy things for my wife and family (Like a special edition bat for my son the baseball player), and still pay our bills and tithe and give.

A few months ago, we sold my 2004 Pontiac Grand Am to my wife's parents. They have struggled since day one. Always lived in poverty, barely made ends meet (but raised a family!). My wife and I wanted to bless them, bu we couldn't afford to give them the car, and they couldn't buy it because the loan was upside down...

So - we let them drive it for a few months (they paid the loan) while we saved. And then we were able to pay down the loan just over $3,000 so they could get the car. Their very first "new" car - and man, they love it! Leather seats, power windows, stereo -... not that all that matters, but we - my wife and I - were able to be a blessing to two people who had been very very important in my wife's life - her parents!

I am not trying to brag - well maybe a little, but not about what we have done, but rather - what HE has done. This is an amazing message!

God wants you to have more than enough - isn't it time you tried something different?

Bill