Assessing Your Current Assets

Weekly Devotional by Patrice Tsague

What do you have in your hands? What do you have of value that God can use to transform your life or business? Are you using your assets sustainably?

Let’s explore this topic together in today’s devotional:

Although the word “asset” is one of the most important terms when it comes to generating wealth, it is the least understood economic term by Christians. Revenue generation begins with an asset; without the ability to generate revenue, wealth cannot be built. Many Christians operate beneath their financial potential, not because of their lack of ability, but solely because of their inability to leverage their assets to work for their benefit. Many do not even know what assets they have or they simply undermine the assets they do have.

An asset is something of value that can be used to generate revenue. There are two types of assets: borrowed assets and wholly owned assets. Borrowed assets are assets in your possession that you have legal rights to use with liabilities attached to them. Wholly owned assets are assets that are in your possession that you have the legal rights to use without any liabilities attached to them. The best form of assets is wholly owned assets, but there are times when the wholly owned assets you possess are not enough to generate revenue unless you mix them with borrowed assets.

In 2 Kings 4, we find the story of a widow who is facing bankruptcy and is about to lose her children to the creditor. Afraid and unsure of what to do, she goes to the Prophet Elisha for help. Instead of giving her money to pay her creditors, the Prophet coaches her on how to turn what she has into a profitable business so that she can pay her creditors and become permanently free. The Prophet asks the widow, “What do you have in your house?” In other words, “What are your current assets?” What the Prophet recognized was that no child of God is ever left without some assets, regardless of their circumstances.

What are your most profitable tangible and intangible assets? There are two categories of assets. Most balance sheets categorize them as current assets and fixed assets. Current assets are cash assets or assets that can be turned into cash within 12 months. Fixed assets are non-cash assets that are difficult to turn into cash and will take at least 12 months or more to turn into cash. Cash, skills, gifts, ideas, property, investments, relationships, knowledge, equipment, and supplies are also included in your assets. Part of the problem with most of us is that we undermine the assets we have. We envy what others have instead of realizing that God gave each of us talents or assets based on our abilities (Matthew 25:14). As we demonstrate faithfulness over those assets, He increases our assets, but if we demonstrate a lack of faithfulness, what we have is taken away (Matthew 25:29).

Your circumstances will never change until you learn how to assess your assets and leverage them profitably. What you think is of little value, others may need. Assets have little or no value while we hold on to them, but once we begin to trade them, we will become amazed at how much value they have. Some people need what you have and are willing to pay for it. Find a way to take what you have into the marketplace so that others can make use of it and you can be blessed.

Think about organizations like eBay, Amazon, or Craigslist. These are Internet businesses that have made people millionaires by giving them a medium to trade their assets with others around the world. Most of the things traded are things others had in abundance or had no use for, but somebody else, somewhere else, needed them and was willing to pay (sometimes top dollar) for them. What do you have in your house or in your business?

What ideas do you have? Seek the Lord to give you the wisdom to measure your current assets so that you can use them profitably for His glory.

My prayer for you today is that God will give you the wisdom to measure your current assets well so that you can use them profitably for His glory.