The following was written by Apostle Dr. Steve Lyston who has consistently contributed to this column over the years. He died on December 3 after a brief period of illness. We thank him for his commitment to edifying the body of Christ through his writings.
Genesis 28:14 says, “Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Without a doubt, the Word for the faithful who have toiled and endured and remained faithful is that God wants you to “Make Room” for the great blessing that is ahead, come what may.
GOD FIRST
Isaiah 54: 2 says “Enlarge the place of your tent and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; Do not spare; Lengthen your cords, And strengthen your stakes.”
That means God wants us to make room because He wants to fill us up with His presence, power, and prosperity and also to reveal His plans for what is ahead. Oftentimes, we have many plans but God is not in them. Whatever our plans are, God must be at the center of them all. He wants us to have plans for greater wealth, greater expansion, and that is why we need to make room.
Matthew 6: 33 reminds us, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Seeking God is the foundation for prosperity and long life.
BIG PLANS
I am sure that leaders are putting great plans in place to roll out artificial intelligence, biometrics, tourism, vaccinations, climate change, mind control, deception, and more in 2023. However, very few have a plan to increase their role in the Kingdom. Everyone, particularly the wealthy, should use Luke 12: 16 – 21 as a guide. The rich fool was making plans for major expansion to reap and store all the fruits given to him by God, but he never had a plan to give some of that fruit to advance the Kingdom. He wanted to keep everything without giving back to the Lord. He forgot that God is the One who gives us the power to get wealth.
ADVANCING THE KINGDOM
Many times, we hear about organizations making super-profits, and then suddenly thereafter, you hear that the CEO suddenly dies – he/she did not live to enjoy it. Some don’t even make time nor allow for office devotions.
Many strategic plans do not include giving back to the Lord. They include everything for the flesh but nothing for the Spirit. God wants them to make room and lay up treasures in heaven. That is the only safe investment they would have that cannot be affected by earthly issues. It is not like FTX Bitcoin Bankruptcy situation. With God, your investment is sure. It goes beyond the natural and into the spiritual.
MAKING ROOM
Making room includes:
- Tithing (Malachi 3)
- Giving to the poor
- Using your gifts and talents to worship God (Proverbs 18: 16)
- Giving/showing more love and compassion to others daily
- Extend the grace and favour God has given to you to others as well
- Spending more time in the Presence of God to seek Him. What if politicians were putting the needs of others before their own friends and family?
- Furthermore, in making room, God will grant you new ideas and solutions, which will bring global change.
It also includes:
- Walking before God in greater purity
- Winning souls for Christ
- Bringing healing and deliverance to a broken world and raising up a righteous generation
- Greater outreach for the poor
- Expansion of outreach
Making room means that we must remove some things, re-arrange, and dump some things because we are making space for new things! Away with the old, bring in the new!
Know that when we make room, we are making space for greater joy, greater divine presence, wisdom, knowledge, having more time for family.
We are freeing up space for God to increase our capacity to do greater things than we are doing now (Leviticus 26: 9 – 10). This includes new things, new businesses, new direction, new people, new/bigger houses, more resources.
So, remember, when God is going to do big things, including the expansion of one’s family, He will always say, “Make Room!”