Wisdom for Navigating Financesનમૂનો

Trusting God

There’s a moment in Jesus’ ministry when a wealthy young man approaches Him with an honest question: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

He seems sincere. He’s the kind of person who would say he loves God and probably genuinely means it.

If he were alive today, he might be a successful young entrepreneur with a big platform and lots of followers. He might post faith-based content and donate to good causes. He’d be seen as someone who “has his life together.” Outwardly, he’d look like the perfect candidate to follow Jesus.

Jesus doesn’t shame him, expose him, or call him fake. In fact, Scripture says Jesus looked at him and loved him. But love doesn’t just affirm where we are; love also gently reveals what’s holding us back.

Jesus listens, tells the man that he’s missing something, and then offers him a surprising solution: “Go, sell what you have, give to the poor, and then come follow Me.” The young man walks away sad.

At first glance, it looks like the problem is money. But Jesus didn’t tell everyone to sell everything. Joanna and Susanna, two of Jesus’ followers, were wealthy and helped support His ministry. So the issue isn’t how much money he had.

So what was this man missing? To put it simply, trust.

The man seemed to want to follow Jesus on his own terms, but real faith means surrendering control.

Jesus’ other disciples left their safety net (their day jobs) to follow Jesus, completely trusting God to meet their needs when their paychecks disappeared.

This man, on the other hand, had cash to spare and could certainly afford to take time away to follow Jesus. But Jesus invited him to leave his safety net (his wealth) to follow Jesus.

So is Jesus asking you to give up everything you own? Maybe, but probably not. But He does invite you to depend on Him more than you depend on your paycheck or savings. Because God doesn’t just care about your spiritual needs, He cares about your day-to-day needs too.

Trusting God is the first step to biblical financial wisdom. Do we trust in God’s love, care, and consistent presence in our lives? Do we trust that He can provide for our daily needs? If so, we can live with confidence. If we don’t, we’ll use finances to try to buy something that’s not for sale: the lasting peace that only God can provide.

Prayer

Jesus, help me to trust that You see me and care for me. I don’t want to carry everything on my own. Teach me to rest in Your love more than in my finances, abilities, or control. I want to follow You with my whole heart. In Jesus’ name, amen.

May we pray for you?