Back in the Black – Part 1

MESSAGE TRANSCRIPTION: 

Well, happy New Year, everybody. How we doing? All right. So good to see all of you. Man, you look great. This fasting thing it’s working for you, All right? Your skin’s looking nice and bright and fresh, right? You feeling good? You feeling good, church? Come on, you feeling good?

How many were here last week? How many were here last week? So a lot of you, okay. Listen, you’re two for two perfect attendance. Way to go. If you’re like me, you skipped last week, so I’m like, one for two. All right, so we’re in it together, But so good to see all of you, especially if you’re new around here. My name is Dave, and one of the pastors here and would really love to get connected to you and me today of the other lobby after our time in here together. And regardless of where you might be on your spiritual journey, we just want you to know we throw our doors wide open to you, to your family, to your friends every single Sunday. And we’re just really glad you’re here and hope you’ll keep coming back.

Listen, I’m really curious to know, do we have any English teachers here, maybe with us today, or maybe some communications majors or journalists or wannabe writers? If you are here with us today, then you will know, right? You will know what the simile is, right? Simile, for those of us that don’t know, I brought a little definition. Okay, here it is. A simile is a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid. That’s what a simile is. Look, you already learned something. We’re not even 3 minutes into the message.

So I came across some attempts that some college students made in a writing class at a simile, and they were fantastic. They were just actually they’re awesome. And I brought a few to share with you. Are you going to love this? Okay, here’s the first example of one college student says this “The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.” All right, good try. Not sure if they really get it yet, but let’s look at another one. All right, “John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.” Did I mention that these are college students? All right, let’s look at another one. “Her hair glistened in the rain like nose hair after a sneeze.” It’s an amazing image. Not sure it’s a simile, though. I got one more. Oh, no, I got two more. Okay, “Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.” Maybe they were from California. I’m not really sure. I got one more for you, ready? Here it is. Listen to this one. “Money is like a promise. Easier made than kept.” I wrote that one up. And money-money can be like that, right? It’s easier made than kept.

You see, when you keep more of the money that you make, that’s called “Being in the Black.” But when you spend or you lose more money than you make, that’s called “Being in the Red.” Now, when my dad was teaching me this as a teenager, he put it to me this way. Yeah, that next one. Okay. No. All right. Here it is. When your income is less than your outgo, then your upkeep will lead to your downfall. That’s some good old Pennsylvania Dutch wisdom right there. When you’re this, I’ll say it again. If you take note, you might want to write this down. When your income is less than your outgo, then your upkeep will lead to your downfall. You see, that is why we’re doing the series is because I want all of you to live in the black. I want all of you to be able to live in the black. And if you’re not living in the black today, where you keep more of the money that you make. If you’re not there today. Listen, I want to help you. I want to coach you. I want to teach you. I want to provide every resource that you need to get “Back in the Black.” Anybody want to be “Back in the Black”? Come on. Today, you know. And here’s why. Because living in the red is no. Is no fun. Can I get an amen? And living in the red is no fun. It’s full of worry and stress and anxiety and sleepless nights and conflict within our homes. So, listen, if you’re tired of worrying about how you’re going to pay your bills. Where the where you’re going to be able to whether you’re going to be able to, you know, make that mortgage or not or how you’re going to put the kids through college. If you’re tired of living paycheck to paycheck or if you are stable in your finances, or even better if you’re secure in your finances, but yet you want to go to the next level of learning how to manage and build wealth god’s way. Then this series is for you. This series is for everyone. And we’re all at different places on this financial continuum.

And here’s the interesting thing about Jesus and Scripture. You know, Jesus had a lot to say about money. In fact, in the New Testament, Morris said about money, then heaven and hell combined. Of the 29 parables that Jesus taught, 12 of them were about money. In fact, the word generosity is used in the Bible more than the word prayer, faith, or love. I think God is trying to teach us something. He’s trying to teach us that money, when it’s managed wisely, when it’s managed his way, can lead to a lot of blessing in life, but when it’s managed poorly, it can destroy our life. It could lead to our downfall.
So I want to help you win with money. Can I get an amen from somebody today? And here’s why. Because I understand it’s the number one stress in our homes today. It’s the number one reason couples fight. It’s the number one reason marriages end in divorce. It’s not infidelity. It’s not irreconcilable differences. It’s fighting and not being on the same page when it comes to money. And I read all the headlines. I hear what all the economists are saying is going to happen in 2023. But I also understand that God does not rest on the government shoulders, but the government rests upon God’s shoulders. I also understand the promises of God that he says I will supply all of your needs according to my riches in Christ Jesus. I also understand the promise of God that says the righteous shall never be forsaken, nor are children begging bread. I also understand the promise of God that the blessing of the Lord will make a person wealthy, and He will add no sorrow to it. But those promises are based on managing money God’s way, not our way, not the way of the world, but that it’s God’s way.

So here’s what I want to do in this series. I want to-I want to coach you. I don’t just want preacher. I want to be your coach over these next few weeks. And by the way, I would encourage you to plant yourself in this house. Especially during this series. Don’t miss one single weekend. I mean, unless you got the flu or less, you’re out of town on business. You be here every week for the next five weeks and watch what God will do in your life. I want to coach you on how to manage your money wisely.

And speaking of coaches, one of my favorite all-time coaches was the NFL coach Vince Lombardi. Anybody know Vince Lombardi, the legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers? You know? Yeah, Coach Lombardi. And you know what he’s famous for? He was famous for every training camp. He would gather all of the veterans. And also all of the rookies, and he bring them all into the room, and then he would he’d pick up the pigskin. And by the way, these guys have been playing ball competitively since they were eight years old their whole life. And Coach Lombardi would hold up the ball, and he’d say, “Gentlemen, this is a football.” I mean, how basic can you get? To a group of men that have committed their whole life to this sport. Gentlemen, this is a football.

And so today, like Coach Lombardi, I want to get to the basics. I want to start right there, like money management 101, and teach you a theology of money, maybe many of which you just don’t understand from Scripture. So is that okay with you? Can we just start right from the ground floor and let me coach you? Let me say, hey, hey, this is a theology of money, money management 101.

And it’s my prayer, and it’s my goal is, to help you and to help so many families come together so that they can experience, so they can move towards financial freedom in their life. And when I talk about financial freedom, I’m not talking about financial arrogance. I’m not talking about financial independence. I’m talking about freedom that comes when your priorities and your values. Are aligned with God and his Word. I’m talking about financial freedom. I’m talking about some kind of sanity when it comes to our spending habits. You know, I’m talking about financial freedom. I’m talking about a deep sense of joy and gratitude, and contentment, right? And even a lot of fun when it comes to your finances. Plus, you know, when you get this right, you get the satisfying feeling of achieving God’s purpose in your life.

And so I just want to say to you right up front, this series is in no way designed to bang some more bucks at a church, people. Can I get an amen? This series is not designed to pile on guilt. Or to, you know, shame you or beat anybody up about financial mistakes you’ve made, because Lord knows we’ve all, myself included, have made plenty of financial mistakes. Can I get another amen from somebody today?

You know, here’s what I’m just trying to say. Can we just for the next few minutes together, can we just let our defenses down? Put aside whatever cynicism you might be experiencing right now. Put aside what pride might be in your heart. And if we could all just come humbly to God and to allow Him to teach us from His Word how to manage money God’s way. In a way that’s going to honor him, in a way that’s going to help others, and in a way that’s going to allow us to experience financial freedom.

So as we get started today, this is the first of two basic hey, this is a football principle. Here it is, ready? If you’re taking notes, you want to write this down. Number one: God owns it all. I forget that. We forget that. But it’s true. God owns it all. Who owns it all? God owns it all. You know, Jesus would tell these stories. He was a master storyteller. And oftentimes, when Jesus would tell a story, he would use simile. He was brilliant at it. I mean, he and he did it all the time. And he would say things like this, like the Kingdom of heaven, is like. You ever hear that statement? Jesus told one of his stories, a parable, an earthly story that had a spiritual meaning. He would say things like, You know, the Kingdom of heaven is like a man who found a buried treasure in a field. And he went, and he sold everything he owned so he could buy the field. The Kingdom of Heaven is like a shepherd that has 100 sheep and one gets lost. So he leaves the 99 behind to go after the one. The Kingdom of Heaven is like a wedding reception. The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed. The Kingdom of heaven is like fresh wine. The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast. The Kingdom of heaven is like a net. And on and on and on, Jesus would go with simile.

So I want to use one of His stories today where he invokes this literary device called simile to teach you these principles. You might be familiar with this story. It’s found in Matthew chapter 25, and this is how Jesus starts the story, “Again, The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants” or his employees, “and he entrusted his money to them while he was gone. He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last, dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.” Now, do you see the first principle embedded right here in this story where he uses simile? Do you see it? He entrusted, whose money? HIS money to them? He entrusted his money. Whose money was it? It was his. It was the master’s money. But he entrusted it to them.

Is anybody teaching one of their kids how to drive, anybody right now? Yes, sir. Let’s just pause right now for a word of prayer. Let’s say I’m teaching one of my boys right now how to drive, and it’s been an adventure. Let me tell you. It’s been very well, it’s really it’s improved my prayer life. And as I’m teaching him how to drive, I’m entrusting my car to him. Like there’s really no discussion or debate or confusion about who the car belongs to. Who owns the car? It’s my car. It’s not his car. It’s Becca’s car. We own it together. Our name is on the title, and I could take my car back whenever I want, for whatever reason I want. His only reason, he only has responsibilities. Yet I maintain the right of ownership. And in the same way, every single possession. That I have. Including that car. Really doesn’t belong to me. I may have possession of it, but I don’t own it. Someone else owns the car. My Heavenly Father. In fact, every possession that I have in my life, my house, my car, my clothes, my belongings, my 401k, my bank account. My marriage. My children. This church, this ministry. I don’t own it. It all belongs to God, and I just manage it. I know this sound. This is like, Oh, yeah, I get it. It’s a football. But we can forget so quickly, isn’t that true?

You see, here’s the difference between owners and managers. You see, an owner has rights, and a manager has responsibilities. And when it comes to all the possessions that you and I have. Oh, we have no right, but yet all of the responsibility to manage it well. In this principle, my friend. It’s woven all throughout Scripture. In fact, in the Old Testament, God says this to Moses. Think about this. God owns it all. So what I’m trying to teach you. God owns it all. Who owns it all? God owns it all. So here’s what God says to Moses, “To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it.” He owns it all. In fact, then God than Moses says this to the people. Look at the next one, “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.'” Like I built this business. I put myself through school. I saved my money. I built my career. You may say that “But remember,” Moses says to the Israelites and to you, “the Lord, your God,” remember the Lord, your God, “for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so it confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors as it is to today.” January 8th, 2023. And then God says this to a guy named Joe “Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me.” This is God speaking. It all belongs to me. I own it all. And then, through the Prophet Haggai, God says this, “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord Almighty.” Then through, a worship leader named Asaph, If he said this and Psalm 50 “For every animal of forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” They’re mine too. “I know every bird in the mountains and the insects in the fields.” They are mine too. “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world is mine and all that is in it.”.

I think it’s pretty clear who owns it all. God himself. And listen, he’s not on some ego trip here, gang. He understands that he’s not some kind of, like, selfish hoarder. He understands he’s a very generous God and his very nature. But, you know, often times here’s what happens. He knows that we have the propensity, that we have the tendency to puff ourselves up. With things like self-sufficiency. Like we can go through life thinking. Yes, all my. I built this. I earned it. I saved it. And you know what? That thought, man, that can get us into trouble. Psalm 24 says this, “The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.” You know this principle from Scripture. It just reminds me, the very basic, the most basic level of all, that God owns it all. And if I really believe this, man, it frees me up. It really gives me peace knowing that man, it all belongs to him. And he can take it back whenever, however, for whatever reason he wants, because it belongs to him.

This principle also it teaches me that not only is my giving a spiritual decision. But every other spending decision I make is a spiritual decision. I’ll just tell you, there’s nothing more spiritual in your life than buying a new car. That is a spiritual decision. There’s nothing more spiritual in your life than going to the grocery store or going on vacation. There’s nothing more spiritual than going to play golf or going shopping. Nothing more spiritual than paying your taxes or paying off debt because every spending decision is a spiritual decision. Because we’re using his money to do it. Now, the good news is that we all have a lot of latitude. And the really good news is that God has blessed us so that we can enjoy the things that he has blessed us with. Are you thankful? Come on, God wants you to have fun with it. God wants you to have fun. He wants you to enjoy it.

But we have to remember every spending decision we have that we make in our life. We’re using his resources. So God owns it all. That’s the first principle God owns-who owns it all? God owns it all. Here’s the second principle. The first principle, it helps us understand “the who” when it comes to developing a theology of money. The second principle I want to share with you. This is a football, ladies and gentlemen. It’ll answer the why. Why is there money? Let’s look at it because God, he has enrolled us in Character Development school.

Why does God use money to develop our character? You know, God uses a lot of things in our life to develop character. But I want you to know that the most important thing that you bring home from work is not your paycheck, it’s your character. It’s who you are, your values, your priorities, your honesty, your trustworthyness, your work ethic. And God cares more about your character than anything else. And he uses all kinds of things along the way to develop and to shape, and to mold our character. He uses our relationships. He uses our marriages, our kids. He’s our in-laws. He uses a mean boss. He uses a really hard coach or teacher. He uses sometimes even illness or even loss to develop our character so that we can become more like his son Jesus, which is his number one goal for our lives. And money management is just simply one of those things that God uses to put us into character development school.

You know, I heard years ago there are three ways God uses money. He uses money as a tool, as a test, and as a testimony. First, let’s look at how he uses money as a tool. He uses money as a tool. He uses it to shape us and to mold us in very similar way to how a potter will shape a piece of clay. God uses money to shape and to and to chisel off the things in our life that maybe don’t need to be there, that are slowing us down and holding us back from experiencing the fullness and the goodness of all that it means to live a surrendered life to Jesus. And he uses all of those things, even our drives and our appetites and our passions, that are innately put in us by God himself. Did you realize that God does, he puts an innate. Like it’s a congenital, or it’s an innate passion and drive inside of you to excel. You realize that? That you have that drive, that ambition to excel? That’s been put there by the hand of God himself.

I’ll never forget the first time I learned this word, Excel. Not the spreadsheet. Talking about Excel, I was thinking like fifth or sixth grade, and my teacher was Mr. Dietz, and I was new to the whole public school system. And I went into school first day of class, and he put up big red letters. I mean, they were huge above the chalkboard. They hung there all year long. E.X.C.E.L. Excel. And every single day, Mr. Dietz would teach us what it meant to excel in life. But to bring our best every day. Just try, it’s not about perfection, it’s about progress. Today, I’m going to just try a little bit harder and do a little bit better than I did yesterday. And this desire and that lit a fire inside of me. In fact, that that fire was actually put inside of me by God himself. But God used that teacher to just fan that into flame. Ever since then, as a little kid, I’ve always tried to live this life to excel and to just keep getting better, constant and never-ending improvement in every area of my life. Now, left unchecked, that can get out of hand, right? That can be the dark side of ambition, the dark side of even leadership. But for the most part, that drive is a good thing to excel.

That’s why one of our church values is excellence, is our spirit that we want to do things with excellence. Here’s why, because it brings glory to God when we give him our best as we do it onto the Lord, it brings glory to God. It honors Him when we strive in this life to do our best and see we are made in his image, and we know that God is a God of excellence who does everything in order. Can I get an amen? And I don’t know about you, but, you know, if I’m facing surgery, I don’t want, like, a mediocre surgeon. I don’t want the guy or the girl that was last in their class at med school. Come on, if their popping open your heart, if they’re going into your knee, right? You want an excellent surgeon, right? I mean, if you need some wiring done in your house or in your business, you don’t want, like, an average, okay, electrician, you want an excellent electrician. You go to the salon. Come on, somebody? You don’t want some person working on you, your hair, and your do. And it doesn’t know what they’re doing. You want an excellent barber, You want an excellent hair stylist. You want someone who takes pride in the work, that’s trying to get better every day, that wants to hone their craft.

You know, I was watching this documentary on John Daly. He’s a PGA, former PGA pro golfer. Anybody remember John Daly here? And an infamous drinker, a really big guy, can hit the ball farther than anybody else. And he was telling the story about how in this one tournament, it was the third round, and he did really well, and he tied Tiger Woods in the third round. So that meant they were going to go in the fourth and final round on Sunday. Him and Tiger playing for the championship. And so after battling all day, he goes into the clubhouse and sits down at the bar, and some of the other guys were there, and they start drinking. Well, later, a few minutes later, Tiger walks in. John’s telling the story. He says, Hey, Tiger, come on over. Have a drink with us. Tiger’s like, No, no, no, thanks. It’s like, come on. Just come and have a drink with us. And Tiger is like, No, no, no, I can’t. He said, Why not? He said I’ve got to go work on my game. And for the next 3 hours, Daly said he sat there and drank with all his buddies. While Tiger was, after playing 18 rounds of golf and an over an hour warm up to that session, 18 holes of golf. Then three more hours of practice on the range to get ready for the showdown with Daley. He walked back into the walks, back into the after showering, and back into the bar, and Daley still sitting there and still drinking with his buddies on his third bottle of whatever it was. And he was so impressed with Tiger’s desire to hone his craft. To work on his game and to, you know, constantly try to get better.

And you see, this desire for us to excel can be a really good thing. You know, I’ll tell you the truth. About three out of every four weekends, I go home after preaching to all of you, I sit in my chair in my living room, and I usually think this thought. I really could have done better. I could have explained that thing better. I’m going to do better next time. There’s nothing wrong with having a healthy drive and desire to excel. But when it comes to our money, especially, that drive to excel can lead us to an unhealthy place that leads to pride, self-indulgence, arrogance, and selfishness. Did you know that those who are high achievers when it comes to making money, they’ve done this research. Those that make over $100,000 a year, they give statistically less percentage of their income to charity. You realize that? But those high achievers actually get less than those that make less than $100,000 a year. You see ambition that is not balanced. Ambition, if your ambition is not balanced as our proof sessions grow. What can often happens is our generosity can shrink.

Now. I want you to look at this next verse to help me communicate this point. Second Corinthians 9:13 says this, “You’re giving proves the reality of your faith…” I mean, of all things that you want to excel in, in life, I would hope that you would want to excel in your faith. But this might be a year for you where you say. I’m going to go all in. I’m going to live a life of total surrender to Jesus Christ. I’m going to lay it all down before him. My life, my hopes, my dreams, my regrets, my failures from the past. The shame and the guilt. My job, his business, my relationships, my marriage, my kids. My time, my energy, my resources. Because you’re giving up your time, energy resources, your life. It proves the reality of your faith. God uses money to shape our ambitions, our attitudes, our priorities, our compassion, our generosity, and even our contentment. So here’s my question: What does God need to chisel off of your life today that you might pursue living a fully surrendered life to him?

So God uses money as a tool. He also uses money as a test. And he tells us in three ways. First thing he does, he tests our motives. Look at the Scripture. He says, “When you grab all you can get, that’s what happens; the more you get, the less you are.” God uses money to test our motives, and it makes me ask the question, What am I really about in this short life? Like, really? What is my life really about? Who am I, really? I mean, do I really love God? Am I really pursuing living a fully surrendered life? Do I genuinely care about others? Is my heart, you know, growing and expanding for others? Or is it selfishly, slowly shrinking inside of me? So God uses money. Remember, it’s not money itself, it’s just the tool that he uses to test our motives.

Here’s the second thing he tests. He tests my integrity. Again, it’s not about the money. It’s about can God trust me to earn it honestly and to manage it wisely. Money is a tool to test our integrity. Let’s go back to the story of Jesus. It goes Matthew, Chapter 25, “The servant who received five bags of silver began to invest the money, and he earned five more. The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more.” So you got the five bag guy and the two money bad guy. And they both once they got it, they put it to work, and they both doubled it. Again, the amount isn’t what matters, it’s that they put it to work, and they used it, and they managed it wisely. And that’s what God cares about because he’s trying to shape and mold our character and develop the Christlike character of God inside of each and every one of us. And I know it’s not about actually the amount because the master, he comes back and he realizes, you know, the two bag guy double it, and five buag guy doubled. It was the same proportion that both were doubled, and he gives the same commendation to both, the two money guy and the five money bag guy. Here’s what he says to both of them. “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling the small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!'” You see, money not only test my motives and my integrity, but also God uses it to test my ability and trustworthiness to manage really important things. That if he can trust me to manage something, that’s only temporary.

It’s here today, and it’s gone tomorrow, money. If I can do that well, he can trust me, not with just temporal things, but with the eternal things. Things that have eternal value, eternal significance, like the souls of humanity. Jesus said this on another occasion. Look at it in Luke 16, “‘Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much. Whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?'” You see, Jesus is helping us understand by going on and saying,”‘No one can serve two masters. Either you hate the one and love the other, or you’ll be devoted to the one who despised the other. You cannot serve both God and money.'” That’s Jesus. That’s the words of our Lord.

And, you know, God uses money as a tool, as a test in this character development school, and also as a testimony. Let’s look at this last guy and the story that Jesus tells. “Then the man who had received” one bag of money, “one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said,” now listen to what this man says. Don’t miss this. ‘I knew you’re a hard man, harvesting where you’ve not sown gathering, where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid, and I went out, and I hid your gold in the ground. See? Here it is. Here’s what belongs to you.’ And his master replied. ‘You wicked, lazy servant.'” You see this guy, this third guy, this one money bad guy. He didn’t know the heart of his master. He had no intention of pleasing the one that gave him the resources, to begin with. He just went and put it on the shelf, and he went about his life and forgot all about it. And he didn’t know the heart and the character and the nature of his master.

In fact, he even, you know, says things about him and accuses him of things that just weren’t true. He said that you’re a harsh or a hard man. He accused him of being, you know, not honest in his business dealings. He he I don’t know why he did this. Maybe he was, you know, probably just coming up with an excuse for his own irresponsibility. Or maybe he was just ticked off. To begin with that, he was only got one bag of money when the other guys got two and five. I don’t know. But his heart was never about pleasing the one who provided the resources, to begin with.

So here’s what I know, money testifies how you and I treat money, testifies to our friends, to our family, to our kids, to our coworkers, what we really feel about God. That’s what money does. It’s a testimony. That when we manage it and use it wisely, it shows it proves to our friends, it tells a story that we really love God, that we really understand everything we have in our life, both good and bad. It comes from our Heavenly Father up above. That your life then becomes a gratitude-filled testimony to everyone in your sphere of influence of how you trust the God who has given and provided for you in life.

As I close, can I just get something off my chest? Can I? Yeah, okay, you gave me permission. There’s a whole lot of people in our culture that want to get rich quick. You know, they just want to get freed up financially, fast, in a world now dominated with video poker. You don’t have to go to the casino. It’s all you need. Video blackjack. In a world of multi-multimillion-dollar Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot, the crypto and stock market, you know, being up or down to the point where it’s controlling someone’s life. Listen, I’ve seen men and women sink their life, saving into a get-rich-quick scheme and lose everything. So I had asked myself, why do people want to get rich quick? I’ll tell you because it doesn’t require character development. It only requires luck. All you got to do is guess the point spread. All you got to do is pick the right numbers. All you got to do is pull the lever, push the button, hit the jackpot. And all the while, God is saying, okay, you’re missing the whole point. I want to build character in your life. I want to build character and shape your life. And one of the ways that I do that is I allow you to manage my money for a short time while you’re here on Earth so that you can learn. The character of me like hard work. Like disciplines, discipline, like self-control, like patience, like delayed gratification, like generosity, like contentment. So that you can learn all of these things so you can become more like me. That’s what counts. That’s where the real long-term payoff is. And the Powerball can give you none of that.

I’m not preaching about the Powerball, just in case you understand, you get it. Thank you. You get it? I say get it, you say got it. Get it? Here’s what I’m just trying to say, and I’m going to close with this. God owns it all, he owns it all. It’s all on loan, and he uses money to develop our character. It’s just one of the things he uses. He uses a lot of things. That’s a big one. He uses it as a tool, as a test, and a testimony. And I’m so proud of so many of you that really want to get this right.

And I know there’s many of you because you’ve been getting these emails and you’ve heard us been talking about, you know, in this year we have gifted to our entire church, the Dave Ramsey member membership plus, which includes the free course of Financial Peace University. Also, you can activate, when you activate that membership, it gives you the free. That’s about a $200 value, every dollar membership, an annual membership to help you get your finances in order. You know, we’ve had 135 people already signed up for this. Come on, that’s exciting to me that that tells me as your pastor, you are serious about getting this right because you understand not just the financial, but the spiritual significance of this as a manager, as a steward for what God has entrusted to you. And I just celebrate you. And I just, matter of fact, the class starts this Sunday. I’m sorry, next Sunday night at 5:30, right here. And if you haven’t signed up yet, you can sign up. You can sign up at the group’s hub before you leave today, I’ll send another email. Just click on the link, you sign up, and you don’t even have to come to the in-person class. I want you to because after helping millions of people get out of debt, get their financial house in order, getting “Back in the Black,” Ramsey will tell you this, dave will tell you this himself. The people that had the most success with this is when they do it in community, where there’s other people around them, they realize they’re not alone, where they have encouragement from others. So I would encourage you to do this in community, come next and sign up for the in-person class, but at the bare minimum, at least just activate the stinkin membership because it’s free and it’s what Becca and I use and it’s helped us live in the black for our marriage. So make sure you do that this week.

Because what would happen in your life if you made a decision to get “Back in the Black”? If you made a decision, even though you’re financially secure or stable, to really go to the next level in building and managing wealth, God’s way, what would happen in your life? How would you sleep differently? How would you just live differently? How would you feel? How much more peace would you have? How much less fighting would there be in your home and in your marriage? How much would you worry less in your life? Imagine what would happen or what would happen to your walk with God. How could you grow in your faith? Think about if you were, like, debt free, like other than your house, what could you do? How many people could you help and bless?

You know what you can do in your debt free. Anything you want, baby. You can’t go on the missions trip, but your friend wants to go. That’s easy, you just write the check and you bless them. Anything you want. How would your life be? Imagine what would happen in the life of our church if every single one of us decided this year, I’m going to, I’m going to win. I want to do this God’s way. I’m going to let him develop his the character of Christ inside of me. And it’s not just about my prayer life, and it’s not just about my, you know, my, my, my being in his word. It’s not just showing up at a prayer meeting or attending a church. It’s not just about being in a group. I’m going to take seriously, even managing what God has entrusted to me as a good steward. So I can hear him say in the context, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. In the context. Are you with me?

In the context, the master was praising him because he let that thing called money, use it to build and shape the character of Christ. What would happen in our church? How many more people could we reach? How many more souls could be saved? How many more families could be restored and put back together? How many more addicts could be set free? How many more teenagers who are lost and hurting, depression and cutting themselves, and so confused by the chaos of the culture that they’re in come into this place and find the hope of Jesus Christ? How many more college students and how many more young adults could come so lost find purpose and meaning and significance for their life or what God could do? If we decided, Hey, I’m going to be a good and faithful servent. So listen, I’ve shared with you the truth about who God is, how he uses money. I’ve given you a basics, you know, this is a football, theology of money. I’ve told you the truth. Now you have to decide what you’re going to do with it.