Be Careful When All Is Well With You

That day I was watching the news and feeling burdened by the troubles that besieged other parts of the world, such as wars, political crises, natural disasters, etc., and when it came to the local news, it was on a lighter note on how Singaporeans are looking forward to holiday travels after Covid regulations are loosened, among other non-catastrophic local news. In comparison, we seem to be in such comfort compared to some parts of the world.

Of course, people naturally desire to be in a state of peace and prosperity. Even when we follow God, we also hope that God can bless us with many good things. And since our God is a loving and kind God, it is also not surprising if He indeed showers us with good things. But the important thing is, after we received blessings and everything is well with us, we must be all the more careful. This is what God’s word has warned us:

(Deut 8) 2 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands…11 Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery…17 You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” 18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today. 19 If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. 

Indeed, it is very easy for people to forget God when they are well and satisfied. Thus, sometimes God gives a person wealth and prosperity to test his heart, just as how God tested king Hezekiah. (2 Chr 32) 27 Hezekiah had very great wealth and honor, and he made treasuries for his silver and gold and for his precious stones, spices, shields and all kinds of valuables. 28 He also made buildings to store the harvest of grain, new wine and olive oil; and he made stalls for various kinds of cattle, and pens for the flocks. 29 He built villages and acquired great numbers of flocks and herds, for God had given him very great riches…31 But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart. In the same way, God can also test us today when things are well with us.

Prosperity can also be a subtle stumbling block.

God ever said, “I warned you when you felt secure, but you said, ‘I will not listen!’” (Jer 22:21a). Indeed, when we are troubled and helpless, it is easier for us to seek God. But during our good times, we do not have much need for God, so it is harder for us to remember Him. Instead, we can become self-reliant. Thus, there are certain dangers lurking behind prosperity, because we may be too consumed by our success that we forget about God. That was what happened to Israel time and again. God blessed Israel, they got comfortable, then they forgot about God, such that God disciplined them, then they repented, yet history repeats itself again. This was not just the story of Israel, but it also reflects our lives. Ironically, the easiest moment for man to fall is the moment which God gives him the most blessings, because it is so easy for man to treat God’s blessings as idols to replace the worship of God Himself. On the contrary, when man goes through some trials, he will cling onto God for help. It is not that man cannot have good times, but we must be all the more watchful when things go well for us, so that our prosperity will not become our stumbling block.

So how can we not be stumbled by prosperity?

1) We must learn to view God’s blessings with the right perspective.

And this right perspective is: God’s blessings are not the end, they only serve to point us to God Himself. For we must ultimately worship the Source and Giver of blessings rather than the blessings themselves. (Jas 1:17) “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.” If we forget the Source of our blessings, we will easily idolise the blessings themselves, or credit the blessings to ourselves, thinking we have achieved those blessings by our own strength. In fact, the good things we received are meant to glorify God, leading us to praise Him rather than to sin.

2) We must remember how we used to be fallen and hopeless such that even during good times, we can be humble before God.

The truth is, we are originally unworthy of God’s blessings, and we are sinners who cannot even save ourselves. Only by God’s grace through the redemption of Christ can we be saved. When we recall such wretched state we used to be in, then even when situation turns for the better, we will not become conceited. Therefore, we must strive to remain humble in our good times. A humble person will always remind himself: “The Lord is the vine; I am the branch. Apart from God, I can do nothing.” (Jn 15:5)

3) Even in good times, we must remember that we still need God just as much.

It is very easy for us to have the false impression that we don’t need God when all is well. But we must not forget that our enemy the devil is roaming around, always waiting for a chance to attack us. If we are not careful, he will strike when we feel the most secured and are least on our guard. Thus, even when things are well, we must follow God closely.

4) Yet, during good times, it is harder to have the heart to draw near to God, thus we must be more “intentional” to remember God.

That’s why (Deut 6) instructs us: 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. In other words, we must remember God at all times and in all things.

Dear brothers and sisters, God can test us in our good times to see what is in our hearts. May the blessings God bestow us not make us sin and forget Him when things are well, but may the good things He gave us make us praise and love Him even more!