The Cure for Covetousness: Is It More Than a To-Do List?

[00:02:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Good morning, Freedom House!
[00:02:41] How's it going, guys?
[00:02:43] Hello.
[00:02:43] My name's Andrew.
[00:02:44] I'm KT.
[00:02:45] And we want to welcome you to Watching Online.
[00:02:48] We are glad you guys are part of the family, and if you're watching us, you're probably watching us one of three ways.

[00:02:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yes.

[00:02:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Either on Facebook, YouTube, or freedomhouse.cc slash live.

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yes, and so we're so glad to have you guys join us today.
[00:03:02] It's already been an exciting day.
[00:03:04] We're the day after Thanksgiving.
[00:03:06] Tell us where you're joining us from, and tell us what your favorite food was.
[00:03:10] We dove into this a little bit.

[00:03:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Yeah, I mean, there's a lot of good foods, but there are also some bad foods, in my opinion.

[00:03:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
I mean, yeah.
[00:03:19] Earlier, guys, Andrew said no turkey.
[00:03:23] But I asked, I prodded, and I was like, what's the one Thanksgiving food that you feel like is a little overrated?

[00:03:29] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
I'm not anti-turkey per se, I just think it's the worst of the meats.

[00:03:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
I mean, I get that.
[00:03:35] What do you guys eat for Christmas?
[00:03:37] Sake!
[00:03:38] Okay, okay.

[00:03:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Like true Americans.
[00:03:41] If you're a red-blooded American.
[00:03:43] Turkey, yes, it's an option, but it's not a good option.

[00:03:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Well, and especially for Christmas.
[00:03:47] I feel like some people do ham, like Christmas ham's a thing.
[00:03:51] I think I could maybe get behind it, but I like the steak.
[00:03:53] I like the steak option.

[00:03:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
What are your views on cranberry sauce?

[00:03:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
What do we use?

[00:03:57] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
What are your views on cranberry sauce?

[00:03:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Oh, love it.
[00:03:59] I put it on everything.

[00:04:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Oh, okay.

[00:04:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yeah, just all over the plate.
[00:04:03] Especially when you make leftovers, it's like the perfect spread on your sandwich.

[00:04:08] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
See, if it was that good, though, why do we only eat it once a year?

[00:04:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
I got nothing.
[00:04:13] I don't know.
[00:04:14] That's a tough one.

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Well, I'm going to hop in the chat.
[00:04:18] Drop your views on cranberry sauce, the weather.

[00:04:22] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Where are you joining us from?
[00:04:24] Any jokes?
[00:04:25] We have some good jokes for service.

[00:04:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
We do.
[00:04:27] And I will reuse those jokes.
[00:04:30] This is actually some jokes provided to us from one of our live viewers in first service named Najee.
[00:04:43] So shout out to Najee.
[00:04:44] The first of the subpar jokes, how do you fix a broken pumpkin with a pumpkin patch?

[00:04:52] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Obviously.
[00:04:55] The next one got me.
[00:04:56] I had to think about it and nothing came up.
[00:04:59] But then when I heard it, I was like, that's good.

[00:05:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
All right.
[00:05:01] The second one is, why is Peter Pan always flying?
[00:05:06] Because he never lands.

[00:05:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yeah.
[00:05:08] That was a good one.
[00:05:08] I thought that was clever.

[00:05:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
I liked it.
[00:05:10] More clever than the first one for sure.

[00:05:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yeah.
[00:05:13] But always drop us a joke.
[00:05:15] Say, hey, we love getting to see you guys, know where you're joining us from.

[00:05:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
And speaking of unsure things, do you think it's going to snow this year?

[00:05:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Okay, so I like the snow.
[00:05:25] I think it's so magical.
[00:05:27] My husband's from the Midwest, and so he's like, I like snow, but I want it to stay because then you have to like shovel and do all those things.
[00:05:34] I just immediately think like you get to play in it.
[00:05:37] So I think yes, I hope it does.
[00:05:39] I think it's so fun.
[00:05:40] I always think it's magical.

[00:05:42] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
It is magical to look at for about an hour.

[00:05:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
See, that's exactly what my husband would say.
[00:05:47] I think it's magical all the time, I guess until it turns like brown sludge.
[00:05:51] But that doesn't really happen here.
[00:05:53] Or does it?
[00:05:54] That is true.

[00:05:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
I don't know.
[00:05:56] Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't.
[00:05:58] I don't like the risk, so I say no snow.

[00:06:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
No snow.

[00:06:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
No snow.

[00:06:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
We'll see.
[00:06:02] We're torn.

[00:06:02] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
We are torn.
[00:06:04] Was there snow in the Garden of Eden?

[00:06:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
I would guess...
[00:06:09] I don't know, unless it was just for the magic effect.

[00:06:12] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
See, the Garden of Eden, wasn't that like Middle East?

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yeah, so probably no.
[00:06:17] Unless it was just like God's trying to bless you and make you feel special and he's like, look at how cool I am.
[00:06:23] That's what I feel like snow is.
[00:06:24] So maybe he did just to show off sometimes.

[00:06:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
If there was no snow in the Garden of Eden though, would it mean that God's perfect world, there's no snow?

[00:06:31] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
We are getting deep.

[00:06:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
We are getting deep.

[00:06:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
We are getting very deep.
[00:06:34] This is not supposed to be a theology class.
[00:06:35] You guys got to jump in the chat.
[00:06:37] Drop us some wisdom.
[00:06:39] How do you feel about Snow in the Garden?
[00:06:40] That's a good one.
[00:06:41] That's a good one to ask some kids.
[00:06:43] That would be.
[00:06:43] And get some conversation going.
[00:06:45] I like it.

[00:06:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
There's some kids around here, so I'm going to ask them after this.

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
I know.
[00:06:48] We have to find some.
[00:06:50] That's a good one.

[00:06:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Speaking of good things, somehow translating it to something, the message.

[00:06:56] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
The message.
[00:06:57] We're finishing up Kingdom Logic.
[00:06:58] It's been a great series.
[00:07:00] We get to talk about money, which I feel like is so relevant, right?
[00:07:03] We live in the world.
[00:07:04] Money's everywhere.
[00:07:05] It's been a good series.

[00:07:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Yeah.
[00:07:07] I love it, too.
[00:07:08] We've got Pastor Matt Henderson in the house.

[00:07:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Yes, all the way from Southend.

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
Oh, yeah.
[00:07:14] And I'm looking forward to it.
[00:07:16] I got the privilege of seeing it last time, or last service.

[00:07:19] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
Right, you guys are in for a treat for sure.
[00:07:22] I know, so go ahead, set down your coffee, set down your blankets, get ready to worship with us.
[00:07:28] Pastor Matt's going to bring an awesome word.
[00:07:29] And then stay tuned, all December we have movies for Christmas.
[00:07:34] I messed up how the flow went for that one.
[00:07:36] Movies for Christmas.
[00:07:37] Movies for Christmas.
[00:07:38] Christmas at the movies.
[00:07:39] There we go.
[00:07:40] So make sure you tune in all December with us.
[00:07:42] It's going to be awesome.

[00:07:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_17]:
I mean, I hope you guys are ready for service.
[00:07:45] Grab some popcorn, grab your coffee, and have a good one.

[00:07:49] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
What's going on, Freedom House Church?

[00:08:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Come on, stand up on your feet.
[00:08:15] It's a good day to be in God's house.
[00:08:16] Come on.
[00:08:16] Are you excited to honor the Lord today?
[00:08:17] Here we go.
[00:08:17] One, two, three.
[00:08:18] Here we go.
[00:08:18] Let praise be the weapon that silences the enemy.
[00:08:20] Let praise be a weapon that conquers all anxiety Let it rise Let praise arise We sing your name in the dark and it changes everything We sing with all we are and we claim your victory Let it rise
[00:08:51] We'll see breaks out every wall We'll watch the giants fall
[00:09:33] Let faith be the song that calms the storm inside of me Oh let it rise Let faith arise Let it rise We'll see you break down every wall We'll watch the giants fall No fear cannot survive when we pray to you The God of breakthrough is on our side
[00:10:06] We praise You Oh We praise You Oh This is what living looks like This is what freedom feels like This is what heaven sounds like We praise You Oh
[00:10:32] This is what living looks like This is what freedom means This is what heaven sounds like We praise You

[00:12:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Come on, church, let's continue to worship our King.

[00:12:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
He is good, He's faithful, and we get to come today to give Him thanks, to give Him honor, to give Him glory.
[00:12:35] So can we do that today?
[00:12:36] Come on, can we lift up the name of Jesus today?

[00:12:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
We're falling down in worship to sing the song of ages
[00:13:00] and all who will believe I'll sing the song of ages to the Lamb Oh your name is the highest Your name is the greatest Your name stands above them all All thrones and dominions All powers and positions
[00:13:32] Christ above the moon and the angels cry Holy All Creation Christ Holy You were lifted high Holy
[00:14:15] Let us pray.
[00:15:47] Power, Emphasis,
[00:17:31] Your name is the highest Your name is the greatest Your name stands above them all On all thrones and dominions all powers

[00:18:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Father God, you are the God who was, who is, and who is to come.

[00:18:42] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_15]:
You are holy.
[00:18:45] You are righteous.
[00:18:48] Your name is above every other name.
[00:18:50] I love in that song where it says, your name is above powers and positions.
[00:18:55] That means that there is no one higher than you.
[00:18:58] There is no power on earth that is stronger and greater than your power.
[00:19:06] And so God, we come before you today to worship you as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
[00:19:15] You are seated on the throne.
[00:19:18] You are above the earth.
[00:19:20] You are over the earth.
[00:19:22] And God, we submit ourselves to you today.
[00:19:26] We lift up our hearts.
[00:19:29] We lift up our eyes.
[00:19:30] We lift up our worship to exalt you as the king that you are.
[00:19:36] God, when we exalt you and we make you greater, our problems are minimized.
[00:19:45] There is no problem that we have that outsizes you, God.
[00:19:53] So we look to you today as the all-powerful, all-holy God that you are.
[00:20:01] And we expect
[00:20:03] I want our leaders to go ahead and come forward we're going to open up the altar here for prayer in just a moment but as I was thinking through this moment the Lord took me to the to the book of Joshua

[00:20:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
And Israel had just come out of the wilderness and they were at the banks of the Jordan and it was time to move into the promised land.
[00:20:43] And Israel had basically been mourning 30 days because Moses had just passed away.
[00:20:50] And the voice of the Lord came to Joshua and said, Joshua, it's time to move.
[00:20:55] Enough mourning, enough delaying, I'm ready to move you into your promised land.
[00:21:02] And in that moment,
[00:21:03] Basically, Joshua got the instructions of have the priest take the Ark of the Covenant and go to the Jordan River.
[00:21:10] And as soon as they step their feet into the Jordan River, the flow of that river would stop and all of Israel can walk across on dry land.
[00:21:19] A miracle in itself, of course, but there was something that was happening in that moment.
[00:21:24] and Joshua said here's what we're going to do we're going to build a monument for God because he is so great and so powerful and so wonderful of moving us out of our old into our new and so he decided when we get to the other side we're going to build this monument why so all the people the generations that come after us can see this monument and recognize how good God is and how great he is
[00:21:48] so Joshua chose 12 people one from each of the tribes and as they walked through the Jordan he wanted them to stop and pick up a stone and each one of them picked up a stone and that was going to be the monument that they were going to build on the other side out of the middle of the Jordan River and these stones to me kind of represent a little bit something different
[00:22:13] because I believe those stones were pivotal moments in their lives that led them to build a monument to show the greatness of God.
[00:22:23] I think in our own lives, there are times that we have pivotal moments that need to take place so God can really move.
[00:22:31] Those stones that he pulled out of the Jordan River were actually in the base of the river.
[00:22:41] See, we get at the point in our lives sometimes where we're at the lowest of the low.
[00:22:46] We're in the midst of this situation and don't know what to do with it.
[00:22:50] And it's up to us to move.
[00:22:51] It's up to us to do something about that so God can move in the situation.
[00:22:58] These stones represented something.
[00:23:01] And I'm gonna make this real practical for you.
[00:23:03] Stephanie has a lady that's in her life group and she just got the report back that she is completely cancer-free.
[00:23:12] Can we give God some praise for that today?
[00:23:14] Now here, she is building a monument giving God praise for that, but the stones, the stones are what built that monument up to where she can give God glory.
[00:23:30] The first stone,
[00:23:31] She found a church that's a Bible-believing church that believes in God as the healer.
[00:23:35] That's the first stone.
[00:23:38] The second stone is she found a life group, a community of people that would come around her and believe for her.
[00:23:44] Another stone would be that she allowed them to lay hands on her and believe and trust in God that He is the healer.
[00:23:54] Another stone would be her fear turned into faith.
[00:23:58] and she believed God's word and as you can see the stones the little pivotal things that took her to the next spot it kept building and building and building to where God showed up and now she has a monument built out of these little pivotal moments these stones in her life to where now she has a monument of God's greatness and she can look at this monument in her life how God delivered her from cancer and say listen God is a healer God is a deliverer
[00:24:29] So I don't know where you're at today.
[00:24:32] Maybe you're at a monumental moment in your life where you just want to give God praise and glory.
[00:24:37] That's why we're here to worship Him as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
[00:24:42] But maybe today you're one of the people that need to pick up a stone and say, you know what?
[00:24:46] It's time to do something different.
[00:24:51] This is a pivotal moment in my life where I want God to move.
[00:24:56] I'm tired of carrying all the weight of my own.
[00:24:58] I'm going to give it over to Him.
[00:25:00] Maybe it's time to get prayer.
[00:25:02] Maybe it's time to join together with your husband or your wife and come forward and get prayer for your relationship.
[00:25:09] You know, because those people that crossed over, they were parents and they had to teach new ways to their kids.
[00:25:17] That we're not living in the past anymore.
[00:25:19] We're not dealing with that junk, the disobedience.
[00:25:24] The lack of faith, we're not dealing with that anymore.
[00:25:26] We're stepping into new ground.
[00:25:29] And we're gonna have faith in God and watch what He does.
[00:25:32] So today, I hope this is a pivotal moment for you.
[00:25:34] This service is a pivotal moment.
[00:25:36] The prayer of the righteous availeth much.
[00:25:40] And this is your opportunity to come and get prayer.
[00:25:44] I don't want you to let this moment pass.
[00:25:47] Because God's ready to do something.
[00:25:49] He's ready to give you your monument where you can look to Him and say, God, thank you so much for all that you've done.
[00:25:57] I want people to see what you've done in my life.
[00:26:00] And today I'm starting by adding the first stone, or the second stone, or the third stone.
[00:26:05] So as we continue to worship and lift up God's name, I want you to go ahead, get out of your seat, and come and get prayer.

[00:26:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
I remember when I met you The first time that I felt you When it all was just so simple I just stand in awe of you
[00:27:11] Let my heart stay soft and tender When You walk into the room My response is to stand in awe of You Oh, I stand in awe of You Oh, I stand in awe of You
[00:28:02] Just to adore You is our purpose To make Your name higher is our focus Where we've made it complicated We honestly stand in awe of You Oh, I stand in awe
[00:28:59] Oh I stand in awe of You Oh I stand in awe of You Oh I stand in awe of You Oh I stand in awe of You

[00:30:24] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Let us pray.

[00:32:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Oh hallelujah, oh hallelujah We lift up the name of Jesus We lift up the name of Jesus Oh and all the earth will shout your praise
[00:32:58] All these hearts will cry, these bones will sing Great are You Lord And all the earth will shout
[00:33:22] and all the earth will shout your praise our hearts will cry these bones will sing

[00:34:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Father we thank you God thank you that you are good God thank you that you are faithful thank you that we get to lift up the name of Jesus that we get to come in here God into your church and adore you God that we get to give you praise we get to give you honor we get to give you our thanksgiving and God thank you that we get to come
[00:35:06] God, on the tail end of a holiday that is all about giving you praise, that is all about being thankful, God, I thank you, God, for another day in your house.
[00:35:18] God, I thank you for the privilege of coming in here to glorify you, God, to magnify your name.
[00:35:27] God, you are good.
[00:35:31] You are faithful.
[00:35:36] God you are majestic you are righteous you are worthy of our praise Church can we take a few seconds and in your own words can you just tell them how thankful you are if there's something on your heart that you're thankful for tell them right now in your own words right now let's just take 30 seconds and tell them how thankful we are as a church if there's something you're believing for
[00:36:04] Take this time and say, God, I'm thankful for what you've given me.
[00:36:06] I'm thankful for waking me up this morning.
[00:36:10] I'm thankful for the breath in my lungs.

[00:36:16] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Thank you Jesus.
[00:36:18] Thank you Jesus.

[00:36:22] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
God, we love you.
[00:36:24] You are good.
[00:36:26] You are faithful.
[00:36:31] God, we lift up your name.
[00:36:35] and it's in Jesus' name that we all pray.
[00:36:37] Amen.
[00:36:38] Amen.
[00:36:39] Freedom House, can you give God praise today?
[00:36:42] Come on.
[00:36:44] He's worthy of our praise.
[00:36:45] He's worthy of our honor.
[00:36:49] Take a few seconds.
[00:36:50] Turn to your left, turn to your right.
[00:36:51] Greet somebody new.
[00:36:52] You may be seated.

[00:37:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_14]:
Hey everyone and welcome to Freedom House.
[00:37:10] My name is Troy Maxwell and my wife Penny and I are your senior pastors.
[00:37:15] We are one house with many different rooms and our heart is very simple to help equip you to experience Christ's freedom in your everyday life.

[00:37:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_13]:
We have a big vision here at Freedom House.
[00:37:26] You will notice every week at every campus we have live teachers and preachers.
[00:37:33] Why do we do that?
[00:37:34] Because we are a relational church, we love connecting, and we are not a video venue.
[00:37:40] You'll also notice over in our kids area, they have the same thing.
[00:37:44] Live teaching, preaching, worship.
[00:37:48] We're not a babysitting service.
[00:37:50] They are getting a fresh, relevant Word of God, just like you are.

[00:37:54] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_14]:
And hey, maybe you're new or you haven't got connected yet.
[00:37:57] All you gotta do is very simple.
[00:37:58] Just open your phone up, click that little circle on the seat back pocket in front of you, and check out all the amazing things that are happening at your church.

[00:38:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_13]:
That's right, we can't wait to get connected with you.
[00:38:08] Take a look at what's coming up here at Freedom House.

[00:38:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_12]:
What's up, Freedom House?
[00:38:16] The 12 Days of Serve Charlotte are here, and this year, I want to highlight one of our annual projects, one truly massive outreach effort, our annual grocery giveaway.
[00:38:27] We have an entire 18-wheeler full of food, pallets stacked, being delivered to our central campus.
[00:38:34] And this is thousands of meals all waiting to be sorted, packed, and distributed to families right here in Charlotte who might be struggling this Christmas.
[00:38:43] So who's invited?
[00:38:44] Easy answer, everybody.
[00:38:46] You, your family, your small group, your neighbor, people from work, all ages are welcome to come join us for this outreach.
[00:38:53] We will be sorting and packing these groceries on December 12th and then giving them out to the community the very next day on the 13th.
[00:39:00] So ho ho ho, Santa's coming to town and he is bringing groceries.
[00:39:05] So make sure you get signed up by going to freedomhouse.cc slash serveCLT.
[00:39:10] Christmas is almost here, but before the stockings are empty and the wrapping paper is tossed, we want to ask you for one incredible life-changing gift.
[00:39:20] We need you to invite someone to our Christmas Eve service.
[00:39:23] Why?
[00:39:24] Because statistically your personal invitation is the single most effective gift that we have.
[00:39:30] Research shows that over 80% of unchurched people will say yes if a friend or family member asks them to come to church.
[00:39:38] They're waiting for an invitation that they aren't receiving and this year you're the answer.
[00:39:42] This Christmas Eve, give your friends and family the gift of genuine hope.
[00:39:46] We've designed a memorable experience just for them.
[00:39:49] We'll have hot cocoa, horse-drawn carriage rides, and a surprise visit from a very special man in a red suit.

[00:39:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_16]:
Santa!
[00:39:58] Oh my God!
[00:39:59] Santa here?

[00:40:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_12]:
And of course, a life-changing message.
[00:40:03] Your invitation is their opportunity.
[00:40:05] Don't keep this hope to yourself.
[00:40:07] Decide right now who needs to be there and join us on Christmas Eve, December 24th.
[00:40:12] You can find all service times and get your digital invites at freedomhouse.cc slash Christmas.
[00:40:18] Let's fill every seat so people can encounter the true joy of the season together.
[00:40:23] This December, join us for Christmas at the movies.
[00:40:27] We're not just watching beloved holiday classics, we're unpacking your favorite Christmas films to find the surprising, powerful, and sometimes hilarious biblical truths hiding right in the script.
[00:40:37] This is the perfect time of year to bring every friend, neighbor, co-worker you know.
[00:40:43] From the die-hard Christmas fanatics to the Grinches, we'll have fun lobby treats and an environment that will make you feel like you walked into a theater.
[00:40:51] Don't miss a single show.
[00:40:52] We'll see you at Christmas at the Movies next week.
[00:40:55] We need all hands on deck because Santa's coming to town and he's bringing groceries.

[00:41:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
For all this and more, download the Freedom House app or head to freedomhouse.cc.

[00:41:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_16]:
All right, man.
[00:41:12] Hey, good morning, everyone.
[00:41:14] How we doing?
[00:41:16] Okay, I like it.
[00:41:17] I like it.
[00:41:18] I'm so thankful to be in a church that's alive, that's pursuing the things of God, aren't you?
[00:41:25] I know I am.
[00:41:26] Man, hey, if I haven't had an opportunity to meet you, my name's Michael Ott.
[00:41:31] I serve in our FH Kids team here at Freedom House.
[00:41:34] Now, all month long, what have we been doing?
[00:41:36] We've been learning about the what?
[00:41:38] The impact of a kingdom builder.
[00:41:41] Maybe you're new to the church or maybe you're visiting.
[00:41:44] Maybe you haven't been here in a couple weeks and you're wondering, what is a kingdom builder?
[00:41:48] Very simple, it's this.
[00:41:50] A kingdom builder is someone who consistently gives over and above the regular tithe.
[00:41:56] You see, here at Freedom House, this is how we partner with God in order to accelerate the vision that He's given us both locally and globally.
[00:42:06] You see, Kingdom Builders, they fuel things.
[00:42:09] They fuel things like outreach projects in our city.
[00:42:13] They expand campuses.
[00:42:14] They support missionaries all around the world.
[00:42:16] They even raise up our now generation.
[00:42:20] Come on.
[00:42:21] So, here's the thing.
[00:42:23] At its core, a kingdom builder, it's someone that says this, God, God, use my life to build something that lasts.
[00:42:33] Something that has eternal value.
[00:42:35] Are you with me?
[00:42:36] Is that what you want?
[00:42:38] Come on.
[00:42:38] Is that what you want?
[00:42:39] I know that's what I want.
[00:42:40] something that has eternal value well today guess what we get to celebrate come on I want you to get ready because we're gonna celebrate what God has been doing in you in me in all of us as we've begun to pray ask God and he's speaking to us and we're taking steps of faith because right now I'm gonna give you a number I'm gonna give you where we stand right now as a total it's not the final but man it's a good one the total of where we are in our kingdom builders vision are you ready
[00:43:10] I think I'm the only one that's excited.
[00:43:12] I mean, are you ready?
[00:43:13] Because this is good.
[00:43:15] And I want you to get ready to celebrate.
[00:43:16] Here we go.
[00:43:17] Because the total towards our Kingdom Builders vision for 2026 right now is $655,672.
[00:43:25] Come on.
[00:43:26] Yeah.
[00:43:30] There's one.
[00:43:31] Come on.
[00:43:31] God needs more than that.
[00:43:33] He deserves more.
[00:43:34] That is awesome.
[00:43:36] That is awesome.
[00:43:39] I'm not just saying that.
[00:43:40] That's not just hype.
[00:43:42] That is really awesome.
[00:43:44] But here's the thing.
[00:43:46] That number, that dollars and cents, it's so much more than that.
[00:43:51] It represents people.
[00:43:53] People who will find salvation in their Savior, Jesus Christ.
[00:43:58] It's people who will be set free from the bondages that they've been walking through all of their life.
[00:44:04] It's people who will find their purpose and their community in the house of God.
[00:44:08] But that's not all.
[00:44:09] You know what else it is?
[00:44:10] It's about you.
[00:44:11] It's your faith.
[00:44:14] It's your sacrifice.
[00:44:16] It is your heart being laid out, surrendered before God to do something great in God's kingdom.
[00:44:22] And you know what the exciting thing is?
[00:44:24] We're not done.
[00:44:25] No, because there is still time for you to join and get in on being a kingdom builder.
[00:44:31] You say, well what do I have to do?
[00:44:32] It's really quite simple.
[00:44:35] Just pray.
[00:44:36] Say God.
[00:44:38] What do you want me to do?
[00:44:40] How would you want me to give over and above my time to be a Kingdom Builder in 2026?
[00:44:47] You see, when you came in today, you found one of these Kingdom Builder cards on your seat.
[00:44:51] We want you to take it and use it so that you can know and understand the vision and make your commitment.
[00:44:59] And if you prefer, you can actually even do it online.
[00:45:01] You can go to freedomhouse.cc slash kingdombuilders.
[00:45:05] But no matter how God speaks to you, understand this.
[00:45:10] Every step of faith matters.
[00:45:14] Did you hear me?
[00:45:15] Every step of faith matters.
[00:45:18] It causes God to look your way when you take a step of faith.
[00:45:26] His ear perks up.
[00:45:27] His eye notices you when you take steps of faith.
[00:45:30] And you see, it doesn't matter how large or how small that gift is.
[00:45:34] God uses all of it to bring hope, to bring freedom, to bring deliverance, to bring salvation and the message of Jesus to everyone who needs it.
[00:45:44] So if you've already made that commitment as a kingdom builder to you, we want to say thank you.
[00:45:48] Thank you for extending the reach of Freedom House in our city and around the world.
[00:45:53] And if you're interested on learning how you can begin your generosity journey, you can do that by simply going to freedomhouse.cc slash give.
[00:46:05] Come on, can we just thank God for $655,672?
[00:46:08] And there's more coming.
[00:46:14] Because we serve a big God that wants to do big things in this hour.
[00:46:18] And it's going to outshine the darkness.
[00:46:21] Amen?
[00:46:22] Because in the end, God wins and we win.
[00:46:24] And we want to be a part of that.
[00:46:25] Come on, let's pray.
[00:46:27] Father, we thank you.
[00:46:28] We are so grateful for what you are doing.
[00:46:30] Wow!
[00:46:32] Thank you so much, Lord.
[00:46:34] because we understand this means lives this means people that will connect and get to know you it means prodigals coming back home it means so much and lord i thank you that you're using us your people to carry out your vision your hope your freedom in the world you're using your people the church to do it and so father speak to us
[00:46:58] today lead us and guide us father because we know that where you speak and guide that you will also provide for us so it's not on us but our faith and trust is in you and father we thank you for that so today we bring our tithes bring our offering to you lord receive it now use it for your glory and for your honor and may the name of Jesus be made famous all throughout the land in the name of Jesus i pray and everybody said amen thank you so very much and do enjoy the rest of the service

[00:48:28] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_11]:
Welcome, welcome, welcome, Freedom House.
[00:48:31] Welcome to church.
[00:48:33] Also, welcome online.
[00:48:34] Let me shout everybody out from Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Indiana.
[00:48:40] I ends Indiana, right?
[00:48:42] Yes, Indiana, Ohio.
[00:48:44] See, I know what I'm talking about.
[00:48:45] Michigan, Vermont, Florida, Washington, D.C., South Africa, Texas, Massachusetts, Dominican Republic.
[00:48:53] Welcome from the beach.
[00:48:54] It is way better there than it is here today, and we're glad you're here.
[00:48:58] Church, if I haven't met you yet, my name is Matt Henderson, and my wife and I, I hail from the Dirty South End campus.
[00:49:07] My wife and I get to serve there as campus pastors.
[00:49:10] We are a multi-site church, if you didn't know that.
[00:49:12] So we have campuses Lake Norman, South End, and then very soon, Ballantyne, down in Fort Mill area.
[00:49:20] We are super excited about that.
[00:49:22] South End is probably the campus that will send the most because we're the closest logistically.
[00:49:27] So we are fired up at South End.
[00:49:29] We're building our teams and praying and believing.
[00:49:33] Expect it for all God is going to do down there.
[00:49:36] We are in a series right now called Kingdom Logic.
[00:49:41] So if you're new to Freedom House, we do things a little bit differently.
[00:49:45] We have a teaching team that speaks on a series within, usually it's month to month.
[00:49:51] But our senior pastors, who I'm super grateful for, had the vision from God to build this house not on themselves, but just on Jesus Christ alone.
[00:50:03] Ensuring that everything we do as a team, that way,
[00:50:07] This will last forever.
[00:50:09] Freedom House will be here long after pastors Troy and Penny go away.
[00:50:15] Long after we're here and unless Jesus comes back and calls us all up, Freedom House will be here for generations to come because it's not just built on one personality or one person but a team of people.
[00:50:26] Could you put your hands together and give honor to our senior pastors?
[00:50:30] They don't ask us to do that.
[00:50:31] They're not even here today, but I want to honor them because it's a huge responsibility and a huge honor to be here today.
[00:50:38] Not something that I take or any of the other communicators take very lightly in teaching and preaching God's Word.
[00:50:45] We're going to get into it today, though.
[00:50:46] We're talking a little bit about money.
[00:50:48] We've been talking about it all month, so I want to go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back for showing up the last Sunday of the month knowing that we're still talking about money.
[00:50:56] I mean, good for you guys.
[00:50:58] Most people don't come all month when they know we're finding out, but the ushers have blocked the doors in case this is the first time you've come this month, so you can't leave until the end of the message.
[00:51:10] There are three principles that I want to recap because we've been hearing about it all month, but three biblical principles that Freedom House believes in regards to money.
[00:51:19] The first one is God owns it, we steward it.
[00:51:22] The second is the best ROI, the best return on investment is an eternal return on investment.
[00:51:28] We believe storing up treasures in heaven are far better and greater than storing up treasures here on earth.
[00:51:33] and the last one is 90 is greater than 100 we believe we are a tithing we believe in tithing as a church and we believe that when we when we steward our finances according to the word of god he will do way more with the 90 than we could ever do with the hundred matter of fact more than we could ever do with a million he can do more with that 90 amen you know there's a story i want to tell you to kick this off uh probably 10 or so years ago um
[00:52:01] At Christmas time we would always gather at my grandmother's house and I'm from a place where everybody is from there and nobody ever leaves so I'm related to everybody and so we have cousins and second cousins and aunts and uncles even people who aren't related still come I'm like oh yeah that's my uncle even though no blood relation at all and we're all there at my grandmother's and usually we would draw names and give out gifts so you didn't have to buy something for everybody because we would all be broke if we had to buy a gift for every single person so you drew a name and we're all exchanging gifts and
[00:52:28] My cousin Jacqueline and her husband Jeffrey were there and their son Isaiah was there with us too.
[00:52:33] He's probably five or six at the time and he's tearing it up, man.
[00:52:38] He got this toy and he's unwrapping it and it's probably a tractor or a Tonka truck or something like that.
[00:52:44] And it's in one of those, how they package stuff today, it's in a box but it's got a plastic lid on it so you can see in.
[00:52:52] You can't touch it but you can see what it is.
[00:52:54] And man, he's like,
[00:52:55] He's going at it, but he's struggling with it.
[00:52:57] And I don't know any dads in here or parents that they lock these things down.
[00:53:02] Like they zip tie them, they're hidden, like tucked in behind cardboard where you can't find it.
[00:53:09] You almost need a Sawzall to get the thing open.
[00:53:12] Even with, you know, I have two girls, and Barbies, man, they lock Barbie down like they're shipping her to the moon.
[00:53:18] I mean, they're, and they make them these clear little rubber bands, and you can't, like, why is her hair still attached to the box?
[00:53:25] And you can't see it, but you're scared to cut her hair, because then Barbie's ruined if you cut her hair.
[00:53:30] So it's just, and Isaiah, poor guy, five or six years old, he is just struggling with it.
[00:53:36] And his dad's sitting there just watching him, not helping at all, just watching him, and he speaks up, and he says something I'll never forget.
[00:53:42] And he says, son, use your man logic.
[00:53:47] And that's all he said.
[00:53:50] What he meant by that was, you're a man, figure it out.
[00:53:55] As men, we can figure stuff out, right?
[00:53:58] We like to solve problems.
[00:54:00] We are fixers.
[00:54:02] We can get things out.
[00:54:03] We like destroying stuff too.
[00:54:05] So like son, whatever you got to do, bite it, rip it, go get scissors.
[00:54:10] Whatever you have to do son, use your man logic to fix it.
[00:54:14] Now there's woman logic as well.
[00:54:16] So stop typing the email.
[00:54:18] I can see some of you are already DMing the church or whatever.
[00:54:22] There's woman logic too.
[00:54:24] But I want to focus today on is kingdom logic.
[00:54:30] Your kingdom logic.
[00:54:31] And today I want to teach you some kingdom logic that you will never find out there in the world.
[00:54:37] You'll never hear it.
[00:54:39] It is totally counterculture.
[00:54:41] The only place where it derives from is the Bible.
[00:54:46] Today I want to teach us how to fall out of love.
[00:54:51] 1 Timothy chapter 6 verses 6 through 10.
[00:54:55] Paul writes to Timothy and he says, but godliness with contentment is great gain.
[00:55:01] For we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it.
[00:55:08] I don't care how much stuff you can store up, how many storage units you have, you're going out the same way you came in.
[00:55:14] I've never seen a U-Haul behind a hearse.
[00:55:17] And you're likely, all that stuff, your treasures, your kids are gonna take them to Goodwill within about a month of your passing.
[00:55:27] But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
[00:55:32] Everybody say it with me.
[00:55:34] We will be content with that.
[00:55:37] Now I'm looking out and everybody's clothed, thankfully.
[00:55:41] That's one of the prerequisites.
[00:55:43] We don't have many requirements.
[00:55:44] You don't have to be perfect, but you have to be wearing clothes to get in here.
[00:55:48] And it looks like everybody's been fed.
[00:55:50] You probably stood in your closet this morning and spent 10 minutes or maybe some an hour picking out your clothes.
[00:55:56] Then you move to the refrigerator and I'm sure you opened it and if you're like me you stand there until you forget why you were there trying to figure out what you're going to take out of it.
[00:56:05] We will be content with that.
[00:56:08] We are clothed.
[00:56:09] We are fed.
[00:56:12] Next verse says, Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
[00:56:24] For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
[00:56:33] Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
[00:56:39] What I want to establish today is money itself is not evil.
[00:56:45] Money is not evil.
[00:56:48] Loving it is.
[00:56:51] God is not anti-money.
[00:56:55] He's not anti-tangible things.
[00:56:58] He's not anti-blessing.
[00:56:59] He's not anti-nice stuff.
[00:57:03] What He is is anti-idolatry.
[00:57:07] God does not mind that you have money.
[00:57:10] He does not mind if you have a lot of money.
[00:57:13] He doesn't mind if you have things, nice things.
[00:57:18] But what He doesn't want is for money to have you.
[00:57:21] He doesn't want your things to have you.
[00:57:26] Many believers, myself included, we never intend to fall in love with money.
[00:57:32] It's not like we set out to, yeah, I'm going to put this before God.
[00:57:36] Like, I'm going to totally ruin my life chasing this thing, you know?
[00:57:42] We never intend to get there.
[00:57:43] This is with many other sins, but it's these slow little things that we drift away slowly, little by little, away from God and worries or concerns or
[00:57:56] Things that happen in our life when we begin to shift our focus over to money instead of to God.
[00:58:02] What if the greatest battle for your soul isn't a demon but a dollar?
[00:58:11] I'm gonna say it again.
[00:58:12] What if the greatest battle for your soul isn't a demon but a dollar?
[00:58:21] Many times we think it's the devil that's gonna show up
[00:58:25] Horns and a pitchfork and he's all red and you're like, I can see it, that's evil.
[00:58:31] Many times he'll lure us away through something that's good.
[00:58:36] Something that we have to interact with.
[00:58:39] Falling in love with money is hard because you have to engage with it to interact in this world.
[00:58:44] It's kind of like going on a diet.
[00:58:45] It's one of the hardest addictions to kick because you have to eat.
[00:58:50] I mean, you can fast and you can go days without eating
[00:58:54] But you're gonna have to eat to stay alive.
[00:58:57] It's not like kicking an addiction of alcohol or cigarettes or tobacco or nicotine or drugs.
[00:59:03] You can hard stop those and never do them for the rest of your life.
[00:59:07] It's still hard, but you can do it.
[00:59:09] But eating is really tough.
[00:59:11] Money is really tough because you have to engage with it.
[00:59:15] You have to, and I feel like he's luring every one of us.
[00:59:18] Whether you have money or you don't have money, I think Satan is tempting all of us to come on over.
[00:59:24] Come seek this money.
[00:59:26] Come find this money.
[00:59:27] Come put it in place of God so that I can lure you away.
[00:59:31] I want to equip us today with kingdom logic so that we can fall out of love.
[00:59:39] I'm going to take us on a path today of the warning that the Bible gives us with money, the principle, how to transform our mind, and then the practical, what we need to do day to day to fall out of love and to stay out of love and keep God
[00:59:53] in his place ahead of money.
[00:59:55] So let's start with the warning.
[00:59:57] Turn to your neighbor and say, you have been warned.
[01:00:00] Turn to your other neighbor and say, I have been warned.
[01:00:03] Here are three warning signs that you've fallen in love with money.
[01:00:08] Say, I love you, Pastor Matt.
[01:00:12] I love Freedom House.
[01:00:14] Come on, say it.
[01:00:15] I'll make you say it.
[01:00:18] I'm just kidding.
[01:00:18] Yeah, thank you.
[01:00:20] I'm just kidding.
[01:00:23] Number one, focused on being rich.
[01:00:26] You're focused on being rich.
[01:00:29] I've got my mind on my money and my money on my mind.
[01:00:32] It's all you think about.
[01:00:34] It's all you talk about.
[01:00:36] You lose sleep at night over it, wrestling, tossing and turning.
[01:00:41] You're never satisfied.
[01:00:43] When you strive for something and you get it, you get that sale, you get that promotion, you get that whatever, that stock hits.
[01:00:52] and it feeds that dopamine hit, you move right on to the next thing and you want more.
[01:00:56] You want it again.
[01:00:57] I gotta have more.
[01:00:59] I gotta have the next level.
[01:01:01] I need to attain the next thing.
[01:01:04] We become addicted to wealth.
[01:01:07] And then sometimes entrepreneurs, small business owners in here, managers, supervisors, sometimes we begin to treat people as ways to make us more money, as tools.
[01:01:17] We use them instead of stewarding them how God's called us to spiritually
[01:01:22] We tend to use them as ways for them to make us more money.
[01:01:27] The second one, we're focused on others.
[01:01:32] This is where comparison has replaced contentment.
[01:01:35] Remember, God says that godliness with contentment is great gain.
[01:01:39] But instead, we start looking sideways instead of upward.
[01:01:46] This is the keeping up with the Joneses phrase.
[01:01:49] Everything is about what the Joneses have.
[01:01:52] We're just standing in our living room looking out the shades.
[01:01:56] Oh, they got a new minivan.
[01:01:58] Maybe we need a new minivan.
[01:02:00] You know?
[01:02:01] Oh, they just bought their kids a trampoline.
[01:02:03] Well, we're going to get our kids a trampoline.
[01:02:06] They're going to Disney.
[01:02:08] I heard they were going to Disney this year.
[01:02:09] Well, guess what?
[01:02:10] We're going to Disney.
[01:02:13] It's this constant...
[01:02:15] One after another, somebody's always going to have more than you.
[01:02:19] You could be a billionaire in this world, somebody's going to have more things than you have.
[01:02:24] So we have to stop chasing it.
[01:02:26] We're, when someone else, here's another one, when someone else's success will steal your joy.
[01:02:33] So, Nancy gets her promotion at work.
[01:02:37] Well, why does she get the promotion?
[01:02:39] Why didn't I get it?
[01:02:40] She clocks in from 9 to 5 on the hard dial.
[01:02:43] I'm here early and I stay late.
[01:02:46] She didn't even go to Carolina.
[01:02:48] I went to Carolina.
[01:02:49] I got the degree.
[01:02:51] She didn't even go to school.
[01:02:54] Or when we look at them when God's blessed them.
[01:02:56] Why do they have so much, God?
[01:02:57] Why are you blessing them instead of me?
[01:02:59] They don't even go to church.
[01:03:01] I don't even think they tithe.
[01:03:04] But yet you're blessing them more than me.
[01:03:06] We get angry with God.
[01:03:08] We'll trade away the valuable things that we prayed and we worked so hard for just to keep up.
[01:03:14] Like how many times have you worked so hard for something and then six months later you sell it for pennies on the dollar at Facebook Marketplace just to get the next thing?
[01:03:23] You know, we strive and we toil and we stay late.
[01:03:26] We sacrifice time with our family just to get this next thing and now it's sitting in our garage collecting dust.
[01:03:33] And we're worried about the next one or whatever the Joneses have.
[01:03:39] The third one is I'm focused on what's mine.
[01:03:42] We shift to ownership instead of stewardship.
[01:03:47] We see money as mine instead of God's.
[01:03:51] I made this money.
[01:03:53] I deserve this.
[01:03:55] I worked really hard for this.
[01:03:57] I sacrificed time from my family for this.
[01:03:59] It's my gifts.
[01:04:01] I sold that deal.
[01:04:03] It's my money.
[01:04:04] Therefore, I will spend it how I see fit.
[01:04:08] It's the French fry test.
[01:04:10] I know Pastor Troy preached on it recently.
[01:04:13] We go to the drive-thru and get Chick-fil-A or whatever it is for your kids and hand the bag back to your children.
[01:04:19] And then immediately after they open it up, stick your hand back there and put your hand in the fries and see what happens to you.
[01:04:26] Mine.
[01:04:27] They're going to crumble up that bag.
[01:04:28] Typically, if they're my kids, they're going to shut the bag, smack your hand, and say, Mine.
[01:04:33] These are my fries.
[01:04:35] No, they're not your fries.
[01:04:36] I just bought them.
[01:04:37] I tell my kids all the time, We have money.
[01:04:40] You are broke.
[01:04:43] Your mom and I have money.
[01:04:45] You are broke.
[01:04:48] Those are my fries.
[01:04:49] But yet, these are mine.
[01:04:51] Same with their toys, with the TV remote.
[01:04:53] Mine.
[01:04:53] This is mine.
[01:04:57] and when we live like that it shuts it shut when they do that it shuts me down however when they if they were like hey dad here have as many fries as you want you know matter of fact here you take the car and you home whenever you're done i'll take the rest you know that would shift my perspective like listen kid i'm i'm gonna bankrupt chick-fil-a of all their fries because i'm gonna buy them all for you i want to give you even more more and more fries it's the same with god when we shift our focus and we get stingy with stuff we think we earned it when he owns everything
[01:05:26] He created everything but we get it shifted and we think it's all on us Matthew 6 24 Jesus said no one can serve two masters he's warning us here here's another warning no one can serve two masters either you will hate the one and love the other or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other you cannot serve both God and money
[01:05:52] What he's showing us here is there's a spiritual battle with us, with all things in this world, but money is one of them.
[01:06:00] There's this, your flesh is gonna try to pull you over here to live in the world and live like the world, and then your spirit's gonna try to pull you over here and live with an eternal mindset and live with a heavenly mindset.
[01:06:18] So if you have money or you don't have money, it's a battle that we're all facing.
[01:06:21] I face it, you face it, doesn't matter what part of life you have, what the age that you're in, there's gonna be a constant battle in the spiritual realm of pulling you towards your flesh and pulling you towards your spirit.
[01:06:32] So which one are you feeding?
[01:06:34] Because you can't feed both.
[01:06:36] Jesus tells us you cannot have two masters because they're two value systems.
[01:06:40] They're gonna contradict each other.
[01:06:43] They don't live by the same rules.
[01:06:45] There's two different values.
[01:06:47] So we have to ask ourselves, which one do I value more?
[01:06:51] Which am I feeding more?
[01:06:53] Am I feeding my flesh more when it comes to money?
[01:06:56] Or am I feeding the Spirit more when it comes to money?
[01:06:59] Does my life show that I love God more?
[01:07:02] Or does it show I love money more?
[01:07:06] Take a snapshot of your bank statement.
[01:07:08] Follow your heart, follow your money.
[01:07:11] Show me your money and I'll show you your heart.
[01:07:13] What does it look like?
[01:07:13] Does it look like I'm feeding my flesh more?
[01:07:16] Or does it look like I'm honoring God more?
[01:07:18] With everything, my time, my prayer life.
[01:07:23] Money becomes very dangerous when it goes before God.
[01:07:27] Very dangerous.
[01:07:29] I have three dangers I wanna share with you when we put money before God.
[01:07:33] The first one is when money becomes identity, God becomes irrelevant.
[01:07:39] If you see yourself first as financial advisor, entrepreneur, firefighter, nurse, small business owner, influencer, if any of those come before child of God, you've got it backwards.
[01:07:56] And when it's your identity, when your identity is in your vocation or who you are instead of who God, who you are in Christ, He'll become irrelevant.
[01:08:05] You don't need God then.
[01:08:06] Why would you need God if you don't recognize yourself
[01:08:09] The second one is when money becomes security, God becomes secondary.
[01:08:19] So this one's for those who are wealthy in the room.
[01:08:23] Be careful when every physical need is met or can be solved with money.
[01:08:30] Be very careful.
[01:08:32] Because if you can fix or solution everything with a dollar,
[01:08:38] you don't need God or if that doesn't work first then you go to God it's a dangerous place where you can any health issue you can pay for the best medical care you can fly somebody to Duke to be treated any financial bump in the road something breaks at the house and you can just throw money out you got plenty of money to toss at it you've got influence in the marketplace you get in trouble with the law you can just throw money at an attorney
[01:09:05] and Get Yourself Out of It.
[01:09:06] This is a very dangerous place to be at because you don't need God.
[01:09:12] If a dollar can solve every one of your problems, you don't need Him.
[01:09:16] Now, I'm not saying it's bad to have money or to be wealthy.
[01:09:19] Please don't get me wrong.
[01:09:21] But God should come first.
[01:09:23] He should come first in every solution in your life.
[01:09:26] You still may end up using money to fix it, but go to Him first.
[01:09:30] Go to Him first.
[01:09:32] For those who don't have money,
[01:09:35] Do you feel exposed?
[01:09:38] It's scary?
[01:09:39] You feel scared and kind of alone?
[01:09:43] Afraid?
[01:09:45] Fearful?
[01:09:48] Where do we go in times of need?
[01:09:51] When we really need help?
[01:09:54] When we can't fix it on our own?
[01:09:56] We're in a season of lack.
[01:09:58] Do we run to God first?
[01:10:01] Do we really seek Him first?
[01:10:04] Remember that God is our provider.
[01:10:07] God is our protector.
[01:10:08] God is our financier.
[01:10:10] God goes before us and paves the way in everything.
[01:10:15] The last one is the last danger.
[01:10:18] When money becomes purpose, becomes our purpose, God becomes optional.
[01:10:25] So maybe your trade, your vocation, or whatever it is that you do, you feel like it's the only thing that you're good at.
[01:10:32] Or one of the things that you are just really, really good at.
[01:10:34] You are a really, really good surgeon.
[01:10:37] You are a really, really good teacher.
[01:10:41] It can be your passion, but it cannot be your purpose.
[01:10:46] Because when it's your purpose, then God is just optional.
[01:10:53] My purpose is to worship God.
[01:10:55] Our purpose is to worship God, the Maker of heaven and earth, to glorify Him in all that we do.
[01:11:01] We can use our vocation to glorify God.
[01:11:04] We should be using our gifts and talents to point back to God.
[01:11:07] It's not a bad thing to be good at something, but who gets all the credit?
[01:11:13] Everybody turn your name and say, you have been warned.
[01:11:16] You have been warned.
[01:11:16] Say, I have been warned.
[01:11:19] Now we're ready to move on to the principle.
[01:11:21] We've moved from the warning, now we're going to the principle.
[01:11:23] The principle says that right believing leads to right living.
[01:11:29] Kingdom logic must become kingdom habits.
[01:11:33] So if we understand the logic, now we have to create the habit.
[01:11:37] Romans 12, 2 says, Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
[01:11:45] So today I want to renew our view of money
[01:11:48] Using Kingdom Logic.
[01:11:51] Because Kingdom Logic says, it's God's, not mine.
[01:11:56] Psalms 24 1, the earth is the Lord's and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.
[01:12:02] He created it, so He owns it.
[01:12:05] It's all His.
[01:12:07] I created nothing.
[01:12:09] I steward what He's given me, but without God, I am nothing.
[01:12:12] And I can create nothing.
[01:12:15] It's God's, not mine.
[01:12:19] Second Kingdom Logic says, I steward what God supplies.
[01:12:24] Remember, it didn't come from me, but he's going to give it to me, and I'm going to be a good manager.
[01:12:28] I'm going to be a good steward of what God has given me.
[01:12:32] A little homework this week.
[01:12:33] Read the Parable of the Talents, Matthew 25.
[01:12:36] There's a story of a master giving three servants, three different amounts, three talents is what they're called.
[01:12:43] Let's use money.
[01:12:43] He's giving them three amounts of money.
[01:12:45] The parable goes, the one with five doubled it and made ten, the one with two doubled it and made four, and brought it back, and then the one buried it and just brought back one.
[01:13:00] Now, what it doesn't say, it's very important, I think, to me, what it hits with is that the two didn't look to the one to the five and get upset.
[01:13:09] He didn't say, listen, this is not fair to give him five and me two.
[01:13:13] And even the one with the one didn't say, you gave them more, well more than you gave me.
[01:13:19] It wasn't this comparison thing.
[01:13:21] The two went back and returned two.
[01:13:23] So at the end of the story, the master comes back and says, what have you done?
[01:13:26] And they returned five, returned ten.
[01:13:28] And he said, well done, good and faithful servant.
[01:13:32] The two returned four and the one buried, he said,
[01:13:34] He calls him a wicked and lazy servant and then removes what he had given him and gives it to the one with five.
[01:13:44] The principle there is stewardship.
[01:13:45] No matter what God has given us, to each one he's called according to his will for us to steward and to manage and to grow and give back to God.
[01:13:56] So I'm gonna do, what I learned from this parable is I'm gonna do my job.
[01:14:01] I'm not worried about what Pastor Aaron and Stephanie are doing with what they've given them.
[01:14:07] I'm not worried about what God's given Randy and what he's doing with that.
[01:14:11] I am focused on what God has given me in doing what he has called me to do with what he's blessed me with.
[01:14:18] Amen?
[01:14:19] You following with me?
[01:14:21] All right.
[01:14:21] The next kingdom logic says provision follows pursuit.
[01:14:26] Provision follows pursuit.
[01:14:29] I don't chase money.
[01:14:31] I chase God and God takes care of me.
[01:14:36] I don't chase a dollar.
[01:14:37] I chase the Lord and He blesses me.
[01:14:41] Matthew 6 31 through 33 says stop worrying about what you'll eat what you'll drink and what you'll wear unbelievers run after all of these things and God knows that you need them he knows that you need to eat that you need to drink he knows you need a house over your head he knows what you he knows your needs are before you even have that hunger in your stomach for them that desire in your heart he knows
[01:15:05] but the next verse says seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.
[01:15:13] So my job is to chase God and do what he's called me to do.
[01:15:17] To chase after him, to seek first his kingdom and then everything will be taken care of after that.
[01:15:24] And the last kingdom logic I wanna share with you is worry drains, peace sustains.
[01:15:31] Worry drains, peace sustains.
[01:15:34] Worry, when I get worried, and this is a good check for me personally in my heart, is when I start to worry about stuff, I say, who am I making this about?
[01:15:45] Because when I worry, I make it about me.
[01:15:50] Like, how am I gonna figure this out?
[01:15:52] What am I gonna have to do to get us through this?
[01:15:55] How am I gonna pay that next bill?
[01:15:57] How are we gonna get over this?
[01:15:58] But I'm making it about me and what I can do.
[01:16:02] Instead of giving it back to God, peace comes from believing and knowing it's all on Him.
[01:16:08] Now God, you have this.
[01:16:10] You've got this.
[01:16:12] Now remember, I'm a home builder in the marketplace, so Diana and I, we build houses and move every couple years, and there's tension for about six or seven months in our life financially, where we're living in a house and paying a mortgage, but I'm also building another house and paying on the construction loan,
[01:16:31] Especially when so basically two mortgages for about six or seven months and there's a time at the end where things get you know I don't want to say squirrely they just get tight and tense let's just say that because I don't have the other house isn't sold yet and I'm coming to close on the one I'm building so the mortgage is going to transition from a loan to a traditional mortgage and
[01:16:55] There's no guarantee that I'm going to sell the other house.
[01:16:57] And I remember one or two times ago, Diana came to me and she was, you know, finances were tight and we're coming up to the end.
[01:17:03] And we're like, man, she's like, I don't know what we're going to do.
[01:17:05] How are we going to get through this?
[01:17:07] And I kid you not, and this was from the Lord, because I don't, I can't take credit for this, but I looked her straight in the eye and I said, that's not our problem.
[01:17:16] It's not my problem.
[01:17:19] Because we tithe and we give above the tithe
[01:17:24] We steward our finances according to what the Bible says.
[01:17:28] We serve in God's house.
[01:17:31] We open everything that we have up to the Lord.
[01:17:34] Not only our finances, but our house.
[01:17:37] We use it as an extension of the church for life groups or having people over.
[01:17:41] So honestly, this is not my problem.
[01:17:45] I'm doing my part.
[01:17:47] God has to figure out the rest.
[01:17:50] He does, because His Word says it.
[01:17:52] I mean, He even says, test me in this when it comes to finances.
[01:17:56] And it's easier for me to say because, you know, internally I'm like, yeah, I really don't know how this is going to work out.
[01:18:01] But I got to speak faith right now over my finances and my wife, and everybody's looking at me, and I'm the builder.
[01:18:07] It's also, so there's a lot riding on me, so I'm going to...
[01:18:10] yeah but internally for me too it's like hey this is not my problem God promised me his word says that he will care for me even if we lost it all I'm gonna believe in faith that he's gonna take care of us it's not for me to figure out it's for him to figure out so how do we fall out of love and this is where I want to stick the last of them of the message is in the practical this is the practical part of the message
[01:18:37] So how do we fall out of love?
[01:18:38] The first step, practical step in our day-to-day, number one, hands down, is to practice tithing.
[01:18:47] Practice tithing.
[01:18:49] Tithing isn't payment for blessing.
[01:18:53] It's placement of trust.
[01:18:56] Tithing isn't payment for blessing.
[01:19:00] It's a placement of trust.
[01:19:03] Proverbs 3 verse 9 says, Honor the Lord with your wealth
[01:19:06] with the first fruits of all your crops.
[01:19:09] Then your barns will be filled to overflowing and your vats will brim over with new wine.
[01:19:17] And it's gotta be the first, honestly.
[01:19:20] It has to be the first.
[01:19:22] Because if it's not the first, it's not a tithe.
[01:19:26] If it's at the end, it's a tip.
[01:19:30] Right?
[01:19:30] I know Pastor Troy shared it up here, which hit me so hard.
[01:19:33] If it's not a first, when it comes in, I'm returning it back to you, God, trusting.
[01:19:39] But if I go to the mortgage company and pay them first, and then I go to Duke Energy and pay them next, and then Piedmont for my gas, and Charlotte Water, and then I pay the Verizon bill, and then groceries, and then at the very end, I'll see if I have enough to give, that's a tip.
[01:19:59] It's the first fruits.
[01:20:01] So anytime I have increase into my household, into my bank account, into my life, I'm gonna return back the first 10% saying, God, I trust you.
[01:20:11] I trust you because I know that you can do not better and bigger with 90 than I could ever do with 100.
[01:20:18] Tithing will realign your heart.
[01:20:21] It will break greed.
[01:20:22] If you're having a hard time with greed and just holding onto it, you've got your money, I mean, you're white knuckling it.
[01:20:27] You're squeezing so hard that
[01:20:30] You know, it hurts almost.
[01:20:32] Tithing will help you release it.
[01:20:35] Sometimes we screw it up.
[01:20:36] We think faithfulness is like keeping it, hoarding it, and keeping it safe.
[01:20:41] Like, I'm gonna be faithful with my children, so I'm gonna keep them in this little Christian bubble in my household, and they're never gonna get out in the world.
[01:20:50] Or I'm gonna keep my finances.
[01:20:51] I think that's what the steward of the one, or the servant with the one talent, he was like, I'm gonna keep this safe.
[01:20:58] and I'm gonna bury it and then give it back to God.
[01:21:00] That's not faithfulness.
[01:21:02] That's living like this.
[01:21:03] Faithfulness is saying, God, I trust you and I'm gonna return it back to you and I'm gonna live open-handed because I know that if I do that, then you'll bless me.
[01:21:13] You'll take care of me.
[01:21:15] You'll handle everything else in there.
[01:21:17] Imagine if God held his head, just clenched when he thought about Jesus.
[01:21:23] But he gave freely because he loves you.
[01:21:26] He sent his one and only.
[01:21:29] One and only Son.
[01:21:30] He lives open-handedly.
[01:21:31] So how can we live like this with our finances?
[01:21:38] Tithing will challenge your fear.
[01:21:39] It will train trust.
[01:21:40] So it's a consistent thing.
[01:21:42] Every time I have increases in my house, I'm giving back.
[01:21:44] I'm going on the app or the website, and I'm giving.
[01:21:47] Even, you know, sometimes my mom, for whatever reason, still sends birthday money.
[01:21:51] I'm 41 years old.
[01:21:52] I don't know why she sends birthday money.
[01:21:54] But my mom, you don't have to do this, but I'll, you know, I'm giving.
[01:21:58] Anytime I have increased, no matter what it is, I'm giving it back to God, saying, God, I trust you.
[01:22:02] It's over and over.
[01:22:03] It's a faith-building thing, like, God, I trust you.
[01:22:05] God, I trust you.
[01:22:06] God, I trust you.
[01:22:08] Tithing is not losing money.
[01:22:10] It's gaining God's blessing.
[01:22:15] The next practical step is practice ridiculous generosity.
[01:22:19] Let's get crazy, guys.
[01:22:21] I wanna challenge you to get a little crazy today, to get a little radical in your generosity.
[01:22:27] Do something that you've never done before.
[01:22:29] Maybe today after we dismiss and you go to lunch, and I'm gonna get you out of here shortly, so I know you're hungry.
[01:22:35] Maybe when you go today, you just bless somebody's socks off with your tip.
[01:22:41] The waitress or waiter, if you've got a $25, $30 bill, why not give them $50?
[01:22:47] Tip them the same amount that your bill is.
[01:22:49] Do it to the point where they're gonna look at it and see it and be like, wow.
[01:22:54] Even if it's bad service.
[01:22:56] Even if it's bad service, give somebody $100, $500, do something radical that you've never done before, and I guarantee you, walking out of that restaurant, walking away from that person, even if you don't get to see their reaction, don't do it for the reaction.
[01:23:13] Don't do it for the acknowledgement.
[01:23:14] Don't do it.
[01:23:15] Do it so they don't even know who you are, but walking away, I can guarantee you that you're gonna feel a sense of just joy in your heart.
[01:23:23] Because you are never closer to your Father in heaven than when you are generous.
[01:23:28] When you give freely of something, your heart will well up, man.
[01:23:32] It feels so good to give to people.
[01:23:35] It feels so good to bless somebody to the point where they're like, man, I do not deserve this.
[01:23:40] Why?
[01:23:41] I did not serve them that well.
[01:23:45] Why in the world would you tip me that much?
[01:23:48] Generosity detoxes the soul from the love of money.
[01:23:52] Giving shifts our mindset from scarcity to abundance.
[01:23:57] And listen, generosity is not measured on the amount given.
[01:24:00] Please hear me.
[01:24:00] It's not about the amount that you give.
[01:24:03] It's about the posture of your heart.
[01:24:06] God reminds us this in 2 Corinthians 9.
[01:24:09] It says, remember this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly.
[01:24:13] Whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
[01:24:18] Even each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion.
[01:24:25] Don't do it because I'm telling you to do it today.
[01:24:27] Please hear me.
[01:24:29] For God loves a cheerful giver.
[01:24:33] He wants us to be cheerful givers.
[01:24:36] But being cheerful is not the principle.
[01:24:39] It's the attitude.
[01:24:41] So I know if you're like me, sometimes I can get like, well, I'm not very cheerful, so I'm not gonna give.
[01:24:46] I'm just gonna hold onto this until I feel cheerful, and then I'll give.
[01:24:51] No, that's not how it works.
[01:24:55] If you're not a cheerful giver, I would say pray about it.
[01:24:58] Go back to the warning signs that I spoke about earlier.
[01:25:02] Is there something in there that's got your heart hardened where you're not a cheerful giver?
[01:25:07] Because God wants you to be.
[01:25:09] He loves a cheerful giver.
[01:25:11] He is a cheerful giver.
[01:25:14] The third thing, and this is big for Americans today, all Western society, practice living below your means so you can live above anxiety.
[01:25:25] Practice living below your means so you can live above anxiety.
[01:25:32] And look, all of this I'm telling you is out of personal experience and a personal testimony.
[01:25:39] So please hear me and hear my heart.
[01:25:41] Most of us can't afford to tithe because we spend too much money.
[01:25:46] I remember early on in our faith walk, we were at a place and it came out of my mouth.
[01:25:51] We cannot afford to tithe.
[01:25:53] Dinah and I were just married.
[01:25:54] We had just bought a house and had a mortgage.
[01:25:56] The house probably was a little too much.
[01:25:59] If we're being honest I had student loans that we were paying on we had two car payments because we had both gotten new cars and at the end of the day we were spending too much money I was also spending hundreds if not thousands of dollars going to Virginia Tech football games on the weekend because it was something that I loved doing and all of that was happening but yet when I
[01:26:26] When it came to tithing, I literally said, I cannot afford to tithe.
[01:26:31] And I think that's true for many of us today.
[01:26:34] We spend too much money.
[01:26:36] Honestly, 10% is not that big of a piece of the pie.
[01:26:39] We shouldn't be living beyond 90% of what we make anyway.
[01:26:43] I've sat across tables and have conversations with people on the regular.
[01:26:47] Someone will have a $20,000, $30,000 RV sitting in the driveway but can't afford to tithe.
[01:26:55] A brand new Jeep or a nice pickup truck that's lifted with $3,000 rims and tires on it.
[01:27:04] Ladies that are decked out in jewelry shining bright like a diamond.
[01:27:10] Everybody has the latest and greatest iPhone, whatever it is now, 16.
[01:27:14] These are like $1,000 phones, but everyone in the family's got it.
[01:27:18] But yet we can't afford to tithe.
[01:27:23] And I'm not telling you that to condemn you.
[01:27:25] I hope that the Spirit will convict you and just think about how we are living and stewarding our finances.
[01:27:32] Because most of us don't have a money problem.
[01:27:35] We have a stewardship problem.
[01:27:39] So we need to make plans.
[01:27:42] Habakkuk 2 says, Write the vision and make it plain.
[01:27:46] God says,
[01:27:46] The Bible also says to where there's no plan, the people perish.
[01:27:50] If you don't have a plan for your money, if you don't have a personal home, a budget for your household, you're destined for destruction.
[01:27:58] We need to budget ourselves.
[01:28:00] And listen, stewardship is not restrictive.
[01:28:02] It's protective.
[01:28:03] It's not holding you back from things and blessings that God wants to give you.
[01:28:07] But what it's doing is setting you up for success.
[01:28:09] It's saying, hey, I'm putting a boundary up here to protect
[01:28:11] I'm one that needs protection from myself.
[01:28:18] Virginia Tech just got a brand new head coach the past couple weeks.
[01:28:21] I am ready to be there every single Saturday next year on the field.
[01:28:27] But I need protection to guard me from myself.
[01:28:30] No, man, you can't spend thousands of dollars on season tickets.
[01:28:35] Build a simple budget where every dollar has a mission.
[01:28:38] Put your money to work.
[01:28:39] Don't just let it sit there.
[01:28:40] and avoid debt wherever possible.
[01:28:43] The last practical thing that we're doing today as far as kingdom logic is practice contentment.
[01:28:51] This is one of the most difficult spiritual muscles.
[01:28:53] I've touched on it some already.
[01:28:55] Let me tell you what contentment is not.
[01:28:57] Contentment isn't settling, it's seeing clearly.
[01:29:01] Contentment is not anti-desire, it's anti-idolatry.
[01:29:06] So be happy.
[01:29:07] We need to really work on being happy with what we have.
[01:29:11] Take moments to reflect on what all that God has already blessed us with.
[01:29:18] Write down, maybe take a moment this week and write down during your prayer time with the Lord to have Him remind you of some of the prayers that you so desperately sought Him for that were answered and now you've totally forgotten about them.
[01:29:34] because all too often I think we just we keep moving from one thing to the next and we forget all that God's we just came out of Thanksgiving there are a lot of things that all each of us should be thankful for and we need to take time to to go to God and say thank you thank you God for all of the prayers that I prayed for that you answered you know what thank you for the ones you didn't answer because I know that your plan is perfect and I know that you're caring for me no matter what if I see it in the flesh or
[01:30:03] If I don't see it here on earth, I know that you'll care for me.
[01:30:08] Maybe serve some other people that are less fortunate than you.
[01:30:11] This is something really intentional Diane and I have with our children because they live inside their little bubble in our household and within the church and we are intentional about taking them, doing the 12 days of Serve Charlotte, going and helping feeding people who have nothing compared to what they have.
[01:30:32] If they don't see that and experience that and live in reality, they'll never know how blessed they are.
[01:30:38] But it does the same thing for me, going out and helping feed these people, the less fortunate, the ones who can't care for themselves, the ones who just had a bad break, who didn't have a loving church community to help support them through tough times or family members at all.
[01:30:53] It's so humbling to go out and be with these people and to be the literal hands and feet of Jesus.
[01:31:01] We can sow financially into these things and be a part of the blessing from afar, but I think God is calling us to get face to face with some of these people so that they can rub off on us.
[01:31:12] They can remind us of how good God is, how good he's been to us, and how good we can be to others.
[01:31:21] Trust God as your provider and all that he's given you and all that you need.
[01:31:27] Use your kingdom logic to transform your mind
[01:31:30] So that you will bear kingdom fruit.
[01:31:33] Because you know what happens when you fall out of money?
[01:31:35] Do you want to know when you fall out of love with money, you will fall into peace?
[01:31:43] You'll fall into peace because dollars will not define you.
[01:31:48] When you fall out of love, you'll fall into contentment because comparison will not control me.
[01:31:54] It cannot control me.
[01:31:56] You'll fall into purpose because money now becomes my tool.
[01:32:00] It is not my master.
[01:32:02] It works for me.
[01:32:03] I don't work for it you'll fall into generosity because giving gives me joy and I'm never more like my father in heaven than when I give and when I am generous and I ask for nothing back I don't even need the attention I don't need your love I don't need your thank you I'm doing it because I'm it's a blessing to me but I want to bless you
[01:32:23] When you fall out of love with money, you will fall into freedom because money no longer has a grip on me.
[01:32:29] It no longer owns my heart and no longer takes up so much space in my mind that I can't even sleep at night.
[01:32:35] It has no hold over me.
[01:32:37] I make my own choices.
[01:32:40] The fruit of falling out of love of money is I am going to be the most intentional and joyful giver that I have ever been.
[01:32:48] Never gripped by fear or a lack, but I am a bold steward.
[01:32:53] Do you agree with me?
[01:32:55] Will you stand to your feet?
[01:32:57] Stand to your feet.
[01:32:58] I just want to take a minute.
[01:33:01] I want to take a minute to make this personal because we don't fall out of love with money accidentally.
[01:33:10] We walk out intentionally.
[01:33:13] So with every head bowed and every eye closed, I want to ask you right now, where is your heart?
[01:33:20] What has had your heart lately?
[01:33:21] Is it God or is it money?
[01:33:26] This is a really tough season, I'll be honest with you, because while we're supposed to be focused on Christmas, we're coming out of Thanksgiving and the gratefulness of family and sharing, sitting at a table and breaking bread with one another, and we're moving into Christmas to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, to celebrate as a church, a body of Christ, but yet everything
[01:33:50] In our society is pulling on us to spend money.
[01:33:53] It's the time of gift giving and we want to bless our family.
[01:33:58] We want to say thank you to those who have spent so much time in our lives and have blessed us.
[01:34:03] We have to go to every party.
[01:34:05] We have to bring a gift to everything.
[01:34:07] The church is talking about money and kingdom builders and they're asking me to step out with faith and be a generous giver.
[01:34:14] They're asking me to tithe and it feels like
[01:34:17] Like, while I should be worshiping the coming of Jesus, there's everything that's being pulled on me from a financial aspect.
[01:34:23] And I know that some of you are facing fear in that right now.
[01:34:26] You're looking at your banking account and it's like, I don't know how we're gonna get through this.
[01:34:30] My children are not gonna be blessed like other children are.
[01:34:34] I don't know how we're gonna make it through this season.
[01:34:37] I don't know how we're ever gonna be able to tithe.
[01:34:41] God, we can't afford to tithe, much less be a kingdom builder.
[01:34:45] Where is it gonna come from, God?
[01:34:48] There's restlessness and fear and doubt and worry.
[01:34:51] And for some of us that have a lot of money, it's totally distracted us.
[01:34:55] We are only focused on the year-end bonus.
[01:34:57] We are only focused on how can I wrap up this year?
[01:35:00] How can I get the bottom line up by the end of the year so that we're in the black and not the red this year?
[01:35:07] And it's totally distracting you from the joy and the peace and the love and everything this season is supposed to be about.
[01:35:20] and we've gotten things out of line.
[01:35:21] We've totally fallen in love with money.
[01:35:24] For some of us, we've placed it above God and we're running this race and we're walking down this path that God never had intended for us to go down.
[01:35:35] We're filled with fear and doubt and worry.
[01:35:42] I just wanna encourage you right now that you can be free from all of that.
[01:35:48] You can be free from this grip that it has over you.
[01:35:50] It doesn't control you.
[01:35:52] It works for you.
[01:35:55] If you would just steward it well, if you would give back not only your money, but your heart to Jesus, then he would pour out his blessing for you.
[01:36:05] He would open the floodgates of heaven for you.
[01:36:08] There is nothing that God will hold back from you.
[01:36:10] If he sent his only one and only son to die for you, why would he withhold anything else from you?
[01:36:18] So if you're here in this room and you're at a place where money is not in the right spot or maybe it has too much weight in your heart and it's taking up too much space in your mind and you're distracted by it instead of focusing on the Lord, just lift your hand really quickly so I can see you.
[01:36:35] I see your hands.
[01:36:36] I see your hands.
[01:36:37] It's just a simple acknowledgement.
[01:36:38] You can put it down after you raise it up.
[01:36:40] It's not that you have to confess it to me.
[01:36:42] I just wanna know who I'm praying for.
[01:36:44] And if there's anyone in this room that
[01:36:49] that has not received Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
[01:36:52] I wanna provide a moment for you to surrender that to Him because before we can figure out the money part, we have to figure out the salvation part.
[01:37:00] And receiving this perfect gift that God sent, He so generously gave us, sent His only Son to die for you so that you could be washed clean and made new from all of your sins, all of your mistakes, not just ones that involve money, not the love of money, but everything.
[01:37:18] Past, future, and present, all sins can be wiped away and you can be made new in Jesus Christ, born again, brought into the throne room of heaven, and just have a seat beside your Father, your loving Father in heaven.
[01:37:32] If that's you, if you've never prayed that prayer, if you haven't confessed with your mouth but you believe in your heart, right now just lift your hand up really quickly so I can see it.
[01:37:40] And then you can put it down.
[01:37:41] I want to pray a prayer for you.
[01:37:42] I want to pray a prayer with all of those in this room today.
[01:37:46] Repeat after me, church.
[01:37:47] Say, Heavenly Father, I believe that you are so generous that you sent your first, that you sent your best in Jesus Christ to die for me.
[01:38:01] God, I thank you for modeling the way of generosity.
[01:38:06] I receive your Son
[01:38:08] as my Lord and my Savior right now in the name of Jesus.
[01:38:15] God, free me from all of my sin and all of my mistakes.
[01:38:21] God, free me from the love of money.
[01:38:24] I will never let it hold me.
[01:38:26] I will never let it grip me.
[01:38:28] I will never put it before you.
[01:38:31] I will live as a radical
[01:38:34] Amen.

[01:38:35] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
Come on, let's give God some praise to celebrate all those people that made decisions this morning.
[01:38:47] Let me share with you something that Aaron and I talked about last night in regards to Christmas.

[01:39:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_15]:
We are going to live a peaceful life.
[01:39:06] We're going to be present by being at the Serve Charlotte opportunities where we're serving other people.
[01:39:19] We're going to be present with our family where we're inviting them to come and enjoy Christmas Eve services with us with the hope that those we serve will come to know Jesus on Christmas Eve.
[01:39:31] 12, 24, 25.
[01:39:34] New Address for the community of Charlotte because we were out there present with those that are maybe a little less fortunate or with our families.
[01:39:44] And then lastly, we're going to live powerful.
[01:39:47] We don't have to live under the circumstances because we serve a powerful God.
[01:39:51] So what I want you to do this season is to live peaceful, present, and powerful.
[01:39:58] Freedom House, we love you.
[01:39:59] Have a great week.
[01:40:01] Go out and be powerful.

[01:40:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Deuteronomy

[02:00:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]:
I think it's try either a different cable.
[02:00:54] Honestly, what I would do is not use the insert function.
[02:00:55] I don't see any benefit to that.

[02:03:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]:
and more.

[02:03:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Use your