Unity Church of Castro Valley
Sunday Message for September 9, 2007
Jacob's Success Covenant
We have been talking about the story of Jacob in the Bible, but I would like to tell you about one of his prosperity secrets in detail. This secret is one you can use in your life to bring to you whatever your heart desires.
The German philosopher Goethe once advised, "What you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it." The way to help your dreams come true is by making a Success Covenant.
Jacob, Abraham, Hannah, and others in the Bible made covenants with God that were equally successful during trying periods in their lives.
At the time Jacob made his Success Covenant with God, he had every strike against him. He had cheated his brother, hurt his mother, and disappointed his father. His brother had even threatened to kill him.
After disgracing himself in the eyes of his family, Jacob left home. At this point, Jacob had nothing - not even a good reputation. He was past 40 years of age. En route to Haran, this outcast son sank down exhausted in body, depressed in spirit, and slept. He interpreted his famous dream with the angels ascending and descending the ladder as an omen of forgiveness and of success that could still be his.
When Jacob woke up he immediately made his Success Covenant with God. Jacob intuitively knew that man can be what he decides to be. Jacob seemed to know, even at that low point in his life, that we decide whether we will be sick or healthy, poor or wealthy.
There lies within most people a divine desire to excel, to succeed. This divine desire for success should be encouraged and developed constructively. Jacob did this by first making his Success Covenant.
JACOB'S SUCCESS COVENANT
Jacob's Success Covenant was in two parts:
In Part I, Jacob specified what he wished God to help him accomplish: Prosperity, guidance, peace of mind, and reconciliation with his family.
(Genesis 28:20-21) "Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God..."
In Part II, Jacob specified what he would do for God:
(Genesis 28:22) "Of all that you give me I will surely give one-tenth to you."
Quite often we pray to God for what we want him to do for us, but we stop at that point. We don't go all the way and agree with God what we will do for Him in return and in appreciation.
A "covenant" is a solemn agreement, usually between two people, to do specific things and to achieve specific results. But it doesn't mean much unless both parties do their part.
Jacob's covenant worked. God granted him more than he asked.
He returned home years later in peace as a wealthy man.
When Jacob made his Success Covenant it appeared that he was asking for the impossible. At a time when he was out of favor with God and man he asked for prosperity, protection, guidance, and reconciliation with his family
After Jacob made his requests in the first part of his covenant, he then did what most people overlook. In the second part of his covenant he said specifically what he would do for God, and got busy doing it. He didn't wait around to see what God was going to do. He assumed that as he fulfilled his part of the agreement, God could be trusted to produce the blessings he asked for. His covenant worked and God gave him far more than he asked.
WHY A SUCCESS COVENANT WORKS
Many success books talk about the power of writing down your desired good and then praying for guidance about its manifestation. People have often had marvelous results from use of this success technique.
But if that hasn't worked for you, it's time you took that technique a step further. It is time to get specific and ask a loving Father for the blessings in life you desire, because it is your heritage.
But don't stop there. Do your part by following through on the second step: Covenant with God what you plan to get busy doing for Him right away. After Jacob specified what he wished God to do for him, he balanced his requests by stating what he would do for God in return. When he got busy fulfilling his part of the covenant, it worked.
Often we have been inclined to tell God what we would do for Him later, after He has met our demands. Then we may have wondered why our good didn't appear quickly. God cannot meet our demands fully under those terms, because we have not fulfilled our part of the covenant. We have not released any faith by getting busy doing something for God.
A Success Covenant is two-fold. Any lesser agreement is spiritually illegal because it is one-sided and unbalanced. Some may object that they are not sure they like the idea of bargaining with God.
But a bargain is trying to get something for nothing or almost nothing. In a covenant you are giving full measure for measure received. Any lesser agreement is a bargain; that's why it doesn't work.
HOW TO MAKE A SUCCESS COVENANT
When making a Success Covenant, it's good to write it out. In Jacob's covenant, he "vowed a vow." This was important. In the Holy Land, even today, people place great importance on "vowing a vow."
When a person undertakes a difficult task or is about to go on a hazardous journey, he first vows a vow. He asks God for protection, guidance, and supply. Then he vows what he will do for God in return for these blessings, and he gets busy fulfilling his part of the vow.
At the end of his journey or task the person who vowed a vow gives a thank offering or a tithe in appreciation for answered prayer. (Last week we talked about how Jacob did this after returning to his homeland to live.)
To "vow a vow" is a sacred act which no person in the East would think of breaking. It is a serious, solemn agreement. During Biblical times, to break a vow that had been made voluntarily was even punishable by death.
The best way to "vow a vow" in your Success Covenant is to write it out. Even in ancient times, people placed great power on the written word. They felt that by putting in writing how they wanted their lives to be, they reached past all fear and uncertainty into a higher realm of accomplishment.
Through your definite written words, you dissolve all obstacles and barriers on the visible and invisible planes of life. Your written words go out into the ethers of the universe to work through people, circumstances and events, to open the way for your desired good to come to pass.
When writing out your desires or "vowing a vow" in your Success Covenant, remember that the word "choice" is a magic word to the mind. Your mind constantly works through what you choose. Psychologists state that all things are done by choice. Choice produces results, but it is up to you to choose what you want.
HOW THE WRITTEN WORD HELPS DOCTOR TO SUCCEED
A chiropractor said that for 20 years this had been his secret formula for success. At the time this doctor went into practice two decades ago, right out of college, he had nothing. But he and his wife believed that, if they consistently wrote down what they wanted in life, they would get it.
At the beginning of each New Year, instead of making New Year's resolutions of what they hoped the year might bring, they made a list of what they definitely expected the year to bring.
The first year they listed nice rental offices and a thriving practice. The second year they listed the purchase of business property on which they planned to build offices. Later they listed the purchase of a home and the birth of their first child. Another year their list included the acquisition of stocks, bonds, and other investments. Still later they listed a larger professional practice. Then their list included the purchase of a private plane, more cars, and a boat.
From the first New Year's list this couple made, this method began to work for them! Once they had written down their desires for that particular year, they placed the list in their Bible, and simply gave thanks for the perfect results throughout the year. By midyear, several of the major items on their lists had come about. In other items, it was as late as December before the list began producing results. The year they listed the desire for their first child, she was born in October. Invariably their list-making method worked!
Today this couple has all the blessings they have put on their New Year's lists over the years: a fine practice and their own business property on which they have built beautiful offices. They now enjoy a lovely home, several cars, their own plane, additional financial assets such as stocks and bonds, and several healthy children who appeared first on their lists. The result is a healthy, happy, prosperous, spiritually-oriented family. As an elder in his church, this man has long been a tither.
WHY YOU SHOULD GET SPECIFIC
The importance of getting specific about what you want in your Success Covenant is shown in a study of the psychology of the poor. Psychological studies of poverty show that the poor are so caught up in their present problems that they do not plan ahead or think ahead. They spend most of their time and energies battling present circumstances. Also the poor often have great hostility and envy toward those people who succeed. The poor are inclined to resent success rather than to work in constructive ways to achieve it.
Another reason why you should get specific about what you want is because the soul of man must turn its attention outward, as well as inward, for balance. The soul is the blending area of the mind. Individuals who do not get definite in their thinking about what they want unconsciously continue to demonstrate what they do not want through absorbing the negative vibrations around them. They become confused, upset, and suffer from many needless problems, which have been subconsciously absorbed.
The great people of the Bible knew the power of getting definite. Jesus often specified healing, prosperity, and guidance for his followers.
WHY BY-PASSING PART II BRINGS FAILURE
Too many people try to put off Part II of the covenant until after Part I has come to pass. To try to get something for nothing, or bargain with God in this way, usually leads to failure and it should!
A woman said, "I have some valuable property which I am trying to sell for one million dollars. Pray with me concerning the sale of this property and when it is sold, then I will give a tithe of it to your ministry."
A tithe would have been $100,000. Yet this woman was not willing to give even $5 or $10 to God's work at the time she made that statement. So, of course, there was no way for her to expand her consciousness to receive one million dollars later and give $100,000 of it to His work. She never sold the property, but died leaving it for heirs to fight over.
A man in the oil business said, "When I strike oil, I am going to give a tithe of the income from my oil wells to your church." Again this man was not giving $5 or $10 to God's work in the present, yet he thought he would be able to release thousands, maybe millions, to God's work in the future. He never struck oil. Instead he spent his life savings on oil leases and drilling equipment, only to strike "dry holes" or sand.
You can tell how you would spend much by how you spend little. If you do not give when you have little, you certainly will not give if and when you have much - and you will never have much to give - at least not permanently!
A businessman was financially destitute when he learned about the prospering power of tithing. He tithed his way out of financial desperation into his first fortune. He became a millionaire. But then he reasoned that he was "giving too much" and he stopped tithing. Right on schedule he lost his fortune.
It was after this happened that he wrote, "I have learned a very expensive lesson. It's just as important to put God first: financially when you have a million dollars, as it is to trust Him when you have little." He commented, "I am again tithing my way out of financial desperation into abundance. I now realize I not only need God's help to make a million dollars, but I also need His help in order to keep it."
You may have been inclined to be like some of the foregoing people and to tell God what you would do for Him later, after He had met your demands. God cannot fully meet your demands under such terms, because you have not fulfilled your part of the covenant. Faith moves on substance, and you must do something as an act of faith in order for it to move on the substance of the universe and manifest increased abundance for you.
A businessman said, "I've made a fortune but I lost it. Now I owe Internal Revenue a million dollars. I can't understand why God has not helped me. I prayed about this and I even gave my church $500.00."
Where you give is where you place your faith. If you do not give much, it indicates you do not have much faith in that area. You reap results accordingly. This man could still resolve his million-dollar indebtedness, make another fortune and keep it, if he would enter into a Success Covenant and begin to do his part. By consistently tithing of his income, both now and later, he could be permanently prospered.
HOW SUCCESS COVENANT WORKS FOR A MUSICIAN
A musician said, "After making a Success Covenant and beginning to tithe a tenth of my gross income to my church, I received an appointment to the piano faculty of one of the most famous schools of music in America. It is all the more remarkable that the position opened up just at the beginning of the school term, long after most vacancies are filled. It is even more unusual that I should have obtained it since I happen to be a member of the so-called 'minority race' for which such appointments are rare."
In addition to this job, this musician has a music studio where he does private tutoring. His public concerts are also thriving in this country and abroad.
TOURIST BUSINESS PROSPERS THROUGH SUCCESS COVENANT
A man in the tourist business said, "I entered into a covenant with God at a time of business problems. Our business was family-owned and my father's drinking was wrecking our financial affairs. Our business was $30,000 in debt, and we were three mortgage payments behind on our beautiful home."
"It was at this hopeless point that I secretly made a Success Covenant with God, agreeing that I would give 10 percent of all gross earnings from our business to His work. After I wrote our first tithe check, new customers began to stream in. Their visits brought new business and immediate cash. Several additional checks that were received through the mail made it possible to meet those back mortgage payments on our home. The way now seems to be opening for us to lease a motel which has unlimited financial potential, since it is located in a popular tourist area. The financial picture has quickly improved since I made that Success Covenant."
HOW A LAWYER'S SUCCESS COVENANT PROSPERED HIM
A lawyer has made a Success Covenant at the beginning of each year since he first learned of this method in 1966. In that first Success Covenant, he wrote out in Part I: (1) that he wished help with the sale of a piece of property that had not sold for two years; (2) that he wished help with the sale of another piece of property that had not sold for seven years; (3) that he wished guidance about some stocks whose value had been low; (4) that he wished help with certain court cases that had been pending for a long time.
In Part II of his covenant, this lawyer wrote out that he would begin immediately to tithe 10 percent of all channels of his income. This would include the financial income from his law practice, the sale of property, the sale of stocks, income through inheritance, and any other income.
The first piece of property listed in Part I sold in a matter of weeks. The second piece of property sold in a few months, and at the highest price he had asked. The stocks, which had been low, rose in value and he sold them also, at more profit than he had dreamed of getting. The court cases listed in his covenant were harmoniously concluded.
This man has made his Success Covenant at the beginning of each New Year since with amazing results. Some years his covenant has worked even by midyear to produce the results stipulated.
He recently said, "I have proved that a Success Covenant works. This is a political year and a lot of people have a platform and a candidate. I do, too. My candidate is Jacob, and my platform is his Success Covenant. I am actively campaigning for Jacob and his Success Covenant, because it's the greatest way in the world to become permanently prospered!"
YOU CAN TEST A SUCCESS COVENANT IN SMALL WAYS FIRST
If this Success Covenant idea seems too new to you to test it over a period of time - like for a year - why not test it on a short-term basis?
When one couple first heard of this method, they decided to make a covenant with God about just one item that concerned them. They later reported these results:
"We made a Success Covenant to sell our boat. It was a nice boat that we had gotten for our girls to use for waterskiing when they were growing up. Now they were both getting married about the same time, and we decided to sell it to help with wedding expenses. So we listed the sale of the boat in our Success Covenant."
"We were already tithing from our general income; bur wrote out in our covenant that we would tithe from the sale of the boat, too. My husband cleaned up the boat, thinking he would put an ad for its sale in the paper. He called a friend about this, but the friend knew of a man who wanted to buy the boat. The prospective buyer soon arrived, tried out the boat, and bought it! My husband asked $100 more than he expected to get. The purchaser talked him down $50.00. Even so, there was no expense for ads in the paper. Nor was there the inconvenience of people streaming in and out to look at it. It had quickly sold to the first party that had been interested for $50 more than we had expected to receive."
OTHER WAYS OF INVOKING PART II OF THE COVENANT
There are other ways you can invoke Part II of your covenant and do something for God besides tithe of your income. However, if you want to make a financial demonstration, you should open the way by proving your faith financially through tithing. Jacob did, and became a millionaire.
Working for your favorite charity, giving your time in volunteer work, or doing church work are some of the public-service ways of invoking Part II of your covenant. Having regular periods of prayer, meditation, and inspirational study at home would be private ways of invoking Part II of your covenant.
A lady said, "I don't see why I should tithe my money to God's work. I tithe my time. I am a Sunday School teacher."
She was asked, "What are you trying to demonstrate? More time or more money?"
"I would like to have more time, but what I need most is more money." She got the point.
HOW TO ASSURE YOUR PROSPERITY
If you would have your material affairs prosper, like Jacob you should agree with God to give one-tenth of your income to His work, and begin to do so promptly. If you keep your part of the agreement, you may rest assured that a loving Father will keep His and abundantly bless you. Many people have written out such contracts and put them away in the full assurance that the terms would be carried out by both parties. It has been found by everyone who has consistently used this method that it has been fulfilled.
A businesswoman needed work and made her covenant. She soon had four jobs, which she juggled successfully for a time. She finally gave up three of them and kept the fourth one. Her income has continued to expand. But none of these jobs came her way until she made her Success Covenant.
A businesswoman had inherited a piece of property that she had tried in vain to sell for one million dollars. Nothing happened until she learned about the prospering power of Success Covenants, and decided to make one. Soon after making that Success Covenant, she sold that piece of property for the long-desired one million dollars! As agreed in her Success Covenant, she then shared one tenth of the sales price with the church where she had heard about Success Covenants.
That church gratefully used her tithe of $100,000 in their building program. That businesswoman has continued to tithe and to prosper through the use of Success Covenants.
Like Jacob, when you bring God into your daily affairs you come into a Land where peace and plenty go hand in hand. For this purpose declare often: "AS I BRING GOD INTO MY DAILY AFFAIRS, I COME INTO A LAND WHERE PEACE AND PLENTY GO HAND IN HAND."
PROSPERITY'S MOST FASCINATING LAW
A businessman recently wrote, "Many thanks to you, Dr. Ponder, for having the courage to explain the spiritual law of tithing in your books. Too many ministers I have known either apologize for speaking on tithing, or ignore the subject entirely. None of them explained tithing as one of the great laws of life. Yet I find that people are hungry - even starved - to know about the power of tithing, and to learn how to use it as a success principle."
In defense of her ministerial friends around the world, Catherine explained to this businessman that many ministerial schools do not teach their future ministers either the practical importance or the spiritual impact of tithing. Thus, many ministers ignore the subject out of sheer ignorance of one of life's most needed spiritual principles, thereby robbing themselves and their followers of both the inner enlightenment and outer blessings that should be theirs by divine right.
The word' 'tithe" means "tenth." And the ancient people were right: Ten is the magic number of increase. Jacob proved it to the hilt, and so can you!
SCRIPTURE: Genesis 28:20-21; Genesis 28:22
REFERENCE: The Millionaires of Genesis by Catherine Ponder
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Last updated
September 10, 2007
