The Blessed Life by Robert Morris

Author:Robert Morris [Morris, Robert]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christian giving, REL012000, REL012070
ISBN: 9781441230614
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2016-08-24T04:00:00+00:00

NEVER MANIPULATE OTHERS

The second foundation stone that God laid in our lives came in the form of clear instructions from Him: “Don’t manipulate.”

When I was a traveling minister, I had a mailing list of people who had donated to my ministry at one time or another. I would periodically send letters to the folks on that list, letting them know what was going on with the ministry and making them aware of the needs we had.

Let me emphasize right now that there is nothing wrong with that. It is appropriate for ministries to maintain a list of donors and to use it to let people know about needs. But I discovered that I had begun to view that mailing list as my source.

For instance, there was a man in Houston, Texas, on that list who faithfully sent us $300 every time he got a letter from us. When the Lord began to deal with me about my heart attitude toward that list, I remember thinking, But, Lord, if I don’t mail to that list, people like that man in Houston might not send the money. And the Lord responded, “If I want him to give, I’ll speak to him.”

In obedience, I stopped the mailing list that I had begun to view as my source of provision. And sure enough, the man in Houston stopped sending his $300 donations.

I remember saying to the Lord, “Lord, I thought You said if You wanted him to give, You would speak to him.” And the Lord replied by saying, “Well, I’m obviously not speaking to him, am I?”

Thus, the Lord began to show me some things about where I was placing my trust and expectancy for provision. He corrected my focus regarding who my source was.

Obviously, doing the right thing means walking in integrity—no hidden agendas and no hidden motives. Again, there is nothing unethical about a ministry maintaining a mailing list. What is wrong is starting to view the people on that list as your source rather than God. When you fall into that trap, it becomes very easy to move over into manipulation to get people to give.

In my case, I had slowly stopped looking to God to meet our needs and had begun to look to people instead.

If you’re in vocational ministry as a pastor, missionary, or evangelist or in some other type of ministry in which your support comes from offerings and donations, this is an area in which you must always be on your guard. But this is really a trap anyone can fall into.

Who are you viewing as your source? To whom are you looking for provision? Do you ever drop hints when you’re around people who are in a position to help you?

I’ll elaborate in the next chapter, but I’ll tell you right now that people who operate in the gift of giving have the ability to discern manipulation in others quite quickly. And the Lord will not allow them to reward manipulation.

To be blunt, manipulation is a form of witchcraft.

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