“Though your sins are as scarlet,
They will be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They will be like wool.
Isaiah 1:18

In the last part of our discussion regarding repentance, we focus on our relationship with money and material things. Money and material things are the sources of many of our sins. We can mend and build our relationship with God after we repent our relationship with money.

One. Repent the sin of perceiving material items as coming from anywhere but God. Receive only from God!
When we receive something through others, we naturally think they are the benefactors and we are the recipients. Our parents give us money; we assume it’s coming from them. If we make money through business, we recognize it as coming from the business itself and our hard work. Change your perception! All things come from God. God gave us good health, wisdom, intelligence, a good job, and so on as a means to give us what we need. We may receive things from different sources, but we must never forget all these things ultimately come from God. He is the origin. He uses tools and mediums to give us what we need.

Two. Repent the sin of “one-sided” savings, keep only what God says to keep!
It’s a good idea to save money, but we should never do it unconditionally. We can get stingy with our money and believe saving is a good thing in every and any situation. We must save only what God says to save and use what God says to use. We must give what God says to give, which is why the Bible says it is better to give than to receive. We must repent “one-sided” saving where our motives and eventual actions have nothing to with God. This kind of one-sided savings is a mindset that shows we are in charge of our money and can do whatever we want with it. That’s not the case. Save and use money as God dictates.

Three. Repent the sin of giving and receiving as you please, give only what God says to give!
We donate money, give relief, and buy presents without thinking about God. We must repent and give only what God says to give. Why? None of this belongs to me! It belongs to God. We are merely managing what belongs to God. Whenever we give money, we must ask the owner, the Lord, for permission and seek His will. We are His steward and lack the authority to give as we please. Remember this: we are merely managing what belongs to God. It doesn’t belong to us.

Four. Repent the sin of abusing and misusing things, use only what God says to use!
We abuse, misuse, and mismanage our money and material things when we subtract God from the picture. We spend money on the wrong things. How many of us are in trouble because we’ve mismanaged or money or used it in t he wrong way? We make these kinds of mistakes because we think the money is ours. We must never forget everything we have belongs to God. Use money according to His will because we are nothing more than stewards watching over His possessions.

We can apply these “20 Repentances” to our everyday lives. If we repent our relationship to God, the Bible, people, events, and money, we can get back on the right path to forging a strong relationship with God. Memorize these twenty points and make it a part of your everyday repentance!

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