(406) 206-7571
Proverbs 3:5 Even when it seems impossible, keep trusting God. (author paraphrase)
There is a superstition that says bad events take place in a series of threes. But my experience has been that three can be a very providential number.
In the spring of 2019, I had three major life events. The company I worked for had just been purchased, and the culture change was immediate and negative. I asked God if it was time for me to leave. My answer came quickly; I was laid off.
The next event happened one evening while I was digging through my husband’s work backpack looking for a notebook, and I came across a note from another woman. The sting was sharp and shocking, and it wasn’t the first affair. My marriage was over.
The third occurrence took place as I began interviewing for a new job. I had multiple second and third interviews and while any of the positions would have been great, I didn’t have peace. One evening while praying, I felt a swell in my heart to move closer to my mom and step-dad, three states away. I knew that God was telling me to go.
My life quickly became a whirlwind of divorce details, moving boxes, and saying goodbye to friends. While I felt vulnerable and even ashamed of my circumstances, a “peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) filled my days and my conversations. I should have been in shambles, and yes, I did cry often, but my situation didn’t crush me. I was holding the hand of the triune God who created the universe and me (Psalm 139:13) and he was in control of these circumstances.
With little money and no job prospects, I was headed to a new place where I knew almost no one. Thus began God’s first series of threes for me:
I had parents that loved me and let me move in with them as a 42-year-old with two cats. I instantly had shelter and support.
I sought out making some new friends by venturing into a church one Sunday morning knowing no one. I volunteered to serve coffee prior to service on the following Sundays in the hopes of meeting new people. There, I struck up a friendship with the woman who was heading up the church volunteers. Later that year, her husband started a financial planning firm and she joined him. Together, they helped me put my finances back together free-of-charge, to “bless me” as they put it. (My divorce was messy — my ex had a gambling problem and a lot of resulting debt). This couple would become some of my closest, dearest friends, and I would work with them at their firm, which is where I am today, writing this story. ❤️
3. He showed me how to forgive.
I was swiftly thrown away after giving 12 years of service to my company. Then my husband threw me and our 16-year marriage out too. But God was still with me, and he rescued me out of those circumstances and showed me how to have a future without bitterness. He did this by putting the theme of forgiveness in front of me everywhere I went: in church sermons, in the devotionals I read, in song lyrics on the radio, and in the stories of new people that I met.
God didn’t just give me a series of three (blessings) during this time, but more like 300+ in the years that followed. Jobs, more friends, trips and adventures, a new husband, and eventually, He led me to working in a place where I have the opportunity to minister to others.
If you are facing a series of devastating threes in your life or even one situation that could pull you under, remember to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5) Don’t be afraid of superstitions or any difficult event but instead look to a faithful and trustworthy God that is above all events and circumstances. He can not only provide peace through the midst of the difficulty but provide what you need in abundance.
“The Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’” Exodus 16:11-12
One of the first lessons taught in economics is that life is constrained by scarcity. Resources are limited, while human wants are endless. Every day we make choices about how to allocate our time, money and energy because there is never enough of everything we desire. In many ways, human civilization can be viewed as just one long attempt to conquer scarcity.
Markets are born out of scarcity; it fuels them. Entrepreneurs innovate because of scarcity. We save, invest, and plan to elude scarcity. Much of human progress has come from finding better ways to produce more with less. There is a constant battle to overcome the fear of not having enough. We have this idea that once we have “defeated” scarcity, that is when we have made it, when we can finally kick our feet up and relax.
Exodus 16 presents us with an interesting picture. The Israelites had just been delivered from Egypt, now finding themselves in a barren wilderness. But instead of responding to their newfound freedom with great reverence for the Almighty, they grumble and doubt the Lord. They believe they will starve in the desert, even wishing they would have “died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt” because then at least they would have been surrounded by “pots of meat and ate all the food [they] wanted” (Exodus 16:3).
From a purely human perspective, their concerns were understandable, survival-based. They were in an endless dry desert, and resources were scarce. To them, their future was uncertain and death was imminent.
God’s response, however, was unexpected.
Rather than providing years’ worth of food at once, He sent manna daily to test if the Israelites would follow His instructions. They were to gather enough manna only for that day, nothing more and nothing less. If they tried to keep more than they needed (and some did try), the manna would spoil, growing mold and filling with maggots the very next morning.
God intentionally structured his provision so they could not eliminate uncertainty through accumulation. They had to put their faith in God alone.
This is what makes the manna story so profound. The problem God was addressing was not just hunger, He was addressing the condition of their hearts.
The Israelites believed that security came from possessing enough resources. But God wanted them to learn that security came from trusting in Him, the One who provides.
We really are no different than the Israelites in the wilderness.
We live in a world obsessed with getting ahead of scarcity. We build emergency funds, investment portfolios, retirement accounts, and backup plans. All of which are wise and prudent. Scripture often praises wise stewardship and planning.
The danger comes from when our trust quietly shifts from God to our own ability to control the future.
Like the Israelites, we often believe that if we can accumulate just a little more every day, we will finally feel secure. But the finish line keeps moving. More savings become a desire for more investments. More investments become a desire for more certainty. More certainty becomes a desire for complete control.
The irony is that we will never reach complete control.
Human beings possess limited knowledge. We do not know what tomorrow will bring; all we can do is steward our current resources wisely and be intentional. But no amount of planning can remove all uncertainty from life.
The Israelites faced this reality each morning when they stepped outside their tents. Would there be manna again? God asked them to trust that there would be, and for forty years, God delivered.
The manna was a daily lesson in faith.
With every sunrise the people of Israel were reminded that God had been faithful yesterday and would be faithful again today. Their survival rested not on their ability to stockpile resources but on God’s enduring provision.
This does not mean that we should reject planning, saving, or wise financial stewardship. Rather, Exodus 16 reminds us that our ultimate security is not found in what we possess. It is found in the God who provides.
The wilderness revealed a truth that remains just as relevant today, scarcity may be a reality of the human condition, but God’s provision and faithfulness will never deplete.
The same God who provided manna in the desert continues to provide for His people. Sometimes He gives in abundance. Sometimes He gives just enough for the day. In both cases, His provision invites the same response, trust in Him alone.
Densely packed with meaning and subtext, the Lord’s Prayer is one of my favorites. When Jesus’ disciples asked him to teach them how to pray, his response was anchored in Israel’s history as God pursued them, looks forward to the new creation, and somehow speaks to our purpose, our trials, and God’s triumphs.
This is the rendition I was taught as a child at church on Sunday mornings:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us of our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Take a moment to pray each line and reflect on it as you go.
This prayer touches areas of our lives that we need to seek God’s help with every day, and it also reveals what God is doing as he establishes His kingdom.
Jesus addressing God as our heavenly Father is such an intimate image of a God who isn’t far away. It’s an image of a God who teaches us, shows us, nurtures us, protects us and provides for us with compassion. Jesus invites us to pray the same way as sons and daughters adopted into his holy family.
Our Father in heaven provides for our daily needs. Just like God provided mana for the Israelites as they wandered through the wilderness, God provides for our needs.
Just like the mana in the wilderness was a mystery for the Israelites (the Hebrew word mana is their question, “what is it?”), the Greek word we translate “daily”, epousios, has presented its own mystery for contemporary translators. For centuries, translators believed that the Greek of the Bible was a special form of Greek, a “heavenly Greek” of sorts. That was until we discovered the garbage heap we call the “Oxyrhynchus papyri” (named after the town near which they were found). What archaeologists discovered revealed that the Bible wasn’t written in an elevated form of Greek, like the philosophers, but was written in the common language of the people. It was everyday language. The word, epiousios, which we had only seen in the Lord’s Prayer, showed up on a first-century grocery list! Jesus taught us to seek God’s provision for the basic needs we have here and now. It’s ok to ask God for the bread you need to pick up for today’s meal.
What is something you feel is too small or unimportant to ask God to provide? Take a moment to lift that up in prayer.
God providing daily bread also directs our attention to the ultimate completion of God’s new creation. Because Jesus has already taught us to seek God’s Kingdom coming, the lines that follow reflect what that might look like. Much like God led Israel through the wilderness after delivering them from slavery in Egypt (providing them with daily mana), but before they entered into the promised land, Jesus has delivered us from our slavery to sin and provides for us while we await the completion of His new creation.
You may have heard this line several ways, “Forgive our trespasses,” or “forgive our transgressions,” and all of them are powerful prayers for us. Having spent a considerable amount of time in the Greek, my favorite is the translation, “debts.” The Greek word is actually a technical term used for a financial obligation, a debt. This is what the Kingdom of God looks like. Thank God that Jesus paid the price we should have owed to God for our sin. Jesus teaches us to ask for God’s help to release others from the debts they owe to us. Perhaps these are spiritual debts, relational debts, or actual financial debts. Consider who you need to forgive and ask God for his miraculous help.
Jesus almost immediately follows his prayer in Matthew questioning how we can expect God to forgive us if we don’t forgive others. Our own salvation is by grace alone, and not by our works, but for some reason Jesus says that forgiving others is so important that we may risk our own forgiveness if we withhold it. This may be because when we truly understand the price God paid for us, our response in gratitude will compel us to release others from their debts as well.
Those are just a few examples of the deep riches of Jesus’ most famous prayer.
I encourage you to again take time to pray each line of the Lord’s prayer several times slowly. Interrupt the written words with the prayers that come to mind. Give the Holy Spirit time to speak and answer each prayer.
Proverbs 31 is one of the Bible's most prominent celebrations of womanhood. We get to see her be honored for her strength and influence, her faithfulness to God, her competence in finance and leadership in both the home and the public sphere. Let's all celebrate and reflect on these virtues of the women we love on this Mother's Day! "...let her works bring her praise at the city gate!"
10 A wife of strength, competence and influence[1] who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
11 Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.
12 She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up while it is still night;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her female servants.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.
18 She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.
19 In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
20 She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.
21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
22 She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.
26 She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
27 She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness[2].
28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women do powerful/influential[3] things,
but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.
The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Pr 31:10–31.
(Minor translation corrections as noted.)
[1] חַיִל (Hayil) often used in regard to military strength or social class (i.e. nobility) because of economic influence and position. This word doesn’t appear in the context of moral character. The word shows strength, as in horses (psalm 33:17). It also has uses that relate to wealth. Note that this word also appears in 31.3 and the NIV itself translates as “strength.” The NIV translation, “noble character,” is distinctly different from the meaning of the original Hebrew.
[2] עַ֝צְל֗וּת (Atslut) the translation of idleness is acceptable, but a more appropriate term may be laziness.
[3] Same as v 10. חַ֭יִל. Noble would only be in regard to exercising the authority of her social status.
Christa Hudak, CFP®, ChFC®, CKA®, Financial Advisor and Chief Planning Officer for CoCreate Financial, shares her thoughts on a passage in Matthew 6:19 where Jesus directs people to focus on storing up treasure in Heaven. Calling upon her educational background in Biblical Literature, Christa shares some of the Greek and dives deeper into the idea that there are internal and external factors to the consumption of wealth. She challenges viewers to think through how we consume our wealth today and how Jesus may be directing us further in how to use our wealth.
Full Transcript:
Hi, I'm Christa. I'm one of the financial advisors here at CoCreate Financial, and I also have a background in biblical scholarship, and I just love digging into the scripture, and God has so much to say about our finances and how that engages with our spirituality. And I was digging into a passage this week and it's Matthew 6:19 where Jesus tells us, do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but store up for yourselves treasure in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
And as I was looking at this passage, I was flipping through my Greek and just something stuck out to me that I felt like I really wanted to share with you and that is this word for rust. And The Greek word is brosis, and what's interesting about it is that it, it really isn't rust, it's the act of eating or consuming, or we could say consumption. And I certainly understand why the translators identified it as rust because they're thinking about something that corrodes and destroys and other translations, NIV uses vermin, and there's, you know, another translation I looked at that referred to it as eating insects where it's like they were digging into that eating concept and that felt like they had to add the clarification of insects.
But I think there's actually some significance in it just being this very neutral word of consumption, not being directly tied to a particular thing that is doing the eating, destroying, and making the wealth disappear because there's lots of things that consume wealth, but one of the main ones is our own consumption.
And when we use that in that neutral term, we can view it as your own consumption. So let's think about this verse again. Do not store up for yourself treasure on earth where moth and consumption destroy. And with this, of course, our own consumption is not inherently bad. We have to view it in this neutral way. You know, God gives us resources to use for our own consumption. We have to pay our bills, put food on the table, a roof over our heads, and those aren't bad things, and I think God even blesses us to really enjoy life sometimes. But at what point are you trading your present day consumption for treasures in heaven?
And I think that's a point worth digging into because as a financial advisor, what I see, the biggest thing that eats up people's wealth is their own consumption, and so I would really encourage you to ask that question and explore your own spending habits and, and what you're doing with your resources and what you might be being called to do with those resources instead, if you paired back your consumption or viewed your consumption in a different light. Once again, consumption's not bad or evil, and there's not a magic number where certain amount is too much, but I think Jesus is definitely talking about all the risks to our wealth, not just the external risks, but also the internal risk of how we use it and consistently always want more, and we can always use it to consume more, or we can use it to invest in treasures in heaven.
