We will be in a three-week series looking at maintaining a healthy walk with God this summer in three areas that we tend to let go over the summer: Giving, Growing, and Going. This morning I want to talk about giving and generosity. Why talk about money and giving at all? For one, Jesus talked about money and generosity more or nearly more than any other topic in His recorded ministry; He spoke of money more than the topics of faith and prayer combined. 11 of His 40 parables were about money or used money as a way to teach us spiritual truths. And yet Jesus never pursued wealth or money Himself, and didn’t even have a place to lay His head or many earthly possessions. He depended on the giving of others Scripture says. The other reason we need to talk about money is that it is flat out important; money is a huge part of our lives. Most of the worry and anxiety in our lives is caused by wondering if we have enough of it. Arguments over it are among the leading causes for marital, friendship, family and roommate problems. It is the reason for most of society’s crimes. It's been called The Root of all evil but also the means of great good! So no matter how much of it we have or what we decide to do with it, the one thing we can’t afford to ignore, and the one thing we can all agree on, is that money is important! I know there can be some different attitudes on giving and finances. Maybe you are a follower of Jesus but have heard money talked about poorly or abusively by the church. Or maybe you are not a follower of Jesus and your impression of Christians and churches is that they just want your money. But let me say this: It’s important that we filter our past experience through what Jesus actually says about money in His Word rather than filtering God’s Word through our past experiences.
