Speaker 1: 0:00

Okay, I want to say something before I jump into our message. I got to share something that God did in our church this past week and it's absolutely wonderful and I hope it kind of sparked some faith in you. Okay, so last Sunday one of our church members came in feeling a little heavy. She got news that her daughter, who is pregnant, that they found two holes in the heart of the baby, and so obviously she was discouraged and so we prayed with her, prayed for healing over the baby, and then so on Wednesday so that happened on Sunday On Wednesday, the mom, the daughter, goes to the doctors for a report and there is no sign of any holes in the heart. The baby is completely healed. And let me say that one more time Sunday it wasn't going to happen Wednesday the baby's totally healed. How wonderful is that. And I just wanted to spark your faith because we do serve a miracle happening God and nothing is impossible for Him. So let's continue to build our faith as we trust in God. Or say you're the one Can I say I can't. Okay, I'll get back to my job, all right? All right? Well, here you go.

Speaker 1: 1:21

We are in part two of a series called Practicing Generosity. Last week I talked about how my kids started I-9 basketball this summer and the thing I was most shocked. There's a lot of things I was shocked about, but the thing I was most shocked about was how all these other kids they came in wearing Jordans, kds, lebrons, all while my kids were rocking the Air Targets. I was like, okay, this is not good. So last week I talked about how we started to look for, hey, maybe we should buy our kids, you know, some Jordans. What I didn't say was this part Okay. So before I went to look at you know, the cost of Jordans and stuff like that for kids, aaron and I had a conversation about it. We were talking about it. Oh, what about Jordans? What if we get this? And we were talking about it in front of this thing. Here you go the reason why I actually started to look at the price of them because later that day, when I went home, when I opened up my Instagram account, it was already Kids for Jordans were already on the browser.

Speaker 1: 2:26

So we live in a world nowadays where experts say, on average, three to five thousand you see, three to five thousand advertisements a day, all designed to appeal not to our rational brain no, consumerism is not rational at all but to our subconscious, our fears and our desires. And now all of that advertising is amplified by data mining for our deepest fears, insecurities, our questions, hopes and dreams all by watching and listening to what's right in front of our pockets. Now experts call this new economic model surveillance capitalism. Billions of dollars are spent on advertising every year and executives, executives, they're smart, they wouldn't spend that kind of money unless they knew that it worked, that it worked.

Speaker 1: 3:20

So, but here you go, even before our era of digital manipulation our hearts, our hearts. And again, when we talk about generosity, when we talk about these things, we're not just talking about external behaviors, we're always talking about matters of the heart. And I will actually even say this Jesus does care about the things that we do, but before he cares about the things that we do, he cares about the what? Conditions of our hearts, because we can change the things we do, but if we don't change our hearts, we'll end up going to the place that we said we'll never go back again. It's all about the condition of our heart. So here you go.

Speaker 1: 3:54

But before all the digital stuff, the human heart has longed to believe in the myth of more, if we long to believe in the lie. If I can just get a little bit more, then I will be happy. But here's the truth that cuts across the spectrum of the human experience no matter how much we get, it's never enough. It's never enough. The writer Ecclesiastes said it is thousands of years ago Whoever loves money never has enough. Whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. In fact, the general rule is this the more we get, the more we want. And to quote the prophet Biggie more money, more problems. So what are we going to do about this? Hence the truth. Oh wait, before I say that Rockefeller says this, the oil tycoon said this.

Speaker 1: 4:44

He said how much. Someone asked him how much is enough money? And he said just a little bit more. So here's the truth. How do we get? The more we get, the more neurotic we become, and this is counterintuitive insight of Jesus. We think money will make us happy, but often, not only does it not make us happy, it often makes us less happy, more anxious, distracted, discontent, lonely, etc. If you did a research on the stories of lottery winners, you'll be surprised about how many of their stories end in tragedy. A lot of regret as a result.

Speaker 1: 5:26

We in the West live in the most affluent generation in human history, yet so many of us are overwhelmed by fear, worry, greed and unsatisfied desires. And for us who have children or grandchildren, or our grandparents, you see this in our youth and our kids today. They seem like they want everything right now. They're growing up in an instant gratification mindset. And because they're growing up in an instant gratification mindset, the scheme of the enemy is this he's teaching our youth how not to wait on God, which, waiting on the Lord, is one of the most important things that we can do. So here you go.

Speaker 1: 6:00

It comes to no surprise that the majority of Jesus' teachings on money are warnings about the danger of it. Here we go. We got a couple of examples on greed Luke 12. Jesus says this. He says watch out. I like that. He's like watch out, be on your guard against all kinds of greed and greed. Here you go.

Speaker 1: 6:20

Greed is similar to lust, but about stuff, about things. It's an unquenchable desire for more than we have and more than we need. And Jesus is right. There are all kinds of greed. There's kind of a crass materialism which I think in our community, in Melothian. This is what we see. We struggle with a lot in our community. There's the I got to have a bigger house, a bigger TV, a bigger this, a bigger that, etc. And then there's a more personalized kind of greed and that's more about exotic travel or eating out or always having to have the latest fashion. But we're all vulnerable to some version of greed. Hence the line that Jesus says you got to watch out, watch out. That Jesus says you got to watch out, watch out. So why? Why is greed so bad and dangerous?

Speaker 1: 7:09

Verse 15 finishes life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. This is what Jesus is saying. That's not where the good life is to be found. That's not only as well dangerous. But look at this. Jesus says this. He says some people, like seeds sown among the, some people like seeds sown among thorns, hear the word. But the worries of this life check this part out here the deceitfulness of wealth and the desire for other things come and choke it and choke the word, making it unfruitful.

Speaker 1: 7:39

Notice Jesus' language here the deceitfulness of wealth. He doesn't say wealth is evil, he just says it's deceitful. It's deceitful why? Because it promises something that it cannot give you. It promised you something that you think if I finally get this, if I make this amount, then then I'm not going to have as much stress, then I won't be so anxious, then I will have security. Here you go, but it cannot give you contentment, identity and safety, For we all fall, because we all fall for that lie again and again. And yet wealth is often what keeps us from having the good life.

Speaker 1: 8:20

Jesus says this. He says truly. I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again, I tell you, he says it twice. That means it's important. You gotta listen twice. It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.

Speaker 1: 8:34

Here, wealth is an obstacle to the good life, not the path. But our culture teaches us that wealth is the path to the good life, and so you better get rich or die trying. But Jesus is saying that's not the path, that's the obstacle actually. So it's possible to follow Jesus into the kingdom of God and carry wealth with you? Yes, it is very possible, but it is also very hard to do, of course. All of us want to believe, though, that we're the exception to the rule. They're like Lord, if you just help me win the mega millions, I'm going to tithe 10% to LVC. Come on, can I get a good amen? Sure, most of us want to believe that, but I don't know. But Jesus' warning is haunting. Financial success can equal spiritual failure, and that's an idea you rarely hear about in our culture. But it's profoundly biblical. It's profoundly biblical, which is why which is likely why the way of Jesus teaching on money is a warning against greed.

Speaker 1: 9:36

The weird thing about greed is this Very few of us think of ourselves as greedy. Like, come on, come on, I've been in this gig for a long time. I've been pastoring for well over 15 years now, and people come to me and they talk to me about their anger. They talk to me about you know, different emotional health issues. They talk to me about maybe pornography, maybe sexual things, but I have never in my time of pastoring have ever sat in front of someone and they said, jacob, I am just a greedy person. Like, I'm telling you, it is through the roof, man, I got my thousand dollar smartphone and I need more. You know, I just never have had that conversation before, like ever, not one time and because I think we tend to unconsciously adopt the spinning norms of our culture, and we live in one of the most greedy, materialistic cultures in history. Hence, we're often like that frog you heard this illustration the frog that starts off in the water and you turn up the heat and eventually it dies, but it never knows. It never knows, and greed is killing our soul and we don't even know it.

Speaker 1: 10:41

So, is there a practice from the way of Jesus, is there a habit from the way of Jesus that can counteract this cultural norm that we all have? And yes, yes, there is. It is the spiritual habit of generosity, of being a person of generosity, of being a person that looks to help this world and looks to help our fellow person. Luke 11 says this here you go inside. What does the inside mean? That means your heart. Again, jesus is more interested in the condition of our hearts. Okay, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. Now, wickedness is a generic term, but greed is very specific. It's very specific. Notice that. That's the sin that Jesus calls out by name. Then he says this but now, as for what is inside of you, again, the heart. Be generous to the poor and everything will be clean. For you, meaning the silver bullet to greed, it is generosity. It's generosity. Yes, it's true that the more we get, the more we want, but the opposite is also true the more we give, the more happy and the more peaceful we become.

Speaker 1: 11:51

See, here you go the word used, the word that the biblical authors use to talk about this condition of the heart, is the word contentment. Now I'm going to be honest with you guys, the Gaines household. We have not been doing too good with this. We have not been doing too good with this. We have not been doing too good with this, if I can be transparent. Here you go.

Speaker 1: 12:11

The other, the other day, my youngest son hayden. We were outside playing and my youngest son hayden saw the amazon prime truck coming and he said truck. I said yeah, he said a package for me. I was like I was like I don't think we ordered anything, buddy. I don't think, I don't think we got anything coming. He's like no, there's a package for me. And so he waited by the mailbox and here you go, the Amazon truck pulled up and there was a package for us. I was like, oh no, what am I teaching my kids the moment they see an Amazon truck, they're expecting to get something. You can pray for me, okay.

Speaker 1: 12:50

Contentment is one of the most underrated virtues in the world. If greed is being unsatisfied by the desire for more, contentment is the opposite. It's being deeply happy and grateful for what you have. It's being free of the desire for more. Let me show you this in the New Testament. Okay.

Speaker 1: 13:08

First Timothy Paul puts this all together. Paul echoes the teaching of Jesus' warning about wealth, but he also adds a pathway to happiness. Check this out, verse 6. But godliness with contentment is great gain. Isn't that so good? Like what he's saying. If I spend daily time with God, if I connect to the heart of God, if I prioritize my relationship with God and I'm content in what I have, that's great gain. Like if I say God, I'm going to trust you, I'm going to lean into you, and then I'm not just over the top, desiring for things that I don't need. This is good, this is good news, isn't it? It's not what the culture teaches us, though? Right, and here's the truth. Most churches don't teach us this too. Most churches teach us that we're made for more and we need to get more things. We'll talk about that. Here you go. True wealth is not about having a lot, but being happy in God and content with what you have. And I'll be honest with you guys Again, me and my family, the Gaines family, we are 100% a Disney family.

Speaker 1: 14:18

We love Disney World. Okay, even before we had kids, Aaron and I would take trips to Disney World. We love going. Okay, we don't vacation anywhere else. We had a little beach vacation. It was so stressful. I was like that beach and that water was stressful. Give me a long line in the Orlando heat. That replenishes my soul. Something may be wrong with me, but we'll figure it out. Here you go. But we love we don't vacation anywhere. We go hard for it. Okay. But here are two things I want to share with you.

Speaker 1: 14:45

Okay, a few years ago, aaron received the unexpected bonus from work and we looked at each other and guess what? We said Disney trip. Come on, let's do a surprise trip. But right around the same time, a close friend of ours, two close friends of ours. They received devastating news that at that time their one-year-old son got diagnosed with a terminal illness and he wasn't going to make it. I do, I do got to say that that he has made it longer than what the doctors have said. He's he is still doing well right now.

Speaker 1: 15:12

But at that time it was, it was, it was tough, and so we got this bonus and they're also Disney people and we said, you know what, let's, let's give it away. Let's give it away and let's send them on this trip so they can make some memories with their little boy while they have them. And so we did it. We paid for it and it's not like a brag on us. We were because, trust me, I didn't want to brag, I wanted to go, but we sent them and they had a great time and all that. But here's the kind of the cool part after that, that same year, erin got another bonus, unexpected bonus. She's my sugar mama and we were able to take our family and go on that trip and it was absolutely wonderful. It was absolutely wonderful thing.

Speaker 1: 15:55

But that's not the main point I want to get. Okay, the main point I want to get is this here you go, we love it, it's fun to us, we save up for it, that is our trip. But here's the thing I want to say Recently we bought a little $15 inflatable pool. We call it a donut pool and it goes down, has a little slide, and we have in our backyard, and one of our favorite things to do this summer has been to just sit outside with our kids, jump in the little pool with them and just watch them play. Watch them play and enjoy them and splash around. There's no fireworks, there's no rides, there's no Mickey ears, but there's joy and there's peace and there's contentment, contentment and gratitude. And in that moment I'm reminded that God is good in the big and the small thing he provides and he invites us to be generous. But he also teaches us to find joy not just in the elaborate things of life, but in the everyday things of life. And sometimes contentment can look like going to a fun trip, but a lot of times it's just a donut pool in the backyard, being thankful that your kids are alive and healthy.

Speaker 1: 17:05

And so here you go, paul continues. He says for we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it, and, as the saying goes, you can't take it with you. All wealth is temporary. Either you lose it. Either you will lose it all in one day, or you'll die and lose it before then. But check this out, he continues. He says but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. And that Greek word for clothing literally means covering, and the idea is that if you have the basics of life food, clothing, shelter, etc. As long as you have God in each other, that's enough. That's enough. So Paul continues. He says for those who want to get rich, or it can be translated those who long to be rich, who set their hearts on being wealthy, check this out fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plug people into ruin and destruction.

Speaker 1: 18:03

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Now, this is probably one of the most misquoted verses in the Bible Some people think is money is a root of all kinds. No, that's not true. That's not what the Bible says. And it's also not the root of all kind of evils. The NIV says it perfectly it is a root. It is a root of all kinds of evil, meaning that it's the evil underneath so many of the evils in our soul, in our society.

Speaker 1: 18:36

Money itself is not evil. It can do great things, it can do great evil, it can do great good. I think the power, the power of, not only of generosity but of business, and how we have people who start business and they do great things with that. That's a good thing. But neither is money neutral. Here's the thing. Some people say, oh, it's just neutral. Well, no, it's not. Money's also not neutral. It's powerful. It's a nuclear energy. It can bring life or death and it is very hard to steward. Well, it's kind of like for all my nerds in here, for all my nerds, it's kind of like Frodo's ring in JR Tolkien's classic. You know, he gets the ring right and what does it say? It says only the purest of heart can stand a chance at being corrupted by its power. But even then it's a weight on the soul that tends to deform the inner person. There's some truth in that. Money love is far more dangerous than most of us realize. Hence the next line.

Speaker 1: 19:36

Some people eager for money have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. This is dramatic language that Paul is saying here. He's a pretty dramatic guy, but it says it wounded themselves with many sorrows or caused themselves untold agonies of mind, and you may have seen this if you ever watch someone gain wealth. The warnings of Jesus in the scriptures are incredibly true. Not only does money not make people happy, it is often a root of many kinds of evil. It often exposes other issues that were already there.

Speaker 1: 20:15

But now there's this power and we see this, don't we? I talked about this a few weeks ago. We see this with celebrities all the time. We say, well, why did they do that? Well, they are wealthy and they had on-check desires. And when we have on-check desires, it leads to hurting humanity, and so we got to bring our—that's why Paul says it's to be with Jesus, it's to become like Jesus and it's to do the stuff that Jesus did. It's contentment. It's time with God. Spending daily time with God. Got nourishing my soul, finding union with God, connecting with God here you go. We can grow LVC, and I think God wants to grow this church. I really do. But if we just put people in the chairs but people don't know how to follow Jesus in their daily lives, man, we are missing the point it's about. Can I follow Contentment with where I'm at, knowing that God is for me? Here you go. So what is Paul's solution to the problem? It's contentment.

Speaker 1: 21:18

Randy Alcorn, in a book I just finished reading, given is a Good Life. I recommend everyone to read it. I'm always recommending books to you guys. Sorry, but he says this being satisfied in who you are and what you have, those who love and serve Jesus can be truly content. Those who love and serve Jesus can be truly content. Those who love and serve money can never be, can never be. To be content is to realize that you have enough, even more, and to be happy with what you have.

Speaker 1: 21:45

I think my problem is, the problem that I have sometimes is I think, well, maybe I'll be content once we hit this goal marker, once we get this, these many people at church, and I'll be happy Once this happens. And then, all right, once I buy this and once I get through this season, here you go. Sometimes we can be wishing the way this season to try to get to the next season, when God wants to teach you something in the season that you're in, that God wants you to be present in the moment and where you're at, because you can't even advance to where God wants to take you in the next season without learning what he's trying to teach you in this season. And so and so and so, here you go. But that's what happens, right, and so we want so, so, but, but but that's how contentment, that's not how contentment works. Contentment doesn't work like, oh, when I get there then I'll be happy. No, no, it's learning right now, right here and now. We could be happy here and now through the practice of generosity.

Speaker 1: 22:36

So there's two facets to this discipline. I want to give you some practical stuff. Is that cool if I can be practical today? But people are like, no, I was like, oh, okay, I don't mean practical anyways, okay. The first one is probably the more obvious one.

Speaker 1: 22:50

We give our resources away. We need to give our resources away. We need to give our resources away so we freely share. Parents I'm going to talk to the parents in here, or the grandparents in here Parents who are raising more than one kid don't you love it when your kids share? Doesn't it just make so much more harmony in the house, like when they actually just freely, openly share, when they understand that the abundance of their toys don't even come for them because they don't have a job, but they freely share, and isn't the opposite? True, there's so much strife in the house, unnecessary arguments, you yelling at them when they don't want to share. There's something about being generous that brings peace and joy and contentment, being generous that brings peace and joy and contentment. And giving is God's antidote to greed. The more we give away, the less control money has over our hearts. But the other side of generosity is to simplify our lives, to edit it down to the essentials of what really matters Generosity, give and simplicity.

Speaker 1: 23:55

Gk Chesterton said this. He said there are two ways to get enough. One is to continue to accumulate more and more, and the other is to desire less. Put it another way, there's two ways to be rich earn more or want less. I think the second one may be a little bit easier.

Speaker 1: 24:14

The disciplined pursuit of less has come to be called simplicity. Our simple living in our secular world is what? Minimalistic Becoming minimalistic. And so how much can be said of this discipline of simplicity? So, first of all, simplicity is not the same as poverty. It's not the same. It's not about having nothing, but it's about being. It's about living with less. It's about living with less. It's not just a style of decor. You walk into someone's house and they have like one pineapple on the table. It's like, okay, that's cool. Yeah, that's not what it is. It's not the Christian version of tidying up.

Speaker 1: 24:50

You know, john Mark Comer defines simplicity as this limiting the number of our possessions, expenses, activities and social obligations to a level where we are free to live joyfully and generously in the kingdom with Jesus. I love that. It's basically like this when Jesus says, seek his kingdom first, he didn't say second. He didn't say second. He didn't say once you got all your retirement straight, he said seek Him first. Even before the promotion, even before you get into student loan debt, seek Him first, seek Him first. So here you go. It's flipping the question from what else can I get to Seek him first? Seek him first. So here you go. It's flipping the question from what else can I get to what can I do without? And this question only makes sense inside a worldview like Jesus, when there's more joy in giving than receiving and where, as we just read, life does not consist of abundance of possessions.

Speaker 1: 26:02

At some point in the life of a Jesus follower, we all need to explore the question how much do we give? How much do we give? But the reality is this Most people have so little margin in their life they feel like they can't give at all. They feel like they can't give at all. To live a generous life, you will need margin in your finances. You will need a budget with room to share. You will need margin in your schedule, with room for interruptions for people in need and rest and delight. You need margin in your relationships.

Speaker 1: 26:27

But most of us, we fall under our capacity. We fall over our capacity, not under it. We live. We live over it, not under it. Now, this is this is so true when it comes to our finances, not under it. We live over it, not under it. Now, this is so true when it comes to our finances. Isn't it the general rule? Here you go.

Speaker 1: 26:40

The general rule of followers, of people who are following Jesus, who want to practice simplicity, is this People should look at how we spend our money, the cars we drive, the home we live in, how much we eat out, etc. And they should assume we make less money than we actually do. If you imagine a line of your income, most people live over the line, and that leads to what? Debt? And now I'm not about to give us the five tips on how to get out of debt, even though I do got some good resources for you and we are starting Financial Peace University this fall. I would love for you to do it. It's great, it's wonderful, but what I want you to see is this If we're living over the line instead of under the line, over the line leads to anxiety.

Speaker 1: 27:29

Over the line leads to I don't have a plan for retirement because I don't know what I'm going to do. Over the line leads to I'm stressed out and I got to make this paycheck, or we're not going to live the way we want to live. Honorant means I'm open to be generous, I'm willing to help someone out when they're in need. I'm willing to do this. Is that making sense? That we've seen? Is that making sense? Because the line over the line is anxiety, but below the line is contentment and generosity.

Speaker 1: 27:54

And this is the exact opposite of most of our culture. Where we live, especially, like I said, in Midlothian, people are so image obsessed. It's normal for people to drive luxury cars and live in huge homes yet live paycheck to paycheck. And again, I'm not trying to slam nobody, this is not a slamming thing, it's just. I just want us to be honest. I want us to be honest and we have to acknowledge the spiritual warfare that's happening in our community, because we're called to be a generous people to love the loss, here you go.

Speaker 1: 28:22

Let me put it this way Starbucks, starbucks. I love Starbucks. Kind of you buy one of those drinks once a week. $7. To have that nice little quick fix is enough money to sponsor a compassion kid right now, and it pays for their food for the whole year. It's just up to us to figure out how we want to live. Nothing wrong with Starbucks, come on, it's just up for us to decide. So, instead, here you go. So, instead of loving others, we compare to others. Their two kids are playing sports. Well, I need my kid to be in three sports. They got a new car. It's time for me to upgrade. They did a reno on their deck. It's time for us to do a renovation too. Instead of just being happy for them and bringing them some cookies so you can hang out on their deck.

Speaker 1: 29:17

The way of Jesus is the exact opposite. Again, this sounds nice, but it means we must regularly discipline ourselves not to buy the things we can't afford. And what Paul says this and Paul says it says and you will be content, you will be content. And again, that Greek word implies a resolve of heart not to give in to greed, but instead be happy with what you have. There are times when you have to draw a line in the sand and say no more, I have enough, I don't need that other thing. I know Target makes it so easy and I can just order and drive up and they bring it to me, and that guy who works there is so nice. But no everyone I know who is generous has some kind of self-imposed limit on their lifestyle. They work in both directions towards generosity and from getting away from greed. And listen, this practice looks different for all people, based on your stage of life, your income level and much more. But here's the thing you may be struggling to put food on the table, but Jesus' warning about greed are not just for the rich. They're not just for the rich. His call is for all of us to be content in what we have, and this is one of the most beautiful verses on contentment. Check this out.

Speaker 1: 30:30

Hebrews 13 says this keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have. Keep your heart free. And again, when we speak of financial freedom, we do usually what Mean people thinking or talking about early retirement. Right, that's typically what people are talking about. But you can make so much money that you never need to work again. But you can be anything but free because you can be enslaved to greed and fear. But true financial freedom isn't millions of dollars. It's what Richard Foster calls this a joyful life of carefree on concern for possessions. And that's what we see in the life of Jesus and that is the goal Not riches and definitely not poverty, but freedom and generosity.

Speaker 1: 31:11

And notice what Hebrews says next, because God has said never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Ultimately, what you are searching for in money can only be found in God. It can only be found in God, whether it's peace and happiness, or safety and security, or satisfied desire. We think, if I can get a little bit more, then then I can be content. No, no, no. What we are searching for in money can only be found in a real relationship with Jesus. And the good news, the gospel, is this we already have all we need through access, through Jesus, to live in His kingdom now, here and now. Heaven wants to invade earth now, with your life. God is our Father provider and he will never leave you nor forsake you. Right here and right now you have everything you need to live a life that God is calling you to live, to be a person of generosity, to be a person that is not consumed with fear and anxiety, and I must compete. Instead, you, right now, today, can have a relationship with Jesus, that you spend daily time with Him and find connection with Him and contentment for your life.

Speaker 1: 32:23

I got a goal for us today. Okay, I got extras, I got to practice. I want us to do this week. If you want to, you don't have to, you can do whatever you want, but this week, what if you cleaned out your closet? What if you just clean out? Some of you are like man, I've been needing to do that for a while anyways. What if you clean out your closet and the stuff you don't need anymore, you give it away? You decide to live simplistic, and then for my parents and grandparents we may need some help on this one why don't we take our kids in their playroom or their bedroom, wherever you keep their toys, help them sort out the things they don't need and go with them to a place and donate it and teach them right now to be generous is way better than to receive that sound good God, jesus, holy Spirit, we come to you right now saying thank you for your generous love that, while we were still sinners, christ died for us.

Speaker 1: 33:29

You poured out your generous love on us. So we say, Lord, we don't want to be caught in the trap of greed I have to have this or I have to have that thing. Instead, we want our purpose aligned with you. We want to do the things you have called us to do and we want to be a blessing along the way. So, holy Spirit, we give you the conditions of our heart. Would you, lord, reveal to us areas of our heart that you want to do some things on, that? You want to work on that. You want to do some things on, you want to work on. Come, holy Spirit.

Speaker 1: 34:28

Jesus, we say more of you and less of us. Say more of what you want, lord, and right now I just really feel the Lord is saying he wants to spend daily time with you. I feel the Lord is saying that he is eager to hang out with you. I don't know if that's for someone specific or just in general. I know God wants all of us, but just specifically to someone you've been putting up different roadblockers to keeping you from having daily time with God.

Speaker 1: 34:56

I actually just feel like the roadblocker is that's for the more spiritual people, not people like me. And I feel like the Holy Spirit is saying, no, he wants to spend daily time with you. Come, holy Spirit. And then I also just feel like the Holy Spirit is saying, man, he wants to pour generously out on you, but he's saying trust him, trust him in your finances, trust him, trust him in it. You trust him with your salvation, trust him with your finances. So come Holy Spirit. So come Holy Spirit. We thank you for your love, we thank you for your goodness and we say more of you. We love you in this place today, in Jesus' name, amen, amen, let's give God some praise in here today.