Use What You Have

Have you ever been tired of waiting for something to happen, so you thought you would just make it happen on your own? God had promised Jacob that He would give him the birthright, and all Jacob had to do was wait for the promise to be fulfilled. Instead, he took matters into his own hands.

Sometimes we’re asking God for something He has already given to us. Maybe you’re having a hard time in your marriage, so you pray, “Lord, I need more love. I’m not feeling love for my spouse like I used to.”

You don’t need to pray for more love because the Bible tells us, “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5 NKJV). Stop waiting for your emotions and start doing loving things.

Often cited as the definitive chapter on love, 1 Corinthians 13 does not tell us what love is; it tells us what love does. Love is patient. Love is kind. Love is longsuffering. Love doesn’t remember the faults of others. It’s what love does. So just do loving things.

Sometimes we’re praying for more power and strength, yet we’re told in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (NKJV). And 2 Peter 1:3 says, “His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” (NKJV).

It would be like saying you’re broke when you have $500,000 in the bank. Why don’t you go make a withdrawal? The money is there. You have it. So use it.

As believers, our need isn’t necessarily to receive something more, but to do something more with what we already have.