Money is an emotional subject … isn’t it? To be fair, not all aspects of money are emotional; after all, most of us don’t beak out into cold sweats when we drive by a bank, or when we submit an expense report at work, or when we attend a class on Macro-Economics at University. These things are common for us – simple everyday realities.
But we do understand money to be emotional in different contexts. For instance, when someone approaches us at a busy intersection with a sign that says “Help Please,” our heart rate might quicken. When we get a bill from the orthodontist about the cost of straightening a smile, we have an emotional reaction. And when a Pastor says “the subject of today’s sermon is about money” … well, we might just decide this is a good week to sleep in and watch the church down the street on livestream.
Why is that? Well the answer is simple. Money isn’t the issue … it is MY MONEY that causes the anxiety to rise. And the reason the busy intersection of money and religion cause such avoidance is that we approach the topic EXPECTING the Pastor to tell US what we SHOULD DO with OUR money. This has the emotional appeal of an arranged marriage.
And so with that introduction, I want to let you know that for the next 3 weeks, I will be preaching at Wildwood Community Church about [drum roll please] … YOUR MONEY*!
Now, before you sleep in and tune out for the remainder of March, I want to share with you three reasons why you should pay attention to this new series:
- We WANT this input. We really do. We want to understand what the creator of the universe has to say about money.
- We NEED this input. We really do. Inside each of us is what the New Testament calls “the flesh” which is an insider agent who is exceptional at convincing us that our desires are the most important thing. Yet giving into the flesh financially does not lead to happiness and fulfillment … instead it leads to things like debt, idolatry, and lack of peace. We need outside input about a better way.
- We CAN TRUST the input of Jesus on this topic. Did you realize that Jesus never took up an offering … though He talked about financial matters often. Jesus is not after our money, He is pursuing our hearts … but there is a peculiar connection between these two things. We often ignore the advice of people concerning our finances because we assume that they just want to take advantage of us in some way. However, we CAN TRUST Jesus on this topic every time. He actually wants something for us, not just from us on this issue.
So, if you don’t want to listen to ME about money – I get it. But let’s both gather these next 3 Sundays to see what God says about the topic. We will be in a 3 part series entitled “In God We Trust: 3 Thoughts about God and Money.” This week, we will look at 1 Chronicles 29 and see why the phrase “YOUR MONEY” is starred (*) above. Looking forward to worshipping with you all Sunday morning at 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00. See you there … and bring friends!