Latest / Bible Ascent / The Real Reason You Are Struggling Financially (The Hard Truth)
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: You work harder than anyone you know. You wake up early,
- 0:04Speaker 1: you stay late, you pray more than most people in
- 0:06Speaker 1: your church. You have good intentions and big dreams. Yet
- 0:10Speaker 1: every single month you find yourself in the exact same place,
- 0:15Speaker 1: staring at your bank account at two in the morning,
- 0:18Speaker 1: feeling that familiar not in your stomach, wondering why nothing
- 0:22Speaker 1: ever changes. The bills keep coming, the debt keeps growing,
- 0:27Speaker 1: and maybe you have whispered this question in the darkness, God,
- 0:31Speaker 1: where are you in all of this? Before we go
- 0:34Speaker 1: any further, I need you to do something for me
- 0:37Speaker 1: right now. If you are tired of the financial struggle,
- 0:41Speaker 1: if you are ready to hear the truth that nobody
- 0:43Speaker 1: else will tell you, hit that like button, and if
- 0:46Speaker 1: you want to break free from this cycle once and
- 0:48Speaker 1: for all, subscribe to Bible assent and turn on those notifications.
- 0:54Speaker 1: Because what I am about to share with you today
- 0:56Speaker 1: will make you uncomfortable, It will challenge you, but it
- 0:59Speaker 1: will all so set you free. Here is the hard
- 1:03Speaker 1: truth that nobody wants to say out loud. Your financial
- 1:07Speaker 1: struggle is not because of your job. It is not
- 1:10Speaker 1: because of your boss. It is not because of the economy.
- 1:13Speaker 1: In twenty twenty six. The real reason you are struggling
- 1:17Speaker 1: financially has nothing to do with what is happening outside
- 1:20Speaker 1: of you. It has everything to do with what is
- 1:22Speaker 1: happening inside of you. And I know that hurts. I
- 1:26Speaker 1: know every part of you wants to close this video
- 1:29Speaker 1: right now and go back to blaming your circumstances. But
- 1:33Speaker 1: stay with me, because by the end of this video,
- 1:36Speaker 1: you are going to understand exactly why you have been stuck,
- 1:40Speaker 1: and more importantly, you are going to know exactly what
- 1:43Speaker 1: to do about it. Let me paint you a picture.
- 1:46Speaker 1: Imagine two people working at the same company, making the
- 1:50Speaker 1: exact same salary, fifty thousand dollars a year, same opportunities,
- 1:56Speaker 1: same benefits. Fast forward five years. One person is thriving,
- 2:01Speaker 1: building wealth, sleeping peacefully at night. The other person is
- 2:06Speaker 1: drowning in debt, working over time just to stay afloat,
- 2:10Speaker 1: still living paycheck to paycheck. What is the difference, not
- 2:14Speaker 1: the income, not the opportunities. The difference is the character,
- 2:19Speaker 1: the mindset, the spiritual foundation. So let me share with
- 2:23Speaker 1: you the five hard truths that are keeping you trapped
- 2:26Speaker 1: in financial bondage. These truths are going to sting, but
- 2:30Speaker 1: remember The truth that hurts is the truth that heals.
- 2:34Speaker 1: Hard truth Number one, you are a consumer, not a steward.
- 2:39Speaker 1: When you receive your paycheck, What is the very first
- 2:42Speaker 1: thought that comes to your mind? Be honest. For most people,
- 2:47Speaker 1: it is finally I can buy that thing I have
- 2:50Speaker 1: been wanting, or I deserve to treat myself. I worked
- 2:54Speaker 1: hard for this money. You see money as something that
- 2:57Speaker 1: exists to satisfy your desires. You are a consumer. The
- 3:02Speaker 1: moment money hits your account, you are planning how to
- 3:05Speaker 1: spend it. New shoes, new phone, dinner out, coffee every morning,
- 3:11Speaker 1: little treats here and there. But God never called you
- 3:14Speaker 1: to be a consumer. He called you to be a steward.
- 3:17Speaker 1: Look at Luke, chapter sixteen, verse ten. Jesus says, whoever
- 3:23Speaker 1: can be trusted with very little can also be trusted
- 3:26Speaker 1: with much, And whoever is dishonest with very little will
- 3:31Speaker 1: also be dishonest with much. This verse is about stewardship,
- 3:35Speaker 1: about how you manage what God has already given you.
- 3:39Speaker 1: Here is the hard truth. God is not going to
- 3:41Speaker 1: give you more if you have proven that you cannot
- 3:44Speaker 1: handle what you already have. Think about it this way.
- 3:48Speaker 1: If you had a child who constantly wasted their allowance,
- 3:51Speaker 1: buying junk, losing money, never saving anything. Would you give
- 3:55Speaker 1: them more? Of course not, You would say, prove to
- 3:59Speaker 1: me that you can manage five dollars before I give
- 4:02Speaker 1: you fifty. God operates the same way. He is watching
- 4:06Speaker 1: how you handle your current resources. Are you spending everything
- 4:10Speaker 1: you make? Are you accumulating debt for things you do
- 4:13Speaker 1: not need? Are you living paycheck to paycheck not because
- 4:17Speaker 1: you do not make enough, but because you spend everything
- 4:20Speaker 1: you earn. I know someone who makes thirty five thousand
- 4:23Speaker 1: dollars a year and is building wealth. They tithe, save,
- 4:27Speaker 1: invest and live below their means. I know another person
- 4:31Speaker 1: who makes eighty thousand dollars a year and is buried
- 4:34Speaker 1: in debt, new car payment, big apartment, designer clothes, always stressed,
- 4:41Speaker 1: same God, different stewardship. The shift from consumer to steward
- 4:46Speaker 1: is everything. A consumer says, this is my money, I
- 4:50Speaker 1: can spend it however I want. A steward says, this
- 4:54Speaker 1: is God's money. I am managing it on his behalf.
- 4:58Speaker 1: I need to be faithful with it. When you start
- 5:01Speaker 1: seeing yourself as a steward, everything changes. You stop asking
- 5:06Speaker 1: what can I buy and start asking what is the
- 5:10Speaker 1: best use of these resources. You stop spending impulsively and
- 5:15Speaker 1: start planning strategically. You stop living for today and start
- 5:19Speaker 1: building for tomorrow. Hard truth number two. You are using
- 5:23Speaker 1: money to buy fake value. Exodus, Chapter twenty, verse seventeen
- 5:28Speaker 1: says you shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall
- 5:31Speaker 1: not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male or female servant,
- 5:36Speaker 1: his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
- 5:40Speaker 1: Coveting is not just wanting something. It is wanting something
- 5:44Speaker 1: not because you need it, but because someone else has it.
- 5:48Speaker 1: It is using possessions to measure your worth. We are
- 5:51Speaker 1: living in the most comparison driven society in human history.
- 5:55Speaker 1: You scroll through social media and see everyone living their
- 5:59Speaker 1: best life, new cars, new clothes, vacations, perfect relationships, and
- 6:06Speaker 1: something happens inside you. A voice says, why do not
- 6:11Speaker 1: I have that? I deserve that too. So you swipe
- 6:14Speaker 1: the credit card, You finance the car you cannot afford,
- 6:18Speaker 1: You buy the outfit you do not need. You rent
- 6:21Speaker 1: the apartment that stretches your budget to the breaking point. Why,
- 6:25Speaker 1: because you are trying to buy value? You are trying
- 6:29Speaker 1: to prove something to people who do not even care.
- 6:32Speaker 1: But here is the devastating truth. As long as you
- 6:35Speaker 1: need possessions to feel important, you will always be a
- 6:38Speaker 1: slave to debt. You will never have enough because there
- 6:42Speaker 1: will always be someone with more. External things can never
- 6:46Speaker 1: fill an internal void. I watched a couple go into
- 6:49Speaker 1: seventy thousand dollars of debt trying to keep up with
- 6:53Speaker 1: their friends. They had to have the new truck, the
- 6:56Speaker 1: bigger house, the designer furniture. Why because they were using
- 7:01Speaker 1: stuff to buy significance. Now they are on the verge
- 7:05Speaker 1: of divorce because of financial stress. I have watched people
- 7:08Speaker 1: work themselves to death, sacrificing their health, accumulating massive debt,
- 7:15Speaker 1: giving up time with their children, all to impress people
- 7:18Speaker 1: they do not even like. And the saddest part, those
- 7:22Speaker 1: people are not even paying attention. They are too busy
- 7:25Speaker 1: trying to impress someone else. Jesus said in Matthew chapter six,
- 7:30Speaker 1: do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where
- 7:33Speaker 1: moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal,
- 7:38Speaker 1: But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. For where
- 7:42Speaker 1: your treasure is there, your heart will be also. Your
- 7:45Speaker 1: worth is not in your car, Your value is not
- 7:48Speaker 1: in your closet. Your identity is not in your possessions.
- 7:53Speaker 1: You are a child of God, created in His image,
- 7:56Speaker 1: loved beyond measure, purchased by the blood of Genesis. That
- 8:01Speaker 1: is your value. Until you understand that deep in your soul,
- 8:05Speaker 1: you will keep chasing things that can never satisfy you.
- 8:08Speaker 1: You will keep buying stuff you do not need with
- 8:11Speaker 1: money you do not have to impress people you do
- 8:13Speaker 1: not like, and you will stay trapped in financial bondage.
- 8:17Speaker 1: Hard truth number three. Ignorance is not an excuse. You
- 8:23Speaker 1: cannot pray for financial breakthrough while refusing to learn basic
- 8:26Speaker 1: financial principles. You cannot ask God to bless your money
- 8:31Speaker 1: while you have no idea where your money is going
- 8:33Speaker 1: every month. Hoseiah chapter four, verse six says, my people
- 8:39Speaker 1: are destroyed from lack of knowledge, not from lack of money,
- 8:43Speaker 1: not from lack of opportunities, from lack of knowledge, wisdom,
- 8:48Speaker 1: and understanding. Too many believers treat financial wisdom like it
- 8:52Speaker 1: is optional. They say, I am just not a numbers person,
- 8:57Speaker 1: or that is too complicated for me, or I will
- 9:00Speaker 1: just pray about it and let God handle it. But
- 9:03Speaker 1: if you got a serious medical diagnosis, would you say,
- 9:07Speaker 1: I am not a medical person, so I will just
- 9:10Speaker 1: pray and let God handle it. Of course not. You
- 9:13Speaker 1: would research everything, ask questions, become an expert on your
- 9:18Speaker 1: own health. You would pray, but you would also educate
- 9:21Speaker 1: yourself and take action. Your financial health is just as
- 9:25Speaker 1: important as your physical health. Financial stress affects your marriage,
- 9:30Speaker 1: your parenting, your mental health, your ability to serve God effectively,
- 9:36Speaker 1: your ability to be generous, your ability to fulfill your calling.
- 9:40Speaker 1: Financial wisdom is not separate from spiritual maturity. They are connected.
- 9:45Speaker 1: Proverbs is full of financial principles. Jesus talked about money
- 9:50Speaker 1: more than he talked about heaven or hell. Why because
- 9:53Speaker 1: how you handle money reveals the condition of your heart.
- 9:57Speaker 1: What does financial knowledge look like? It means you have
- 10:00Speaker 1: a budget, a simple plan for where your money goes
- 10:04Speaker 1: each month. It means you know the difference between an
- 10:07Speaker 1: asset and a liability. An asset puts money in your pocket.
- 10:12Speaker 1: A liability takes money out that car you financed, liability
- 10:17Speaker 1: those investments generating passive income assets. It means you understand
- 10:23Speaker 1: the danger of high interest debt, credit card debt, at
- 10:26Speaker 1: nineteen percent interest is stealing your future. It means you
- 10:30Speaker 1: are learning about investing, retirement planning, building wealth, basic concepts
- 10:36Speaker 1: like diversification, index funds, compound growth. The excuses are familiar.
- 10:42Speaker 1: I do not have time. Really, you have time to
- 10:46Speaker 1: watch Netflix for three hours, but not thirty minutes a
- 10:49Speaker 1: week to learn about money. It is too complicated. There
- 10:52Speaker 1: are thousands of free resources explaining this in simple terms.
- 10:57Speaker 1: I will learn it later when when you are sixty
- 11:01Speaker 1: with nothing saved. God bless his wisdom. He blesses those
- 11:05Speaker 1: who take responsibility for their own growth. He does not
- 11:09Speaker 1: bless laziness or wilful ignorance. He gave you a brain,
- 11:13Speaker 1: use it. He gave you resources, access them. He gave
- 11:18Speaker 1: you time, invest it hard. Truth number four, You are
- 11:22Speaker 1: closing heaven over your own life. We need to talk
- 11:25Speaker 1: about tithing. I know some of you are getting defensive.
- 11:29Speaker 1: Here we go another preacher asking for money. But this
- 11:33Speaker 1: is not about the church budget. This is about your breakthrough.
- 11:37Speaker 1: Malachi chapter three, verses eight through nine says will a
- 11:41Speaker 1: man rob God? Yet you rob me? But you ask,
- 11:46Speaker 1: how are we robbing you? In tithes and offerings? You
- 11:50Speaker 1: are under a curse. The whole nation of you, because
- 11:54Speaker 1: you are robbing me strong words. Let me explain what
- 11:58Speaker 1: is happening here. The time is a covenant between you
- 12:01Speaker 1: and God. It is you saying God, I trust you
- 12:05Speaker 1: with one hundred percent of my finances. I am giving
- 12:09Speaker 1: you the first ten percent to prove it. But most
- 12:12Speaker 1: people do the opposite. They look at their bills, expenses,
- 12:17Speaker 1: everything they need and think, I cannot afford to tithe.
- 12:21Speaker 1: I do not have enough. Maybe when I make more money.
- 12:25Speaker 1: So they keep all one hundred percent and try to
- 12:28Speaker 1: make it work on their own. And what happens. They
- 12:31Speaker 1: struggle month after month, year after year. They work harder,
- 12:36Speaker 1: stress more, but never get ahead. There is always something,
- 12:41Speaker 1: the car breaks down, an unexpected expense, something blocks the blessing.
- 12:48Speaker 1: Why Because they are trying to bless their one hundred
- 12:51Speaker 1: percent without God's supernatural covering, they are operating outside of covenant.
- 12:57Speaker 1: Here is the principle when you honor God with your
- 13:01Speaker 1: first fruits, when you give him the first ten percent
- 13:04Speaker 1: off the top, he protects the rest. He multiplies the
- 13:09Speaker 1: remaining ninety percent in ways that defy logic. I have
- 13:13Speaker 1: seen this countless times. People who on paper should not
- 13:17Speaker 1: make ends meet, but they tithe faithfully, and somehow they
- 13:21Speaker 1: always have what they need. Their car breaks down and
- 13:25Speaker 1: someone unexpectedly gives them the exact amount to fix it.
- 13:28Speaker 1: They are about to get laid off and a better
- 13:31Speaker 1: opportunity opens up. They should be drowning, but they keep
- 13:35Speaker 1: getting ahead. That is not luck, That is covenant blessing.
- 13:39Speaker 1: That is God honoring his word. Malachi three, verse ten says,
- 13:45Speaker 1: bring the whole tithe into the storehouse. Test me in
- 13:48Speaker 1: this and see if I will not throw open the
- 13:51Speaker 1: floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that
- 13:55Speaker 1: there will not be room enough to store it. That
- 13:57Speaker 1: is the only place in scripture where God God says,
- 14:01Speaker 1: test me, try it. See if I am faithful. You
- 14:05Speaker 1: cannot expect supernatural provision while violating the most basic financial
- 14:10Speaker 1: covenant in scripture. You cannot rob God and wonder why
- 14:14Speaker 1: heaven seems closed. Tithing is not a magic formula or
- 14:18Speaker 1: get rich quick scheme. It is about obedience, trust, and
- 14:22Speaker 1: putting God first in every area of your life, including
- 14:26Speaker 1: your finances. Hard truth number five. You fear growth more
- 14:31Speaker 1: than you fear poverty. Most people say they want to
- 14:34Speaker 1: be financially free. They pray for wealth, success, abundance, but
- 14:40Speaker 1: deep down they are terrified of it. Why because wealth
- 14:45Speaker 1: comes with responsibility, success comes with pressure, abundance comes with accountability.
- 14:51Speaker 1: For many people, it is easier to stay small and
- 14:55Speaker 1: blame circumstances than to step into the fullness of what
- 14:58Speaker 1: God called them to look at Matthew, Chapter twenty five,
- 15:02Speaker 1: verse twenty five. In the Parable of the Talents, one
- 15:06Speaker 1: servant says, I was afraid and went out and hid
- 15:10Speaker 1: your gold in the ground. He was afraid, afraid of failing,
- 15:14Speaker 1: afraid of the responsibility, afraid of what would be expected
- 15:18Speaker 1: if he succeeded. So he played it safe. He did nothing.
- 15:22Speaker 1: He buried his potential, and the Master called him wicked
- 15:26Speaker 1: and lazy, not just mistaken, wicked and lazy. Why because
- 15:32Speaker 1: he let fear dictate his actions. He chose safety over faith,
- 15:37Speaker 1: He chose comfort over calling. So many of you are
- 15:41Speaker 1: doing the same thing. You have gifts, talents, ideas, business plans,
- 15:46Speaker 1: sitting in a drawer, ministry, visions burning in your heart,
- 15:50Speaker 1: but you are burying them. You are hiding behind excuses.
- 15:54Speaker 1: I am not ready yet. You will never feel ready.
- 15:57Speaker 1: What if I fail? You will not succeed if you
- 16:00Speaker 1: never try. What if people judge me they already are
- 16:05Speaker 1: What if I lose money? You are already losing by
- 16:08Speaker 1: not taking action. But what if you succeed? What if
- 16:12Speaker 1: God is waiting for you to take that step of
- 16:14Speaker 1: faith so he can release the blessing? What if your
- 16:18Speaker 1: breakthrough is on the other side of your obedience. Wealth
- 16:21Speaker 1: requires courage, It requires faith, It requires stepping out even
- 16:27Speaker 1: when you are scared. You cannot grow and stay comfortable.
- 16:31Speaker 1: You cannot increase and stay safe. If you want more,
- 16:35Speaker 1: you have to risk more. Yes you might fail, Yes
- 16:40Speaker 1: you might make mistakes, but failure is not the opposite
- 16:44Speaker 1: of success. Fear is inaction, is playing small when God
- 16:49Speaker 1: called you to play big. That is the real failure.
- 16:52Speaker 1: So what is God asking you to do that you
- 16:55Speaker 1: have been avoiding? What investment are you too scared to make?
- 16:59Speaker 1: What business are you too afraid to start? What calling
- 17:02Speaker 1: are you ignoring because the responsibility feels too heavy. It
- 17:06Speaker 1: is time to stop letting fear make your financial decisions.
- 17:10Speaker 1: It is time to step into the fullness of what
- 17:13Speaker 1: God created you for. Because on the other side of
- 17:16Speaker 1: your obedience is the breakthrough you have been praying for listen.
- 17:21Speaker 1: I know this has been heavy. Some of these truths
- 17:23Speaker 1: have cut deep. You might be feeling convicted, maybe even angry.
- 17:29Speaker 1: But here is what I need you to understand. The
- 17:32Speaker 1: truth might hurt, but it will set you free. Staying
- 17:36Speaker 1: in denial might feel comfortable, but it will keep you trapped.
- 17:40Speaker 1: The reason you are struggling is not because of external
- 17:43Speaker 1: factors you cannot control. It is because of internal issues
- 17:47Speaker 1: you have not addressed. And you can change this today,
- 17:52Speaker 1: right now. It starts with taking responsibility. No more blaming
- 17:56Speaker 1: the economy, your job, your parents, your education, your past.
- 18:01Speaker 1: It is time to look in the mirror and say
- 18:04Speaker 1: I am the one who has the power to change
- 18:06Speaker 1: my financial future. Starting today, I am going to do
- 18:10Speaker 1: something about it. Here is what I want you to do.
- 18:13Speaker 1: Pause this video, Grab a piece of paper and write
- 18:17Speaker 1: down one truth from this video that hit you the hardest.
- 18:20Speaker 1: Just one. Maybe it is realizing you are a consumer
- 18:24Speaker 1: instead of a steward. Maybe it is recognizing you have
- 18:27Speaker 1: been using money to buy fake value. Maybe it is
- 18:31Speaker 1: understanding your ignorance is destroying your future. Maybe it is
- 18:35Speaker 1: admitting you have been withholding your tithe. Maybe it is
- 18:38Speaker 1: acknowledging you are letting fear keep you from your calling,
- 18:41Speaker 1: write it down, be honest, because that is your starting point,
- 18:46Speaker 1: that is where your breakthrough begins. Then take one action today,
- 18:50Speaker 1: not tomorrow. Today. If you are a consumer, start learning
- 18:55Speaker 1: about stewardship. If you are buying fake value, start working
- 19:00Speaker 1: on your identity in Christ. If you are ignorant about finances,
- 19:05Speaker 1: commit to learning. If you are not tithing, start this week.
- 19:09Speaker 1: If you are letting fear hold you back, take one
- 19:12Speaker 1: step of faith today. Your financial freedom is not going
- 19:16Speaker 1: to fall from the sky. It is going to happen
- 19:18Speaker 1: when you align your character with God's principles. It is
- 19:22Speaker 1: going to happen when you take responsibility for your own growth.
- 19:25Speaker 1: It is going to happen when you have the courage
- 19:28Speaker 1: to face the hard truths and make the necessary changes.
- 19:32Speaker 1: God has abundance waiting for you, not just money, but peace, purpose, provision,
- 19:38Speaker 1: and power. He wants to bless you, He wants to
- 19:42Speaker 1: prosper you. He wants to use you to build his kingdom.
- 19:45Speaker 1: But He is waiting for you to become the person
- 19:48Speaker 1: who can handle that blessing. So right now I want
- 19:52Speaker 1: to ask you, are you ready? Are you ready to
- 19:55Speaker 1: stop making excuses. Are you ready to face the truth?
- 19:59Speaker 1: Are you ready to take make responsibility for your financial future.
- 20:02Speaker 1: If the answer is yes, type in the comments I
- 20:06Speaker 1: choose the truth. Say it out loud, declare it, because
- 20:11Speaker 1: that simple statement is the beginning of your financial breakthrough.
- 20:15Speaker 1: If this video challenged, you hit that like button. Subscribe
- 20:20Speaker 1: to Bible assent if you have not already, because we
- 20:23Speaker 1: are committed to helping you rise to the level that
- 20:25Speaker 1: God created you for. Before you go, I want to
- 20:29Speaker 1: pray for you, Father. I thank you for every person
- 20:33Speaker 1: watching this right now. Thank you that they had the
- 20:36Speaker 1: courage to hear these hard truths. Break the chains of
- 20:39Speaker 1: financial bondage in their lives. Give them wisdom, courage, and faith.
- 20:45Speaker 1: Help them see themselves as stewards, not consumers. Release your
- 20:49Speaker 1: blessing over their finances. Open doors that no man can shut.
- 20:54Speaker 1: Most importantly, transform their hearts, because when the heart changes,
- 20:59Speaker 1: every thing changes. In Jesus's name, Amen, your breakthrough is
- 21:04Speaker 1: not coming, Your breakthrough is here. The moment you decide
- 21:09Speaker 1: to change is the moment everything changes. So choose the truth,
- 21:13Speaker 1: take action, and watch God move in ways you never
- 21:17Speaker 1: imagined possible. I will see you in the next video
- 21:21Speaker 1: keep ascending,