Latest / Fostering Faith / Faith & Finances: Trusting God with your wallet

Transcript

Faith & Finances: Trusting God with your wallet · Fostering Faith

0:00
Welcome back to Fostering Faith. I am your host
0:03
Tracie Foster. And in today's topic, we're gonna
0:05
be talking about something that may hit a little
0:08
close to home. Are you trusting God with your
0:12
whole life or just parts that you're comfortable
0:14
with? Yeah, I went there right out of the gate.
0:17
But seriously, let's talk about something that
0:20
is a little awkward for most of us and it turns
0:23
people away from church. Funny. Now don't hit
0:27
the pause button just yet. I know finances can
0:30
feel real heavy. And some of us here are thinking,
0:32
oh, here we go again. Tracy, tell me about I'm
0:36
spending too much money at Starbucks and Target.
0:39
And listen, I get it. But I promise you this
0:41
isn't about guilt. It's about freedom. And today
0:44
we're going to deep dive into somewhat of what
0:46
scripture says and what faith and finances and
0:49
how trusting God in this area can literally transform
0:53
your life. You know me, I can't speak this unless
0:57
he's done it for me. And so you know Jesus talked
1:00
about money more than he talked about heaven
1:02
and hell combined. Isn't that wild? And so now,
1:07
not because he needed our cash, but because he
1:10
wanted our heart. And so we have Matthew 6, 21
1:13
that says, for we are your, where are your treasure
1:16
is your heart will also be. And so pause. Let
1:21
that hit for a second. Your heart follows your
1:24
treasure. If you want to know what you worship,
1:27
look at your bank statement. Ouch. So if I can
1:31
see what you deposit and what your next line
1:34
is and your next line and your next line and
1:37
your next line, but hear me, this is not about
1:40
condemnation. This is about an invitation. God
1:44
is saying, I want to be Lord in your wallet too.
1:48
Not because I want to take it from you, but because
1:51
I want to bless you. And because if we're honest,
1:55
most of us don't live like that. We think, God,
1:59
you can have me there on Sunday mornings and
2:02
my prayer life, my Instagram bio, my checking
2:05
account, that's mine. And here's where that truth
2:11
in life hits. And so for me in my personal life,
2:14
I grew up with... Parents that worked their whole
2:18
life. My dad worked a factory job. My mom had
2:20
a daycare and we grew up Kind of poor and so
2:25
we lived paycheck to paycheck There were seasons
2:28
where my dad was really sick and we were getting
2:30
food out of boxes in their bedroom because his
2:34
Good friends would bring us over food We I never
2:39
knew how really poor we were until I was an adult
2:42
um and so I grew up with a mentation and mentality
2:46
of save all your money save all your money because
2:48
that is your that's your security in case something
2:51
happens. That is how you get out of trouble.
2:54
This is how you do things and always kind of
2:59
stored that for myself because that's mine. Absolutely
3:02
not like I am working hard as my teenage years
3:05
into my adulthood. As I got into church and kind
3:10
of was, you know, reading about tithing and all
3:13
this other stuff. I was like, no, that is mine.
3:15
Like, you know, like. No. And I read a book by
3:20
Robert Morris called The Blessed Life and that
3:23
changed my perspective and God really worked
3:27
on my... poverty mentality. He worked on me and
3:31
says, don't you trust me? And we have scripture
3:34
to back it up and we have scripture that says,
3:36
you know, about tithing and everybody's like,
3:38
oh, that's the Old Testament and blah, blah,
3:39
blah. And yeah, we do a lot of things in the
3:41
Old Testament. We follow the Ten Commandments.
3:43
We have, you know, things and boundaries and
3:46
borders and we have that New Testament and we
3:47
have Jesus. Thank, you know, thank God that he
3:49
sent his son. But in that same instance, like
3:52
I am willing to give up 10, 12, 20, whatever
3:55
percent that God has put on my heart to be able
3:58
to have 90 % blessed money. I would rather have
4:02
10 % go to whatever. And everybody's like, oh,
4:05
but what do you know what the church does with
4:07
that money? That is not between me. And that
4:10
is between the church and whoever governs the
4:13
money and God. If they're doing something honorary
4:15
with it, that is on them. That is not on me.
4:17
I am giving it to the church and they are gonna
4:19
do with it, hopefully with what God calls them
4:21
to do. But it is not my job to see and where
4:24
that finances goes. If they're doing something
4:26
honorary with it, That is between them and their
4:30
God. and so I was reading and I was in a season
4:33
of really wanted to pay off my car and I had
4:37
money saved up because again like I just said
4:39
I just saved money and saved money and saved
4:40
money and I was wanting God to give me more money
4:43
and it was a Saturday morning I will literally
4:45
never forget it and I knew the finances in our
4:49
house my husband doesn't really do much with
4:51
them and it was I really felt the impression
4:54
of the Lord because I had been praying for months
4:56
hey give me a raise give me you know an opportunity
4:59
let me get enough money to pay off this car and
5:02
I was sitting at the kitchen table and the Lord
5:05
said you have the money pay it off and I was
5:08
just like I don't want to spend that money that
5:09
is in my savings like I want more money and he
5:12
said if I you already have it so I gave it to
5:15
you so you're asking for something that you already
5:18
have and so I also did like the whole like Dave
5:23
Ramsey thing about budgeting and I can't budget
5:26
like that and I say I can't I just haven't put
5:29
a lot of investment into trying it. I did the
5:32
budgeting for a month and I was having to like
5:34
reuse coffee grounds and my nurse here at work
5:36
was just tired of like me and so she bought me
5:38
some coffee because I had already spent my month
5:41
budget and I was out of coffee because I love
5:43
my coffee and so it really was like an eye -opener
5:47
of how budgets work and what you really spend
5:49
on things and it is just a really eye -opening
5:55
thing and so As I walked through that Saturday
5:59
morning, I was like, man, I don't want to do
6:01
that. That's a lot of money. Man, I don't want
6:02
to do that. That's a lot of money. And I was
6:04
just like, God, are you sure? Because we never,
6:10
you know, we're real quick to like, yes, let's
6:12
go. Like we don't have to spend anything or it's
6:14
not going to cost us anything. So I talked it
6:16
over with my husband. I'm like, I really feel
6:17
like I'm supposed to pay off the car this morning.
6:19
He was like, oh. Do we have that kind of money?
6:22
And I was just like, yeah, we actually do. And
6:24
so I went in there, got on the computer and paid
6:27
the car off and talk about chains falling off
6:29
of my life. Ever since then, God has shown me,
6:35
blessed me, and it is no longer my money, it
6:38
is his money. I will go and spend and do whatever
6:40
he tells me to do. And fast forward, some years
6:46
later, we were able to buy House for somebody
6:50
and pay it off the Lord had put it on my heart
6:53
and I ignored it for a year because again I was
6:56
just like I can't afford that I can't afford
6:58
that and he kept saying I know you can't But
7:01
I can and he had a plan and he had a vision of
7:04
how I was gonna be able to pay that off because
7:07
it's God it's not me because It's just not me
7:11
Also in that time he was able to allow us to
7:16
really lean into him Because in that same season
7:20
he had us really dive into our faith and he had
7:24
my husband quit his job We had felt the Lord
7:28
had told us for my husband to quit his job to
7:30
take care of his mom his mom has MS and He was
7:34
at a job for 20 years and it was getting to the
7:37
point where he was having to leave quite frequently
7:39
to go help his mom and that company was so, so
7:42
good to him and would let him leave, go help
7:43
his mom and come back to work. And we felt like
7:47
the Lord had said, quit your job. And so he was
7:50
able to quit his job. and fully take care of
7:53
his mom, and we would live off of one income.
7:57
And it has been such an amazing experience to
8:02
be able to trust God, know that he will always
8:06
provide, and do it in a sense of overabundance.
8:11
Because we tithe with anything that comes in
8:14
our house, whether it be just my income, whether
8:18
my husband sells something, whether my daughter
8:20
has something. We tie that 10%. If God says,
8:25
give something generous, whenever we have giving
8:27
locally, we give. And we always have a love offering
8:34
at our church and we always pray about it as
8:36
a family. And we pray about the number and we
8:39
want... community in that number and so it's
8:43
just a way also too for the Lord to speak to
8:46
your heart and I will have one season where we
8:49
were going to give an offering and I felt like
8:51
there was a number. And I was just talking with
8:54
my pastor about it and you know, I love signs
8:56
and wonders and so my pastor was just in passing
9:00
and I was talking to him about it and he gave
9:01
me the exact number and I did a social media
9:04
post on it and it was just an opportunity for
9:06
my family to pray together because they were
9:09
they were under the assumption that you know
9:11
God only talks to you mom they don't talk to
9:13
me and and God sent them the number and and so
9:16
we were all in unity over the number that we
9:18
were supposed to give that year and it was the
9:20
biggest donation that we were able to give And
9:23
it was just a way for my daughter to say like,
9:26
oh my gosh, I do hear from God. It was my husband
9:28
who was newer in his walk in faith and was just
9:31
like, oh my gosh, I hear from God as well. And
9:34
so it was a family effort to just to come closer
9:37
to God, to abide in God and just to know that
9:40
his sovereignty is. everywhere and so we were
9:44
able to donate that at that year was our largest
9:48
donation and the next year comes along and another
9:52
time for a love offering to give and I had come
9:56
up with a number I did not have that number and
9:59
my my daughter you know confirmed it and so did
10:01
my husband and and so we had to do some finagling
10:06
and we were able to give even a larger donation.
10:09
And so we trust and we give and it was, we knew
10:15
that we didn't have that kind of money. We had
10:16
to move some money around and people, I'm telling
10:20
you, I'm telling you that I never, never is a
10:25
strong word. And so never and always never use
10:27
that. And so it is very rare that I ever get
10:30
money back on taxes. Very rare. And it was that
10:36
year, the amount that he gave me to give was
10:43
the amount that I got back in tax refunds. And
10:48
so like whenever I went to go sign my tax refund
10:51
thing or whatever, so to pay for taxes. I was
10:55
in shock. I was literally in shock. I could not
10:58
believe it. I said, are you sure you got the
10:59
right person? We never get a refund. And so the
11:02
lady was there at the counter. The waiting room
11:04
was full of people. And I said, I was like, oh
11:08
my gosh, do you believe in Jesus? I said, because
11:10
I got this story for you. And so in the midst
11:13
of our small town filled with our tax center,
11:17
I was able to tell them the story of how God
11:20
has blessed us. And so it's about trusting and
11:23
knowing that we serve such a big God and that
11:26
there is nothing that he will not do. I know
11:30
that there's people out there struggling and
11:31
just trying to make ends meet and I and I get
11:34
that I've lived that life But now I have turned
11:38
it over to the Lord and we forget it's all his
11:42
anyway And so Psalm 24 says that the earth is
11:46
the Lord's and everything in it. This means your
11:48
paycheck This means your savings account your
11:51
retirement fund. It's on loan from him. It is
11:54
all his And so let's get real. Why is it so hard
11:57
to trust God with money? Because money feels
12:00
like security, and security feels like control.
12:02
But Proverbs 1121 says, those who trust in their
12:05
riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive
12:08
like a green leaf. God's economy isn't like ours.
12:12
We think save more, hold on tighter, and then
12:15
you'll be secure. But God says so generously,
12:19
hold loosely, and you'll find true. Abundance
12:23
and just like my story guys. I cannot speak this
12:27
enough. I mean if you could see my face right
12:29
now I'm literally just smiling over the abundance
12:32
of our God and so we look into the window of
12:35
Mark 12 Jesus is always watching people drop
12:39
offerings into the temple and The rich are tossing
12:42
in bags of gold, but the poor widow Put in only
12:46
two small coins worth less than a penny and Jesus
12:50
said she gives more than all of you Because she
12:53
has given all she is blessed. And so in that
12:57
same season, we had another opportunity to donate.
13:01
And I was just like, OK, we'll give this amount.
13:03
And God punched me in the face and brought this
13:07
story up. And he said. That meant nothing to
13:13
you. That wasn't a sacrifice. I said sacrifice
13:17
to give that what you want to give that wouldn't
13:21
hurt you a bit. And I said, oh, okay. And then
13:27
went into prayer and what he had us give was
13:33
by faith. And so that woman, and so it's not
13:35
the size, it's how much you trust him. So she
13:39
gave all she had and it was two coins. And he's
13:41
seen that as a much greater gift than a million
13:45
dollars. And that's wild faith. That's not a
13:49
budget -friendly online item. That's surrender.
13:52
And so where in your life are you playing it
13:55
safe? Instead of trusting God radically, maybe
13:58
it's in your giving. Maybe it's in stepping into
14:01
a new career because he's calling you out of
14:03
your comfort. Maybe it's forgiving old debt that
14:06
someone owes you. OK, so let's talk about tithing.
14:10
And so you know what is coming. You know it was
14:13
going to come. And so Malachi 310 says, bring
14:15
the whole tithe into the storehouse. Test me
14:18
in this. Says the Lord Almighty and see if I
14:22
will not throw open the floodgates in heaven
14:24
and pour out so much blessing here There will
14:27
not be enough room in the storehouse And so wait
14:30
a second Did God just say test me? He did it's
14:36
the only time in scripture that God invites us
14:38
to test him in tithing No, thank you. No. Thank
14:42
you. I will not test you. I've learned my lesson.
14:44
I'm done Here's the deal Tithing isn't about
14:48
paying God off. It's about the position of your
14:51
heart. And just like in our last episode, we
14:53
talked about the position of your heart walking
14:55
into new seasons. And so saying, Lord, I trust
14:58
you more than my bank account. But can I be honest?
15:03
The first time that Derrick and I started tithing
15:05
faithfully, it was scary. I thought, how are
15:08
we going to make it work? But time again and
15:11
again and again, God provided in ways that we
15:15
didn't even make sense on paper. It did not make
15:17
sense I was able to pay for my car. It did not
15:19
make sense I was able to buy a house for somebody.
15:21
It doesn't make sense I have been able to give
15:24
more and more and more money and not go without
15:27
because it does not have to make sense. That
15:29
is God math. That is God math. That is not mom
15:32
math. That is not girl math. That is not dad
15:34
math. That is God math. And we know that he lives
15:37
in a world that is completely opposite of what
15:41
we're at. And so maybe you've been there too.
15:43
Maybe you've been holding back because you're
15:45
afraid. And guys, don't miss the joy in seeing
15:48
God show up in your finances. Generosity changes
15:52
the world. When you trust God with your money,
15:55
you get a partner with Him in ways that you never
15:58
even imagined. 2 Corinthians 9 and 7 says that
16:01
each of you should give what you have decided
16:03
in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under
16:06
compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And
16:11
the Greek word here for cheerful is herlos. Where
16:14
we get to hear that word hilarious, God loves
16:19
a hilarious giver. Someone who gives so freely
16:22
and joyfully, it almost looks ridiculous to the
16:25
world. And what if we live like that? What if
16:30
our lives said, it's not mine anyway, I'm just
16:34
the manager of God's resources. Think about the
16:37
early church in Acts 4 .23 or 32. It says, no
16:41
one claimed that any of their possessions was
16:44
their own, but they shared everything that they
16:46
had. That's the kind of generosity that turns
16:49
the world upside down. And so here, let's be
16:54
practical. How can we actually honor God with
16:58
our finances? One, budget, pray for Lee. Don't
17:03
just make a spreadsheet, pray over it. Ask God,
17:07
how do you want me to use what you've entrusted
17:09
me for? Every year I pray over a vacation. I
17:12
pray over it. I literally pray over everything
17:15
I mean guys I honestly do if you knew me in my
17:18
personal life and my friends can attest to this
17:20
I literally pray over everything and then we've
17:22
had seasons where I wanted to go on a vacation
17:24
real bad And he said no so we say it at home
17:26
We did not go on a vacation and to explain that
17:28
to your teenage daughter that sees all their
17:30
friends going on vacation And he said no because
17:33
he had already had plans for that money to do
17:34
something else with it And I'm not gonna do I'm
17:36
not gonna spend it Because I know I'm going to
17:39
walk in his way and not my own because Mexico,
17:42
Dominican will be there another season. But for
17:45
right now, if God doesn't want me to go, then
17:47
I'm not going to go. Two, tithe first, save second
17:52
and spend last. Flipped the script on culture.
17:57
And you can see in our checkbook, the deposit
18:00
tithe. And that was even really mentioned in
18:04
that book by Robert Morris. And it was, I mean,
18:08
like I always put the tithe at the end, but even
18:11
just kind of reading that, it's the deposit and
18:14
it's a tithe. It's a deposit and a tithe. And
18:17
I don't put my stuff on auto because if the Lord
18:20
tells me to give something else, then that's
18:23
what I give that week. And so I want to know,
18:25
I want to walk with God. every week, every two
18:29
weeks and I want to see what he wants me to give.
18:33
And so three, get out of debt. Proverbs 22 says,
18:38
the Lord, the borrower is a slave to the lender
18:41
and God wants you free. And that sounds hard,
18:46
but there's so many good things out there that
18:49
will help you get out of debt and quit spending
18:51
money that you don't have. Quit spending money
18:53
that you don't have. You know that you do not
18:55
make a million dollars a year, so quit spending
18:57
it. You know that you don't make $50 ,000 a year,
19:00
so quit spending it. And so get out of debt.
19:04
Four, live below your means. Contentment isn't
19:09
about how much you have. It's about trusting
19:12
who holds your future. Spend below your means.
19:16
It doesn't matter if it is a Walmart shoe that
19:19
looks like a Birkenstock. A Birkenstock is a
19:21
sandal, and Walmart sells the same thing. Or
19:24
Goodwill, or Aldi's. I mean, it literally is.
19:28
Let's unattach ourselves from brand name stuff.
19:32
And yes, absolutely, get a good deal. Absolutely
19:34
sell, you know, use all the resources that you
19:37
have. Be content. It's not about having all the
19:40
stuff. It's not. It's not gonna go to you with
19:43
your grave. It's not gonna go wherever, but...
19:45
Being able to be generous and give out and help
19:48
others, that's the name of the game. Five, be
19:52
generous. Start small, but start somewhere. Faith
19:57
isn't just about believing God exists. It's living
20:00
like he's in charge of every corner of your life
20:04
and including your wallet. So here's my challenge.
20:08
Take one bold step of faith this week in your
20:10
finances. Maybe it's tithing for the first time.
20:14
Maybe it's giving above and beyond. Maybe it's
20:17
trusting God with your career and moving forward.
20:19
That doesn't make sense yet, but watch what he
20:22
does. Philippians 4 19 says, my God will meet
20:26
all your needs according to the riches of his
20:29
glory in Jesus Christ. Not your riches, his riches.
20:34
And there is no shortage in heaven. So friends,
20:38
are you living a life tight -fisted? are open
20:42
-handed because the way that you handle money
20:45
reveals a lot about how you see God. And so as
20:49
we end this episode, we want to pray over your
20:51
finances. We want to pray over you. And so thank
20:54
you so much for hanging out with us today. I
20:56
know that this is a hard topic, but I also believe
20:58
it's one of the most freeing conversations that
21:00
God Has for us and as followers of Jesus if this
21:04
episode challenge you send it to a friend Let's
21:07
spread the message that we serve a God who owns
21:09
it all that invites us to trust him completely
21:12
And remember you cannot out give God Let's go
21:17
live This week about how much you are experiencing
21:22
the freedom and dropping those change in the
21:24
poverty mentation and let's go live it out this
21:27
week And so let's, if we wanna bow our heads,
21:30
thank you so much, God. Thank you so much for
21:31
these listeners. Thank you so much for today
21:33
and thank you so much for yesterday. Thank you
21:35
for the abundance of you. Thank you that you
21:37
have no boundaries. Thank you that we can trust
21:40
you with everything down to the last cent. Thank
21:42
you that you go above and beyond to teach us.
21:44
Thank you that you are molding us. Thank you
21:45
that you are shaping us. Thank you for the life
21:47
lessons. Thank you for the testimony that we
21:49
have at the end of the day. Thank you for all
21:51
that you do. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Amen.
21:55
And so I thank you guys so much for tuning in
21:57
today. I hope you have an amazing week. We love
21:59
you. Bye.