Articles > Financial Struggles

Understanding how I think and what I personally believe can be a contributing
factor to how I relate to my financial struggles and strongholds

Financial Strongholds in My Mind
by Denise Calderon-Hill

Have you ever considered what you truly believe about your finances? Have you ever thought about what it means to prosper? Do you really believe you can be completely debt free? Can you visualize it? How does it feel?

Too often we don’t actually consider what we personally believe about a subject. We develop strongholds in our minds that may be acquired because of our family backgrounds. A stronghold is defined as a way of thinking or systems of beliefs contrary to the will of God.

For example, many Christians grow up believing prosperity is a sin. After all, isn’t money the root of all evil? The Bible actually states “the love of money is the root of all evil”. (I Tim. 6:10 - Amplified) A person can actually love money whether they are financially wealthy or not. A person can spend an inordinate amount of time trying to gain, save or invest money and neglect the priorities of spending time with God and with their family. In fact, the Lord wants us to prosper. (3 John 2 (KJ) – “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth”. How can the Lord want us to prosper and allow prosperity to be a sin?

Another example may be the belief that being prosperous means having a good job, paying our bills on time and having good credit so we can borrow money in case of an emergency. The reality is that being prosperous is defined as having enough time, talent and money to do what God has called us to do. Can you see how true prosperity has to do with God’s purposes for finances and not our own selfish purposes for finances?

Probably the most destructive stronghold in our mind about finances is the belief that it is our own talent, time and strength that is the cause of our prosperity. Instead, the reality is that it is God who has given us the ability to get wealth, and not we ourselves. Deut. 8:17-19 – (ESV) “Beware lest you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.' 18You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish.”

To destroy our strongholds, we need to spend concerted time considering what we actually believe about our finances. We need to spend time in God’s word and see what He says about prosperity and finances. When we realize the many strongholds we have in our mind, we need to turn to the Lord and ask Him to renew our minds and break those previous strongholds. For Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God’s plan is for us to prosper and to give us a future and hope.

For me, I was able to spend some concerted effort reviewing these issues while going through the Financial Freedom in 7 Weeks Plus course. Prior to this course, I had no idea how far away my plans were from God’s best plans for my finances. The workbook and forms allowed me to have a basis of comparison, a place to start, if you will, to begin to allow the Lord to renew my mind in this critical area in my life. Get the workbook and, if at all possible, join a 7 week focus group soon. How long will it take you to finally get on the right path to prosperity? God is so gracious. The choice is yours.