Jesus and Debt

Before we jump into the message, let’s take a moment and ask the Lord to soften our hearts and to speak to us.

Lord Jesus, I do pray that you would soften our hearts. We harden our hearts to protect ourselves from the hurts of this world. We harden our hearts to handle the trials we are facing. We harden our hearts to bear our own burdens. We even harden our hearts to do the things that we know are right. But that’s not how you are and that’s not how you want us to be. Give us ears to hear. Transform us and make us more like you. Soften our hearts that we might love as you do. In your perfect name we pray, Amen.

Do you ever think about your heart? I’m talking about your physical heart, the one inside your chest. As a general rule, I don’t think about it at all. When I was a kid, I would put my hand on my chest and feel my heart beating. I wasn’t fascinated by it, but I do remember at least thinking about my heart and the fact that it was pump, pump, pumping. Nowadays, I hardly think about it at all. It does what it’s supposed to, and I don’t really consider it.

Money Part 1

Good morning! Today we continue our series based on the book of Proverbs and focus on Biblical precepts for wise finances. There is so much to discuss in this area that we will spend two weeks on this topic. Next week we will have our monthly time of communion and sharing together what the Lord is teaching us, so we will finish this topic in two weeks.

I want to start with some foundational verses in Proverbs Chapter 3. The first of these I am sure you all know; we have talked of these before. They are not specifically tied to finances but deal with all of life. But all of life certainly includes finances, and without a proper foundation, details aren’t going to help you much. And so, let’s look at Proverbs 3:5-6.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. – Prov. 3:5-6

Diligence vs. Neglect

Proverbs 10:4
Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.(NIV)

What makes a man or woman poor? Some would say that if you are born into poverty you are destined to remain in poverty. However, there are many cases where people who were born into poverty worked hard and rose out of their original impoverished state. For example, David was born into a family of shepherds but rose to become king of all of Israel. Abraham Lincoln grew up living in a lean-to with his father yet he became president of the United States. Babe Ruth was raised in an orphanage and grew up to become one of the most famous baseball players of all time. 

Truthfulness vs. Deception

Good morning! Today we continue our series based on the book of Proverbs and focus on truthfulness versus deception. I spent a little time yesterday thinking about some of the most common lies in our culture. With a little help from the Internet, here are a few I came up with:

1.The dog ate my homework.
2.Leave us your resume and we’ll keep it on file.
3.One size fits all.
4.Your baggage isn’t lost, it’s just not here.
5.This will only take a minute.
6.Satisfaction guaranteed.
7.That was the very next thing on my list of things to do!