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  6 Spiritual Disciplines

HELP OTHERS TO LEARN ABOUT JESUS

by giving of my time, money and abilities

Matthew 6:19-21 “store up riches for yourselves in heaven”

The “unmentionable” discipline

Money has to do with our discipleship.  First and foremost giving has to do with what you value most in life.  Jesus says,

·   Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also

Jesus urges us to consider carefully what the most important thing is for us in life.  That then is our treasure - what our hearts value the most and trust in the most.  It’s also true that:

·   Where your heart is, there your treasures will be also

What we treasure will be the thing that gets the best of our treasures: Our time, money, abilities and energy.

·  So what has captured your heart?  If God has our hearts, he will  also have our money.

Giving brings freedom!

God tells us to give because giving:

·  frees us from the tyranny of our sinful self-centred egos. 

 frees us from the love of money.  Jesus warns us in Matthew 6:24 that you can’t serve God and money at the same time.  So if we want to grow closer to Jesus we need to first let go of our trust and allegiance to money.  And one of the best way to loosen the control money has over our hearts is to give it away!

Guilt â Gratitude â Generosity

When we consider how rich we truly are in this country we can  sometimes feel quite guilty about it all.  What is needed is for us to  intentionally develop an attitude of gratitude for the many many blessings that are showered on us every day.  A life lived in gratitude will be a life marked by generosity.  Rather than feeling guilty about what we have, let’s generously share with others what God has so generously first given to us.

· “Find out how much God has given you and take from it what

you need; the remainder is needed by others.” ~ Saint Augustine (NB he says take what you need, not what you want.)

· You can give without loving but you can’t love without

giving.  In the end, giving is all about growing in love - in our love for God (gratitude) and in our love for others (generosity).

Why give?  So God’s Word can be shared!

When you place your offering on the collection plate, you are helping others to hear about Jesus.

· We give so others may know Jesus and live!

What are the blessings of generous giving?

?  The joy of growing closer to Jesus. Giving will help to break the power the idol “money” has over your heart and life.

�  The thrill of helping others to learn about Jesus.  What an amazing privilege it is to serve God and be used by him to spread his kingdom!

?  Giving is its own reward where you gain a generous heart and a loving life.  May your heart be filled as God leads you to be a generous disciple of Jesus and as the Holy Spirit moves you to generously, gratefully and gladly give – to God’s glory and the spread of his kingdom.  Amen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Where does your heart and treasure truly lie?

· Don’t just ask how much you have, also ask, “What has you?”

· As well as asking about what you hold, ask “How tightly do you hold on to it?”

· Don’t just ask what you have, also consider how you got it.

· Does what you have make you proud or make you grateful?

· Does it make you self-sufficient or God-reliant?

Am I giving God what’s right or what’s left?

When it comes to giving, some people stop at nothing!