Some Clarification...Maybe?

I think most of us have heard the saying "It's not important WHO you are, but WHOSE you are..." - Basically making the point that what gives us clear direction in life and the freedom that we all crave is to fully know and grasp the fact that we are children of God, fully accepted and fully loved, and to know our position in Christ is secure through His death on the cross and resurrection. We know that there is nothing that can make Him love us any more than He already does, as we are NOT saved according to our works (Ephesians 2:8-9) and not loved according to our works; along these same lines, there is nothing we can do to make Him love us any LESS than He already does (Romans 8:34-39). I was talking about all of this with a friend the other day and talking with her about grasping God's love for us and trusting that He longs to bless us, longs to be gracious to us, longs to protect us, provide for us, care for us, etc. (Isaiah 30:18, Psalm 116:5-7, Romans 10:11-13) - these are not just promises for "other people" but these are promises for ALL of us who are in Christ - His blood did not just cover a few of us who believe, but His promises and blessings are true for ALL of us who believe. So when I try to explain this to people and try to explain God's amazing love that is there for them to grab hold of, I get asked a similar question a lot - "So, does this mean that you believe in 'prosperity preaching'? " (And DH, I know you are probably reading this and thinking of our conversation the other day but I want you to know that I AM NOT talking about you!!) Seriously, I get asked this a lot by people I share my testimony with and my understanding of God's love for me - there is this concept of "If God loves me and wants to prosper me, does this means that if I really love Him, I'll be rich, have everything I ever wanted, never get sick, never have adversity", and so on. I just want to clarify once and for all that this is so not what I am saying. What I am saying is that life WILL be hard, and adversity WILL come. This is obvious as we live in a fallen world, where the "god of this age" (Satan) has been given permission, until the end time, to roam free in this world (2 Cor 4:4). So there WILL be corruption, there WILL be evil, there WILL be confusion, sadness, and pain and all of our lives as believers will look VERY different from one another, according to many different factors. One of us may be richer in finances, another richer in faith, another richer in health, and another richer in joy. No matter what our individual gifts are from the Lord, however, we all have the same position in Christ and we are all just as blessed as the other.
John 16:33 says "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." Our confidence, peace and joy lie not in the hope that we will never have problems and always have everything we want, but in the hope that NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, our Lord has OVERCOME the world and the final victory and the final say-so are HIS. As N.D. says to me, "God's endings are ALWAYS good, so if it's not good yet, then it's not over yet." Our hope in the Lord and our belief in His love for us are not based on material things we have or don't have or on how "easy" our life is - our hope is simply based on the fact of God's POWER to take care of all things, since He is in charge of all things, and that the final outcome will be for His glory no matter WHAT it looks like to us in this world (Ephesians 1:16-22). My hope is not in this world or in what I have in this world; my hope is in Christ alone and in His power and His provision (Colossians 1:27) and in His promise that no matter what happens and no matter how bad or ugly things look in this life, HE WILL work ALL of those things for His good and His glory (Romans 8:28). So, to give an over-all answer about "prosperity preaching" - no, I do not believe that because God loves me this means He wants to give me a beach house, a private jet, and clear me of all troubles in this life. What I DO believe is that no matter how little I think I have, no matter how hopeless things look according to the world's standards, and no matter how terrible I sometimes "feel", I serve a God who is so far above ALL of my circumstances, that I have nothing to fear and nothing to bemoan - He is my Abba, Daddy, and He is going to take care of ALL of it. And whether or not His way of taking care of it is the way I wish it would be done, His way is always best and always good and I will trust in Him - HE IS GOD, and I am not!! He is LOVE, and His way is best. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-sufficient and I WILL trust in Him - not because I "feel" like it, but because there is no other way to live my life but to trust in Him.
"Trust and Obey; for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to Trust and Obey"

Lord, I will trust in You and Your Goodness. I trust that you LOVE me, all the time, no matter how I feel. I trust that nothing can make you love me more or less; I am loved by your grace alone and nothing can take away from or add anything to your grace. No matter what this life looks like to me, I know that this world is not my home (Hebrews 11) and that I am a stranger here, with a better life waiting for me ahead. Lord, you will work all things for good and you will be glorified. I trust in you that no matter what happens, you will take care of me and do what is best for me in YOUR judgement and not my own. Your will and not mine be done. In Jesus's name, Amen.