 Every area of our life is attached to money and Satan knows if he can get to our money, he can control many areas of our life. And it's important to understand and to have the same attitude at the very least that Satan had towards our finances. That he wants to, Bible says he came to still kill, destroy, to take from us to a very least that we would have the kind of attitude towards our finances to fight for them and to make sure that the blessing of God rests upon our financial life in Jesus' mighty name. Amen. I want to read the scripture from 2 Kings, if you can open that chapter 4 verse 1 through 6. We're going to read the story and we're going to go from this story and just draw a few lessons. So let me just read the whole 7 verses. A certain woman of the wise of the sons of the prophet cried out to Elijah saying, your servant, my husband is dead and you know that your servant feared the Lord and the creditors is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves. So Elijah said to her, what shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house? And she said, your mid-servant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil. And he said, go borrow vessels from everywhere, from all of your neighbors, empty vessels. Do not gather just few. And then when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons, then pour into all the vessels that you set aside, and set aside the full ones. So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons who brought the vessels to her and she poured it out and came to pass when the vessels were full, then she said to her sons, bring me another vessel. And he said to her, there is no other vessel, so the oil ceased. Then she came and told the man of God and he said, go sell the oil, pay your debt, and you and your sons live on the rest. So here's the story that we just read. A woman has a financial trouble. And I want you to see something that her husband and her, they were servants of God. And Bible clearly states here that they feared the Lord, yet it didn't stop them from being in financial trouble. Point number one is this, that you can be born again Christian, yet you can be afflicted in your area of finances. You can be a born again, loving, serving Christian, a good-hearted person, yet you can be afflicted in your area of finances. Salvation of your soul doesn't automatically make you a prosperous person. We see that this woman, she was a God loving, God fearing woman, God fearing family. And we see that he was even a prophet, or a son of prophet, he was in the school of prophets with Elijah. He was a man of God, yet even that itself didn't stop financial troubles in his life. So we have to understand that just because we are Christians and born again, it doesn't automatically qualify us, it does qualify us, but it doesn't automatically make us a prosperous person. We have to understand the spiritual principles and have to have the right kind of approach and understand how to get to the place, to the promised land in our financial area, as God promised to us. We see that another story of Israelites, they were God's people. They were in covenant with God, yet they were enslaved in Egypt and they were poor. They were slaves while having a promise, from a promised land that flowed with milk and honey. There was Pharaoh, they were suppressing them, they were holding them captive and they were holding their finances, and they could not prosper and they could not go above and beyond until Moses came and delivered them out of Egypt and brought them into the promised land. We have to understand is that positionally we are blessed. Now we have to take the position, the legal position that we have in Christ Jesus, and have to make it practical in our life. One of the things, and I'm not going to cover all things, but I'm just going to cover a few things, is that if we have a financial curse over our life, what is a financial curse? It's when you are taking two steps forward with your finances and one step back. You keep going forward, you try hard, you work, you're educated, you are taking extra classes to get educated, you're doing extra things, you're working hard, but yet your life is not progressing. You're like hitting a wall. And there could be something in spiritual world that's holding you back from advancing forward. It's kind of like being in a, have you seen those sailing boats? Being in a sailing boat yet rowing your life through. You're using all your efforts to get through yet the ways of life keep pushing you backwards. Instead of opening your sails to the God's wind of favor to let you push through in life and for you to excel and succeed in your life, in your financial life. You have to understand that you can't fight spiritual force with physical effort. If there is a financial curse over your life, you have to understand it, you have to analyze it, and you have to come against it in Jesus mighty name. And this is exactly what we're going to do today at the end of the service as we're going to pray. Two things I want to address, and there's a few other things, but two main things that I want to address. The brain's financial curse in our life is stealing. Stealing from God and stealing from people. Those two things, and I'll bring an example, how those two things they rub our life, a financial blessing that God has in store for our lives. Stealing from God in Malachi chapter 3 verse 89 says this, Will a man rob God yet you have robbed me? But you say in what have we robbed you in ties and offerings? You are cursed with the curse for you have robbed me. When we do not give to God what belongs to him, actually not give. When we do not return to God, that's the word that we use in the scripture, because tithe is not serious trying to help me preach. When we do not return to God what is his, which is 10% of our income. Bible says you are cursed with the curse and you can't prosper. When we withhold tithes from God, we will not prosper in advance in our life. As we just watched the testimony of an owner of Hobby Lobby, we see, and he says that his success is directly tied to giving, to giving God, and giving not only just the tithe but above and beyond. If we don't tithe, that's what the Bible says, it's not what I came up in, it's not charismatic theory, and it's not charismatic doctrine, it's what God says, God's word says, that if you don't tithe, you rob me. And in our lives we have to examine our life and we have to see, if we want to prosper in our life, we want to succeed, if we want to move forward in life, we have to honor God with 10% of our income. And 10% goes into the house of God. Number two, stealing from people brings financial curse over our life. In Scripture in Matthew chapter 5 verse 23 to 26, Bible says that if your neighbor has something against you while you're going to bring sacrifice to God, you must reconcile with your neighbor as soon as possible so that the judgment doesn't come against you. I'm just paraphrasing, you can read the Scripture, Matthew chapter 5 verse 23 to 26. When we steal from people, we cause a financial pain to them. By this we invoke curse, financial curse over our life. And that includes not just necessary people, that includes lying in our taxes, that includes lying in different places, that's lying, living on welfare while you claim to have no income, yet you're writing on Cadillac, you're working for cash, you're not reporting anything. I mean, we're talking about some real things. Those things might get you ahead at first, but at the end will bring you back and bring the generations to come back in financial prosperity. There was a story of this lady that I heard a few years back and this lady was at the conference and she had a severe case of cancer. Practically doctors gave her no chance to survive and she came to this conference to receive prayer for healing because during that conference it was a pastor of Vladimir's Mantean, one of his college of Moses and they pray and he has an anointing and grace for healing of cancer. And so as she came to receive prayer and receive healing she was staying there and she was listening to the teachings and every time they would pray for healing people left and right would get healed, yet she would not get healed. And she would ask God, why can I get healed? I mean, I can feel it right there, I can almost touch it, but yet it doesn't touch me and I don't get healed. And one of the sessions there was a teaching on similar things, on stealing and how you spill financial blood and you have to repent for it. And she remembered, Holy Spirit brought to her remembrance a story from like 20 years ago when she was working in a hospital and she was one of those coat hangers lady that would hang the coats and one time as she was hanging the coat she saw there was money in the coat and she took that money, she stole that money. And then when the person received her coat back and it was a single mom, she was saying hey whoever, maybe you saw some money fell out as you were storing the coat, maybe you saw the money or you've seen somebody take it, please tell me this is the only money that we have to survive for the week with me and my children, please help us. And she was really in distress, was almost crying and this lady, she's the one that took it and she felt embarrassed and she did not come forward and didn't give back the money and said I took it and I'm sorry, here's your money back and she didn't do that and she just kind of left and the lady left and now 20 years later this lady is suffering with cancer and God reminds her, says look this lady was in dire need of that money and you took it from her and said repent and I will heal you. And so it was 100 rubles that she took at that time she said God as a sign of my repentance she repented and I was God for forgiveness and said as a sign of my repentance I'm taking this money, tell me who to give it to I'm not going to give it to them and as she did that right there in the spot she received healing she said I felt light in my body she went next day to the doctor and doctor confirmed that she was cancer free let's put our hands together for Jesus anytime you steal you invoke curse over your life if you want to prosper in your life you have to make sure that your past your life is clean from theft I remember when I heard this story and I was praying to God and asking God for certain breakthroughs in my life I have a dream, I have a goal, I have a vision where God promised me to take me in my financial life and I felt like there was this like wall that I was hitting and I couldn't break through and I was asking God what is there what else do I have to do I was giving, I was tidying I was going beyond giving and tidying and I know that the blessing of God belongs to me and I must live in that blessing and as I was praying I was asking God I was actually listening to this testimony that I shared it impacted me so much and I said God is there anything in my life that I did wrong and I know I did but in anything specific that you want me to repent of and change and as I was praying that the Holy Spirit remind me I used to when my early teens years I know it's again Goodwill's story but I used to steal from Goodwill and so it's a silly and funny now but I mean I just walk in there and roll a blade out you know go in there and walk out with the basketball and it sounds stupid and silly as something teenagers would do but as I was praying God really convicted my heart and said you did a lot and you need to repent for it and you need to make amends and I was like well ok God I'm sorry I forgive me wash me with your blood and I did a prayer of repentance but God kind of prompted me he said you have to make amends now the repentance has to be with action with back with actions and so I was like ok God what do you want me to do and so kind of in my mind every time that I stole from Goodwill I could remember I kind of calculated things added some interest on top so I came to about $500 that I thought that I need to return and so I talked to my wife she said well whatever you need to do I wrote out a check for $500 went to that place where I used to steal from that place was closed went to another store to Goodwill asked for the manager manager was kind of shocked why I wanted to talk to her I told her the story I gave her the checks I would you accept it and she was like standing there what's going on she was lost for words I never had that happen she starts calling store employees I'm like oh God here it goes public repentance just give me the calm system and let me just repent through the whole store calm system but it was an embarrassing moment but it was a moment that I had to do and I felt like something shifted in my spirit the thing is that what happened is shortly after that my wife gets a promotion in her line of work where her income her salary doubles she's on salary versus just by hour and gets much better benefits and things start rolling forward things start going things start going financially forward so I want to tell you that if you have certain things in your life as I'm speaking to you now and Holy Spirit is convicting you of those things you have to make amends if possible I ask God for forgiveness and you have to make amends your repentance have to be with action so that you can make things right before you and God so there's nothing in spiritual world crying out against you remember when Cain killed Abel and God said to Cain his blood is crying out against you anytime we hurt somebody we cheat somebody we lie to our boss we lie on our time cards every time we cause losses to someone financially that financial blood is spilled in spiritual world it's crying out against you and when you come in here saying God bless me God says there's things standing against you in spiritual world that you have to resolve and that you have to fix so we're going to pray today and we're going to ask God to forgive us but if Holy Spirit is nudging on you and touching you and asking you to do something you have to follow through you have to obey because blessing is hidden in obedience not necessarily in action itself amen Jesus hung on a cross to remove our sin to remove the curse of sin and if there's any kind of any kind of poverty curse of our life any kind of setback any kind of anything in spiritual world that's holding us back we're going to come against in the blood of Jesus there's power in the cross the Bible says cursed is the one who hangs on the tree Jesus hung on the tree as a sign of taking our curse so that in our area in every area especially in the area of finances we could live life of prosperity and not life of bondage and curse amen church let's put our hands together for Jesus Christ point number 2 God will use what you have to give God will use what you have to give you a miracle when this widow came to when this widow came to the prophet and she started asking prophet for help we notice we see that prophet doesn't just goes out and starts handing free things out he asks her what do you have of sales value if you read amplified version he's asking her what do you have of sales value what do you have in your house that I can use that God can use in a sense you have to understand if you want to live a prosperous life if you have to live a life of breakthrough God will use what you have not what you wish to have God will use the current talent the gift the time that you have to bring prosperity and breakthrough in your life many people they they settle for what they for the life that they have because they say well I don't have that education I didn't go to that college I don't have that type of degree well I don't have connections God is not asking you what you don't have God is asking you of what do you have give it to me so I can work with it we have to be able and we have to be willing to submit to God the little things that we have so he can do the miracle in our lives if you have a little bit of time pick up to pick up another course maybe at local college or maybe you have time to devote some time to read books to acquire some knowledge to enhance your to enhance your knowledge and so that you can begin to do something either with business or whatever begin to use the little that I have maybe God has given you an idea to do business maybe it's a small thing maybe it's not what you wish to have but it's what you have right now start working on it start utilizing what you have so that then God can bless you with much more many people fail to start because they underestimate the little that they have so therefore they don't start with anything at all Bible says that he who has more will be given and he who doesn't have even what he has will be taken from him that we work on increasing our resources that very little that we have because the more that we have the more knowledge that we gain the more experience that we gain the more we work on a gift and a talent that God has placed in us the more God will be given given to us we see that we read in a scripture where the widow she gathered as many as she could and as many as she gathered God filled it that what she didn't gather God didn't bother to fill let's not live in an imaginary world thinking that I'm gonna watch Netflix as much as I want I'm gonna surf internet and I'm gonna be on social media as much as I want I'm gonna sit on the couch eat potato chips and watch TV shows and dramas and then I'll come to Good News Church and confess I'll claim it grab it and I'm gonna become a millionaire tomorrow that's not the way it happens you provide God resources God takes it multiplies it God takes it and fills it you provide God an idea you provide God business he fills that one you open another one God fills that one you go and take some you go take extra classes get another diploma or get another certification you apply for another job God takes it and fills it whatever you provide for God God will fill it God is God of no limits whatever you provide he fills it whatever you don't he doesn't have to fill it he has no room to fill it many people neglect this principle or or God has a promise for them like for Israel to capture all this land to have all this promise but Israel just settled for a little God said well if you want this much and now we see as a result of it Middle East is in conflict because all these areas where that is in conflict right now should have been Israel's land should have been their territory same thing with us God can give us a big promise God can give us a promise of prosperity of being having more than enough being able to do things that we're not able to do being able to sponsor orphanage being able to build wells in the third world country being able to build churches being able to build hospitals being able to do great things but if we don't take those steps with God if we don't go out and take a risk and collect those vessels if we don't begin to prepare so that God can fill it then God will never fill it we have to do what we can do from our part you pray as everything depends on God and your work as everything depends on you God brings us and takes us into the life of prosperity that's how we're able to not just kind of get a little bonus check and get happy and that's it this is how we get in the rhythm of revival in our finances as we as we keep supplying God keep supplying God the resources to fill them couple couple months ago couple months ago I was praying here walking back and forth and once again we need to run in each other 28 and declaring those things blessings over my life I have an image and picture that God gave me where I want to be with my finances and where I want to be financially and it's definitely not there I'm much further ahead where I was but it's not where I want to be and not where God wants me to be and I have some projects that are no works and they're great and once they go through there's going to be a lot of good financial income and a lot of people will definitely set up for that and say this is good enough for me but I'm always pushing envelope with God and I always want to go as far as God will let me go and as I was praying I said God these things are great and they'll get me definitely to the next level but where I want to be these things will not get me there I need a next level I need a completely different idea I need something that will launch me into that sphere of things and as I was praying as I was praying it was couple of days that I was meditating and praying on that God gave me this one idea with that has to do with stock options that I used to do before I kind of abandoned it but it was a little bit different direction and I began to see how I could help that businessman that has a lot of commodities and that how I could help him to bring a significant addition of his cash flow in his business and so as I start working I start making some focus figuring out if what I'm thinking of doing or wanting to do is actually possible and then figuring out that this actually this actually can work and it will work if it's done this way and that way and then when I give them a call and I said hey you know what I want to talk to you about your business I think I can definitely increase cash flow in your business by significant amount and this and that and laid it out and then when I went and met with them and presented the strategy modified a few things and then more business opportunities opened up and this is how in reality in practicality it works this is how God takes you from one level into another and begins to increase you suppose I ignore that prompting suppose I kind of said well this is just too crazy I mean these people are not reachable to me they're way in a different level than I am you know when I get there then maybe I can talk to them and suppose I ignore that the possibility of what's possible now would never been possible and so we as people of God we pray we come against any demonic influence over our finances any demonic curse and we open up our resources we utilize sometimes God will drop a thought for a business sometimes God will drop a thought for an invention sometimes it's not necessarily your business sometimes God will give an idea how to improve somebody else's business by improving that you're going to get compensated and you're going to open a whole new level of resources available to you and God can take you from one level to another level in your financial life in Jesus mighty name and the last point I want to close on this what God works in you you must work out she came to you and said God did this miracle oh my gosh God we got bunch of jars of oil in my house we barely have room to sleep I'm just paraphrasing it here adding a few callers and what should I do with it and he tells her now go take that what God did in your private what God deposited in your spirit the idea that God gave you and laid on your heart now go work it out now go make it work it out go and sell it and he says pay your debts give off of it for you and your children work in work out what God has worked in when you come to church that's why it's so important to come to church that's why it's so important to come to home groups the classes that we do so that you can receive from God so you can receive ideas so you can receive inspirations so you can receive that impartation from God and when you leave don't just let it stay here when you go out to business take it to your home group take it to your family take it to your loved ones begin to work out what God works in see the story of wise and foolish men wasn't that they didn't they did not attend church they didn't hear the word is that one decided to take that word and go and work it out build a solid foundation the other one just decided to keep it in God working on in you on inside of you today that you're failing to work out because you have to understand first time it comes it's strong like I gotta do this there's motivation and there's grace to do it if you keep waiting it gets dimmer and then eventually the voice is silent and that idea that potentially could have yielded financial breakthrough in your life that could have yielded restoration of your family that could have yielded a new job opportunity it could have yielded something good in your life you didn't act on it you didn't work it out and it fades away and it's done work in what God has worked work out what God has worked inside of you God said to Israel go and capture the promised land they start whining you know all these there's giants there's walls and then and God and finally they decided they're gonna capture the promised land but the moment was gone and they God said no it's too late now you're gonna walk around the mountain for 40 years and only your next generation will capture it will capture the promised land when God prompts us whether it's we need to do right now asking God for forgiveness for financial theft and then making some amends or whether it's acting on some idea whether it's acting on some kind of prompting act when God speaks because the promptings don't stay for long they fade and then you're gonna have to work on your physical efforts while there is grace while there is wind open your sails up to God and work out what God has worked in on inside of you how many received something this morning