prayer for work or business opportunities

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jacko

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2024
1,446
841
113
#1
I will tell you the truth. I'm feeling very conflicted at the moment. I was led to believe to take a step out in radical faith. Acknowledging I didn't have all the knowledge to do what it takes to succeed in my new business venture as an insurance agency owner after a 25 year career in commercial real estate.
I had several dreams over (15) which I "interpreted" to be from the Lord. In fact 3 times I asked the Lord if these dreams were from him and 3 times I believe he told me they were. However, our interpretations of dreams may or may not be correct, the bible and the word is final say on these type of matters. The bible says I need to work and to make money and to provide. I tell you the truth, sometimes it's just not easy to go "all in" when you have responsibilities, this path (maybe self inflicted), is 100x easier as single person, no worries about kids, families, obligations. You felt led to be a missionary in Africa... just go. Do it. Let go and let God, you hear this all the time. Horrible advice.

I finally got some good advice, and it came from an Orthodox priest online who quoted St. Agustine of Hippo.
"pray like everything depends on God, but WORK.. like everything depends on you."
I have to admit I have been passive, expecting some divine help from the Lord in opening doors I can't open, giving me wisdom I didn't have.
Take a bold step out, big step out in faith.. when I didn't know all the pieces.

Here is the thing, a little bit of knowledge of the word can be dangerous, very dangerous. We've all heard the story of Mary and Martha. Martha was busy working hard prepping for the party and Mary is chilling at Jesus feet the better portion, or so I thought. But actually, it's not the work that Jesus is correcting her but it's the complaining... I always thought the teaching was to seek God first and the rest would take care of itself.
God isnt a genie...my mistake is that I relied too much on God, leaned in too hard on faith, I did too little on diligence and planning.
Now I'm course correcting, and looking back and apply for work in my old career and also trying to build my insurance agency until I can find work.

I prayed fervently to the Lord asking why I'm going on this goose chase and I had a dream of an episode of fight to survive where the guy or preacher got his foot stuck in a rock on a hike and died. A faithful servant who make a mistake an honest mistake and paid for his life (he really needed a sat phone) when hiking alone. I don't know if this was God telling me, I know what I'm doing even when it means death, but I took it to mean a couple of things. 1) free will and consequences 2) God will bail you out or he may not ; up to his will which we never know.

In summary, unbridled all out faith can be dangerous, it needs to be balanced or you will burn out quick and lose faith.

Please pray for me and my families provision.
Thank you
 

Bingo

Well-known member
Feb 9, 2019
9,822
5,044
113
#3
'I pray the Holy Spirit comes upon this life that has shared their thoughts.
Let us pray to understand faith requires spiritual attention and discipline.
Pray to understand the inspired teachings requires a sound mind and great
diligence is needed in attempting to grasp the lessons and instructions put forth.'
'Amen'
man-praying - Copy - Copy - Copy - Copy - Copy - Copy - Copy - Copy.jpg
 
Mar 13, 2014
43,078
17,480
113
70
Tennessee
#4
'I pray the Holy Spirit comes upon this life that has shared their thoughts.
Let us pray to understand faith requires spiritual attention and discipline.
Pray to understand the inspired teachings requires a sound mind and great
diligence is needed in attempting to grasp the lessons and instructions put forth.'
'Amen'
View attachment 276296
Wonderful prayer.
 
Jan 31, 2025
164
77
28
#5
I will tell you the truth. I'm feeling very conflicted at the moment. I was led to believe to take a step out in radical faith. Acknowledging I didn't have all the knowledge to do what it takes to succeed in my new business venture as an insurance agency owner after a 25 year career in commercial real estate.
I had several dreams over (15) which I "interpreted" to be from the Lord. In fact 3 times I asked the Lord if these dreams were from him and 3 times I believe he told me they were. However, our interpretations of dreams may or may not be correct, the bible and the word is final say on these type of matters. The bible says I need to work and to make money and to provide. I tell you the truth, sometimes it's just not easy to go "all in" when you have responsibilities, this path (maybe self inflicted), is 100x easier as single person, no worries about kids, families, obligations. You felt led to be a missionary in Africa... just go. Do it. Let go and let God, you hear this all the time. Horrible advice.

I finally got some good advice, and it came from an Orthodox priest online who quoted St. Agustine of Hippo.
"pray like everything depends on God, but WORK.. like everything depends on you."
I have to admit I have been passive, expecting some divine help from the Lord in opening doors I can't open, giving me wisdom I didn't have.
Take a bold step out, big step out in faith.. when I didn't know all the pieces.

Here is the thing, a little bit of knowledge of the word can be dangerous, very dangerous. We've all heard the story of Mary and Martha. Martha was busy working hard prepping for the party and Mary is chilling at Jesus feet the better portion, or so I thought. But actually, it's not the work that Jesus is correcting her but it's the complaining... I always thought the teaching was to seek God first and the rest would take care of itself.
God isnt a genie...my mistake is that I relied too much on God, leaned in too hard on faith, I did too little on diligence and planning.
Now I'm course correcting, and looking back and apply for work in my old career and also trying to build my insurance agency until I can find work.

I prayed fervently to the Lord asking why I'm going on this goose chase and I had a dream of an episode of fight to survive where the guy or preacher got his foot stuck in a rock on a hike and died. A faithful servant who make a mistake an honest mistake and paid for his life (he really needed a sat phone) when hiking alone. I don't know if this was God telling me, I know what I'm doing even when it means death, but I took it to mean a couple of things. 1) free will and consequences 2) God will bail you out or he may not ; up to his will which we never know.

In summary, unbridled all out faith can be dangerous, it needs to be balanced or you will burn out quick and lose faith.

Please pray for me and my families provision.
Thank you
Jacko,

I’ve been reflecting on your recent words and actions, and I feel compelled to share some thoughts with you.
The foot that is stuck symbolizes the cares of this world. The phone represents your prayers-and God not being able to hear because you don’t truly know my Lord Jesus or our Father God Almighty. God is your friend if you know Him. But if you have unforgiven sins that you have not repented for, God only sees your sins. For instance, if your sin is adultery, God sees you as an adulterer-not by the name your parents gave you, but by your sin.

The Bible says that everything a born-again Christian does will prosper: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding.” When we started the salon, it took three years to build a clientele. I worked every day for three years, ten-hour days. Jacko, you’ve only been in business for less then a year.

How dare you speak of my Lord God that way-saying you asked Him five times, and He replied five times to you to go into the insurance business, even though you hardly knew anything about it? Any born-again Christian knows they must be diligent and studious like Daniel. If I were you, I would have learned everything I could about the business I planned to start, and you can still be learning until you know everything about the insurance business while working.

You remind me of the way Job’s friends spoke wrongly of God. I could not let your post go unanswered, considering how you spoke about my Lord and His Father. And how were you planning to edify God through your business? Or did you think starting the company was for your own vain glory? You should be grateful that God is not a genie-genies are evil, and when a person asks anything of them, they always intend harm. God, on the other hand, is so loving that if you ask Him to forgive your sins and truly repent-that is, you will no longer sin willfully and will do your best to avoid sin-He will forgive you.
Go to church, learn to pray, and become a new person in Christ born-again Christian. Seek the Lord Jesus with all your heart and soul, and He will save your business or employ you in some other way. Either way, you will gain tremendously, because you will receive the precious gift of eternal salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. I put all my hope and trust in Jesus and His great goodness.
Jacko, ask Jesus to come into your heart today and surrender your life to Him, and He will help you. Did you know that if you were the only person in the world to save, Jesus would have gone to the cross just for you? That’s how much our Lord Jesus Christ loves you. You wouldn’t believe how much Jesus loves you. Turn to Him today, repent, and be saved. God bless you and forgive you. Amen.

Branch
 

jacko

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2024
1,446
841
113
#6
My fault is that I didn't balance diligence with exuburence. When my wife said to me, you pray and pray and money isn't going to fall from the sky, I tell you I was really upset. In my heart, I said you don't know my God, which is also her God. The God that made the sun stand still, part the Red Sea, move mountains, etc. How simple to make money rain... that's nothing I thought in my mind. For the Lord returned to Issac 100x on his crops, during a drought. The Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever. Why wouldn't he do this for me?

Now I understand my wife was asking me to take action to try and make it happen. The Lord works with us, not for us.

What I learned and what the Lord showed me is that "waiting on the Lord" or "surrendering" isn't passive.
It's an active faith. Most people preach let go and let God handle it. I tried that but with bad theology, praying, fasting, not working, not planning, waiting for wisdom guidance that never came. Everything needs to be balanced, I fasted soo much I lacked energy to study, do work, etc. etc.
 

jacko

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2024
1,446
841
113
#8
Jacko,

I’ve been reflecting on your recent words and actions, and I feel compelled to share some thoughts with you.
The foot that is stuck symbolizes the cares of this world. The phone represents your prayers-and God not being able to hear because you don’t truly know my Lord Jesus or our Father God Almighty. God is your friend if you know Him. But if you have unforgiven sins that you have not repented for, God only sees your sins. For instance, if your sin is adultery, God sees you as an adulterer-not by the name your parents gave you, but by your sin.

The Bible says that everything a born-again Christian does will prosper: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding.” When we started the salon, it took three years to build a clientele. I worked every day for three years, ten-hour days. Jacko, you’ve only been in business for less then a year.

How dare you speak of my Lord God that way-saying you asked Him five times, and He replied five times to you to go into the insurance business, even though you hardly knew anything about it? Any born-again Christian knows they must be diligent and studious like Daniel. If I were you, I would have learned everything I could about the business I planned to start, and you can still be learning until you know everything about the insurance business while working.

You remind me of the way Job’s friends spoke wrongly of God. I could not let your post go unanswered, considering how you spoke about my Lord and His Father. And how were you planning to edify God through your business? Or did you think starting the company was for your own vain glory? You should be grateful that God is not a genie-genies are evil, and when a person asks anything of them, they always intend harm. God, on the other hand, is so loving that if you ask Him to forgive your sins and truly repent-that is, you will no longer sin willfully and will do your best to avoid sin-He will forgive you.
Go to church, learn to pray, and become a new person in Christ born-again Christian. Seek the Lord Jesus with all your heart and soul, and He will save your business or employ you in some other way. Either way, you will gain tremendously, because you will receive the precious gift of eternal salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. I put all my hope and trust in Jesus and His great goodness.
Jacko, ask Jesus to come into your heart today and surrender your life to Him, and He will help you. Did you know that if you were the only person in the world to save, Jesus would have gone to the cross just for you? That’s how much our Lord Jesus Christ loves you. You wouldn’t believe how much Jesus loves you. Turn to Him today, repent, and be saved. God bless you and forgive you. Amen.

Branch
You are new here... search some of my prior post and learn the story before you jump to conclusions.