It’s not a lack of money—it’s a lack of creativity.

Money plays such a huge role in our lives, it’s hard not to think about it constantly. I’m always amazed by how people question the whole stewardship issue in local churches. “Why does the church need my money?” “How does the church spend my money?” “I gave. That has to be enough.” “I want proof from the bible that tithing is really God’s idea.” “I want to see the budget.” “I want to see how much the pastor makes.” I want to see how much the pastor gives.” “What do I get out of it?"

Oh my goodness. Money talk makes people absolutely lose their religion. I am pretty sure Jesus already knew this about the people of the first century, too. He spent a lot of his time talking about resources. The Bible references money and possessions 2,350 times. This is more than Jesus spoke about love. It’s more than he spoke about heaven and hell…combined.*

God’s economy is so different. He actually reveals to us we have great gain when we are not driven by a quest for more money. Contentment is something most of us don’t understand because we may confuse it with apathy or lack of ambition. God’s contentment allows us to be free of the entanglements that always accompany an unbridled desire for more. I think God blesses ambition when it’s tied to Kingdom goals and values. When we think long and hard about making purchases or where we put our money it means we value it and what it can do for us. When we value money, we put thought and energy into what we are doing. Making expensive purchases is fine with God! Thinking about how to take care of an expensive item and how that item will be used all makes sense when we value money

I discovered long ago that I did not value money. I know that sounds nutty. Let me explain.

I didn’t pay attention to money. I didn’t care about it. I had a good job. I’d always find a way to make more money. I didn’t put a lot of effort into balancing accounts, paying bills or asking God about what He thought of the ways I spent my money. I didn’t honor God nor money. I really enjoyed being generous. I loved picking up the tab for people. I loved paying for large ticket items and giving them away! I bought people’s groceries for them. I even gave money away. I did not value it. I treated it like a pathway to people. Money talks. Money is power. If I had it, you had it. Whatever I have—you have. Let’s have fun.

I remember the impression I felt as I prepared for a message at my first parish about stewardship. It was almost as if God was speaking directly to me. He said, “Why do you think you can talk to a congregation about their money when you won’t talk with me about yours?” He went on to impress upon me the great revelation that I truly didn’t value money and that I would not get any more until I learned to respect, honor and value….money.

Thirty years later, I still struggle. I don’t put a lot of thought into money but I place a great deal of respect, honor and value into what God says to spend my money on—see…it’s still an issue because I think of it as my money. All resources belong to God. It’s not only about money. It is also about the heart—the human heart and if God truly has influenced it in any way. How we deal with God and money reveals so much about what we truly believe. 

God trusts us with His resources. We have been given so much, it is somewhat overwhelming to even think about it. God trusts us with what we currently have. You and I have been entrusted with resources like creativity, our knowledge, wisdom from our experience, belief and faith. God trusts us with people. TIME! What you do with your time matters to God—where you spend time and how you invest your time. Stewards take care of things. What you put your mind to and take care of has great value to God. I believe there will be a time of reckoning with regards to what we did with what we were given. I don’t know if grace is enough or a great answer for this one. Grace is enough for salvation. Once we are initiated into Christ’s Kingdom, I believe He expects maturity. He expects us to become different than the world and more like Jesus. How much more like Jesus are we really….especially with regards to our resources?

Godliness with contentment is great gain. 1 Timothy 6:6 (NKJV)

*Stewardship.com: 3 Things the Bible Says about Money. Chris Brown. Life. Money. Hope. (podcast)

Pastor Jen