How-to Make Withdrawals from Your Heavenly Account

Once you realize that you have these deposits in your heavenly account, you need to learn how to make withdrawals. Colossians 1:4-6 says, “Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; Which is come  unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit.”

Everything laid up for you in heaven is represented by the gospel of Jesus Christ. When you put the Word of God to work, it produces faith.  “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Faith puts spiritual law into operation, and the results are manifested here on the earth. When it is laid up in heaven, a carbon copy will take place in the earth if you will stand and act on the Word. This is how you were saved.

Salvation is not waiting for you in heaven. It was provided for you and laid up in heaven; but when you believed the Word about salvation and acted on it,  it was manifested here on earth in your life. This same principle is true in the area of finances.

When a man makes deposits with God, he has a right to call upon these deposits and make withdrawals. We have discussed God’s teaching about tithing—how it is set up and how it operates. You need to learn how to receive from your tithing. When I first attended Oral Roberts University, I heard Brother Roberts speak on seed faith, and I began to realize what the Word said about giving.

My wife and I decided to act on this by joining in a financial partnership with Brother Roberts, a real step of faith on our part since we had no steady income. It was during this time that we learned how to stand on the Word in the area of giving. For almost a year we gave $10 into this partnership each month; and ever single month someone unexpectedly handed us $20. Later, we learned how to believe God more specifically, but right then we were learning the basic principles.

Let’s look at Malachi 3:10 once more. There is something here I want to emphasize. “Bring ye all the tithes into the store-house, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me  now herewith, saith the Lord….” God has said in many places through the Bible, “Have faith...believe Me,” but here in Malachi He is saying, “Prove Me…put Me to the test!” Many Christians are looking for a sign from God as proof of His power, of His willingness to heal and do miracles in today’s world. The financial realm is the only place where God gives us on opportunity to look for this sign, and it is the only place we haven’t been looking! We say, “But I couldn’t tell God what to do; I couldn’t expect Him to bless me! It wouldn’t be humble!” But what does God say? “And prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

As I was studying this one day, the phrase  windows of heaven kept coming into my thinking, so I did some research. The phrase windows of heaven actually means “floodgates.” It  is the same word used in Genesis 7:11 where God opened the windows of heaven and flooded the earth. God doesn’t use empty figures of speech. He means what He says! He will open the floodgates of heaven and pour out an abundant blessing on the tither. Then the next verse (Malachi 3:11) says:

“And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.”

Now let’s discuss how to receive from your giving. Ephesians 6:8 says,  “Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.” Whatever good thing you do to any man, you will receive the same thing from the Lord. We have just read in Malachi where God said that He would open the windows of heaven  to us. Therefore, we can expect to receive from God.

However, in Luke’s Gospel Jesus says,  “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38). From this, we see that we also can receive from men; so the blessing is twofold. When you tithe, you receive from God above. When you give, me give into your bosom.

You have it coming from all directions!

As we have already seen form Mark 10:30, Jesus promised a hundredfold return when we give for His sake and the gospel’s. Using this scripture, I decided to believe for a hundredfold return when I gave my airplane as an investment in the gospel. Let me add that I didn’t begin believing for a hundredfold return overnight. When I started in the ministry, a hundredfold return was more than I could fathom! I could see it in the Word of God, and I knew it was true, but it took time for my faith to develop so that these things would produce in my life.

I didn’t start believing for $5,000 or $10,000 at a time. I began believing for the return on the first $10 I gave to Brother Roberts. My wife and I believed for a double return and got it every single month. But over a period of time, by meditating in the Word and  confessing unto it, that “victory portion” of faith came alive in my heart concerning a hundredfold return.

In October 1971 I gave my airplane to the Lord. I released it, no longer claiming ownership. Then through the next few months, I continually confessed with my mouth that the withdrawal was mine, that it was on deposit in my heavenly account and would be manifested as I needed it.

There were times when I would wake up in the middle of the night with fear trying to take over, trying to get me to put pressure on people, trying to get me to rent or lease or borrow. But I would fall back on the Word of God and my covenant with Him, thanking God that His Word is true and full of power. Then in January 1972 the Lord spoke and told me to whom I was to give the airplane.

At this point, I was in quite a predicament. Arrangements had been made to produce a television series, and we had no apparent capital. In addition, we had a busy schedule with no transportation. In the natural there was no way out, but by this time, we knew how deeply God was involved! Ten days later I had in my hands the exact amount I had confessed as my withdrawal.

Someone I didn’t even know said that God had told them to give the money. I was to put it into the ministry and not disclose from whom it came. This person wanted God to receive all the glory and He has. If you borrow from the bank, you have to answer to the banker, but when you get it from God, there are no strings attached.

Well, I had spotted another airplane and knew exactly where it was. I called the owner, and he flew it down to me.

He could hardly believe it! He was a Christian too, and God had warned him three or four months earlier that he was flying around in my airplane; but he didn’t think it would come to pass, so he hadn’t made arrangements for one of his own. He had to do without transportation for a while! This is an exciting life! You can do what you want, but for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!

Withdrawals from the bank of heaven are accomplished through the power of agreement, the power of confession and the power of standing expectantly on God’s Word.

Always Have A Plan B

We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. Because many things don’t go as well as we would like them to, it’s a great idea to have a “Plan B.” Having fallback plans can’t help but make you feel better about the  outcome  of  any  situation,  and  it  is  a  common denominator among very self-confident people.

Anyone  who  has  had  more  than  one  failure  in her  life  can  tell  you  that  having  another  path  to  take probably saved her bacon a time or two. I’m a big one for  contingency  plans.  If  you  are  an  entrepreneur,  in the  arts  or  media,  or  you  have  all  your  eggs  in  one basket, a Plan B is essential.

Knowing that if you lose the farm you have a condo you can go to makes you feel safer in the world. I know a number of people who have motor homes, and one of the reasons they do is, as they jokingly say, it’s their “in case” home. During the last big earthquake here in Los  Angeles,  many  people  who  had  them  were  very grateful—and those of us who didn’t were envious.

With the world economy in turmoil, creating some kind of additional income stream is also a good idea. The jeweler who is also a great designer or builder, the computer  geek  who  can  also  teach  school,  or  the  PR person  who  is  a  closet  novelist  can  all  find  a  way  to thrive even if their current position disappears.

Backup  plans  don’t  have  to  be  new  ideas—I continue  to  use  aspects  of  everything  I’ve  ever  done. My days on stage playing guitar have made me a better public speaker, which makes me a good radio host. The energy  I  put  into  songs  and  poems  has  helped  them become columns and books.

The years I spent running my  own  business  give  me  the  insight  to  help  others streamline theirs. 

And all of my experiences have made me  a  confident  and  successful  therapist.  Every  talent and  ability  you  have  can  be  built  upon  and  also  used again.  Not  that  I’d  ever  again  want  to  be  on  a  tour bus with six smelly guys for eight weeks, but if I had to I could still put food on the table by humming and strumming.

There’s  another  potential  upside  here:  Sometimes your  original  plan  and  your  backup  can  work  at  the same time. I still counsel, consult, write, and speak to groups all over the world. In years when the speaking business  got  very  slow  (such  as  after  9/11  and  then the  financial  crisis),  I  spent  more  time  writing  and counseling.

When  there  was  a  lull  between  books, I  put  more  energy  into  my  radio  show  and  business consulting, and did pro-bono events. Having multiple options gives you the sense that, if any one thing went away, you’d have other gigs that would more than fill the gap.

So get a little creative. Look at your past accomplishments and your current talents. A Plan B is only an idea away. By the way, this Plan B thing works in life, but not in relationships. Having a backup mate is only going to erode your current relationship and cause heartache for everyone involved. Enough said.