READ: Philippians 4:10-14
“I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity…” – Philippians 4:12, NASB
Paul the apostle is one of the great examples of a minister who managed to follow the Lord. He was fresh till the end and the anointing never diminished. Right up till the end of his ministry he lived under the guidance of the Lord. When you are following the Lord, it may seem as though you are erratic in not following a particular pattern. I can understand this because following God is not the same as following a rigid formula. God is not a formula, God is not a computer program!
Paul received different instructions from the Lord. At one time, he said he had been instructed by God to be full and to abound. In other words, he was to enjoy prosperity and blessings. In the same breath, he said, he had been instructed by the Lord to abase and to endure hunger. Both instructions came from God. It is not a good thing to be in need. The tree of good and evil will always guide you away from things that will bring you into need. But this was God’s will and direction to Paul. At other times, he had the exact opposite direction from the Lord.
Twenty-one days of fasting is a tradition of our church. I once ended up breaking my good tradition and going to South America instead of fasting for twenty-one days with the church. On that trip, all the doors to South American countries flung open. I suddenly had a ministry in the Spanish speaking world of Latin America which God had prepared for me.
Like Paul, I was receiving an instruction to do something quite contrary to what I had done previously.