By Youths Panelists consisting of Pastor Lukman, Deaconess Funmi Asman, Dr (Mrs) Grace Garbson and Online Investor Brother Seyi.
One major thing we need to know is that God is not against prosperity.
In 3John 2, He said “beloved, I wish above all things that thou may prosper and be in health even as your soul prospereth”.
Secondly, in Deuteronomy 8:18, the Bible says “remember the Lord thy God for it is he that gives you the power to make wealth”.
Third, nobody respects the poor. Proverbs 14:20 says “the poor is hated by his own neighbours”.
Deuteronomy 15:11 says “the poor shall not cease in the land”. You will not be part of the poor in Jesus name.
Lastly, you need prosperity to share the gospel, to give to the needy and to create generational blessings for your children instead of focusing and praying against generational curses.
The next question is how can you generate wealth? How can I generate wealth?
First, you must create spiritual wealth by paying your tithes and giving your offerings because there are some problems in life that money cannot solve and it is only your connection with God through the spiritual wealth you have created that will speak for you.
Second, learn to save and invest. There is a difference between savings and investment. For instance if you earn ten dollars, pay your tithes of one dollar as spiritual investment. It remains nine dollars. You can save fifty cents or one dollar out of it depending on your capacity and spend the rest on basic needs. As time goes on, you can think of a business and use your savings to invest in that business and the profits you get from that business goes back to your savings account again. The theory is: save, invest and save. By doing that, you are creating wealth for yourself and your generations.
Second, you can invest in real estate or engage in land banking. There are risks associated with land banking or real estate namely: unverified land location, lack of due diligence, lack of exit strategy (how do I flip or sell), inability to identify financial goals etc. The good news is that the benefits outweigh the risk. Land appreciates faster. There was a plot of land that goes for 800k (eight hundred thousand naira) at Gwagwalada Abuja in 2023, as at June 2025, the same plot of land is now selling at 2.4million. Imagine the profits you would be making if you bought at 800k and selling at 2.4m now. This kind of investment also helps you to do other things. It helps you to transfer wealth to generations yet unborn and you don’t need to be focusing on generational curses but rather, you will be focusing on generational blessings. You save your future by starting early today
Third, you can invest in an online business namely forex trading, crypto trading etc. To excel in online business, you must be visible, create value and be versatile. You must have a brand and have a niche. A niche is what you do and what you are good at. Take your time. Be disciplined, be consistent and be focused. Don’t be in a hurry. It may take time before you break through. You must get training on what you want to do. Post yourself and post your products online. Don’t be on all the social media platforms otherwise you may lose track. You can decide to be on one or maximum of two social media platforms. You can be on Facebook or tik Tok. You can even start with WhatsApp business. Do a video of your products and post on Whatsapp. Let people know why they should buy your product. Talk about it. People will begin to patronize you. Social media marketing is the fastest marketing platform. Be part of it. You can also start coaching people with the ideas you have. Do a video recording of that idea and post it on your social media platforms. You would be amazed. There was someone who did a ten minute video of how to clean and wash dreadlocks and posted it online. She made her first income of thirty pounds on a ten minute video and started getting more referrals.
Four, build social capital through trust, hard work and diligence. Be friendly with people. Maintain integrity. If you borrow money from people, ensure you return it back. If you don’t return it, the Creditor will not lend you money again and you are destroying your social capital.
Finally, I want you to be careful as you invest and create wealth. You need wisdom from above. Second, learn to start small. The Bible says do not despise the days of small beginnings. Even this Church started small. All the big banks and corporations or big businessmen we know today started small. Start small and learn from your mistakes. It is never too late to start small. As much as possible, don’t borrow money from banks to start your business. You may not be able to get out of it rather look unto friends and family members to raise the capital and ensure you pay back. The Lord be with you as you comply in Jesus name.
Culled from 15th June 2025 edition of Reporter for Christ newspaper .