Legacy Week 2 - Kingdom Builders

Honor Veterans

So glad to have my in-laws with us

If you have a student, Wednesday night at 6:30 we are having our first Awaken YTH Friendsgiving dinner (FAMILIES ARE WELCOME)

Serve 101 is immediately after service - GET PLUGGED INTO A SERVE TEAM (OR ALL OF THEM)

MALACHI 3

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Intro - Recap from Last Week

Last week we began our discussion about how to live a life of generosity.

We talked about the fact that the call to tithing is due to the fact that robberies have taken place

We are robbing God of an opportunity to bless or IMPROVE our lives because blessing = improvement

Others are robbing us of a blessing that God has by filling in the gap and getting blessings that were intended for us.

Principles of the tithe:

The tithe is fixed - It’s 10% - Easy place to start

The tithe is first - We don’t reach the end of our budget and hope there’s enough left over to give 10%

I challenged you to practice tithing for 90 days and trust God to be true to His Word.

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My Television Negotiation

I went to Sam’s - They had a returned TV section

I liked it and said I’d be willing to give $500

The guy said “I couldn’t do that…but I could take $475 since thats the price on the price tag.”

I was so impressed by the product that I was willing to give more than I had to.

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TR: Today we are transitioning our conversation beyond that of tithing

Malachi 3:8–10 (NKJV)

“Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the Lord of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.

Kingdom impact isn’t made by rich people - It’s made by generous people.

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What am I giving to?

When you sow into the church you are sowing into good ground.

Year one - In the church

35 people get saved or rededicate their lives

11 people go public with their faith through baptism

We have seen healings, financial provision, people answer the call to ministry, people operate in the gifts of the Spirit

YOUR GIVING MAKES ALL OF THAT POSSIBLE!

Year one - Outside the church

$7500 invested in other church plants

$1500 invested in Bartow Family Resources to help take care of mothers and babies who make the right choice to protect life

$1500 invested in local schools

$1500 invested in benevolence

$1000 invested in foreign missions

You don’t give to a church, you give through a church

YOU DO NOT GIVE SO THAT WE CAN BUILD AN INVESTMENT ACCOUNT SOMEWHERE

All the numbers I just said to you…I want to double in year two

VISION MOVES AT THE SPEED OF GENEROSITY!

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Pattern for generosity

God gives us a pattern for consistent financial trust.

Tithing is not generosity…It’s integrity

We don’t give our tithes…we return our tithes.

But there is another level of blessing on top of that which is promised when you are faithful to return the tithe.

THIS IS WHERE OFFERINGS COME INTO PLAY

They are included in the verse that talks about the opportunities we are robbing from God

When you give generously, you avail more opportunities to God to prove Himself!

We return the tithe and we give offerings.

Many of us have a heart that says yes to this level of generosity but we don’t know how to begin.

GOD GIVES US A PATTERN FOR THE TITHE

I WANT TO GIVE YOU A PATTERN FOR GIVING OUTRAGEOUSLY GENEROUS OFFERINGS

If you make $150,000 a year this pattern I’m talking about today is for you - if you make $10,000 a year this pattern I’m talking about today is for you.

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1. Plan: First, make a plan to give. When you have plans that are diligent, it leads to plenty

Proverbs 21:5 (NKJV)

The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.

Let me give you another word for plan - BUDGET!

You can’t give what you don’t have

You won’t have what you don’t budget

REALIZING I COULDN’T PRACTICE GENEROSITY LIKE ROBERT MORRIS

Budget giving above your tithe and watch what God does.

We just increased a certain percentage above giving ten percent this year

GOD HAS BLESSED.

Whatever the amount is - have the plan in place, work the plan, and be obedient with it. Start there.

When you don’t tell your money where to go…it goes.

One of the most spiritual things some of us could do is create and live by a budget.

Many of us are not hindered when it comes to generosity by a lack of pay but we are hindered by the lack of a plan.

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Sacrificial Giving is part of the plan

While we must plan for generosity, part of the journey is being sensitive when HS asks you to give outside of the plan.

Sacrificial giving is one of the greatest ways that God will build your faith.

Story of giving $150 at Tiger Mountain

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Vision:

Next, ask God to give you a vision for what He could do through you with His help.

This is beyond what you can do in your natural income.

This requires you to take a step of faith.

Habakkuk 2:2 (NKJV)

Then the Lord answered me and said: “Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it.

Additionally, Habakkuk 2:2 tells us to write that vision down and pray about it! God will supply all your needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus

Philippians 4:19 NKJV

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

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Stepping out in faith pleases God.

I want all of us to hear from heaven a vision for generosity that terrifies us. - THIS GETS EVEN MORE REAL IN OUR NEXT SECTION

THIS VISION ASPECT of generosity should be beyond the realm of logic but not outside the realm of possibility.

My vision for giving is not going to be I want to give $1,000,000 this year…THAT ISN’T POSSIBLE

My vision for giving should be something that would stretch me but if I had a good month could possibly take place.

When we commit the benefits of our good months to God…We have more good months.

Mark Batterson says

If we want to experience the supernatural in our lives we need to start by making plans to do things that are beyond your natural ability.

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Dream: This is the fun one.

Your dream doesn’t have to take logic into consideration.

You can marry your passion with your imagination in order to begin building dreams for the kingdom.

A dream is built on this template; if God would, I would.

If God would allow me to build wealth I would give away my vehicle

If God would let the business take off I would finance the work of the church on a large scale

If God would open the door I would do the thing that seems beyond me.

Sacrificial giving builds your faith because God meets your need, Vision giving builds your faith because God blesses your plan, Dream giving builds your faith because God blows your mind.

Ephesians 3:20 NKJV

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,

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Dreams give birth to dreams

You are sitting in something that was a dream two years ago.

My faith is built by the faithfulness of God to bring the dream to pass.

AS GOD OPENS THE DOOR FOR DREAMS TO COME TRUE....THE METRIC MOVES

Every dream realized gives birth to a new dream.

{You aren’t supposed to tell your dreams to anyone until they come true.}

I have a dream to own a hotel for single moms and individuals who need help getting back on their feet

I have a dream to flip the list in Cartersville and Bartow County.

Dreams carry miracle value but come with a monetary cost.

As we become a church full of FAITH FILLED GIVERS we will start to see dreams become reality in our community and abroad.

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Practical Generosity

We will revisit the concept of generosity next spring and talk about some initiatives we will be stepping into.

I wanted to prime the pump and get you rolling with a plan to give, building a vision to give, and ultimately having a dream to give outrageously.

But I also want to let you know that as we head into year two as a church we are actively looking for ways to be an outlet of generosity in our region.

TR: THAT BEING SAID

An article published by an organization called philanthropy round table concluded that only 20% of the generous acts in the US are done through foundations and corporaitons

71% of generous acts were done by individuals.

People are living generously in their own world.

YES WE GIVE TO THE CHURCH

YES WE GIVE TO MISSIONS

But we should not limit generosity to Sunday morning.

I want to let a generous lifestyle be one of the greatest means of evangelism that we utilize as Awaken Church.

We have made some cards available to you.

Buy someones coffee

Tip well

Buy someones gas

Spot a young family at the checkout line in the grocery store and go pay for their groceries

WHEN YOU DO THAT GIVE THEM THIS CARD - God loves you and so do we - information about Awaken Church.

We must be a people who see the needs of others as an opportunity rather than a nuisance.

Jesus met needs before he confronted sin.

My prayer is that our community not only sees Awaken Church as a church that preaches the truth but a church wherein rumors of generosity are full of truth. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

If you don’t know Jesus today - We are talking about generosity as a means of worship that reflects the generosity of our God

He gave His life to save our souls - took our sin to the cross.

If you do know Jesus, generosity is one of the greatest tools of Christlikeness we have at our disposal.

Even here towards the end of the year I want you to pray about what God might have you do above and beyond the tithe

If you haven’t surrendered in the tithe yet, I want to invite you into the 90 day journey with many of us

I GUARANTEE NO ONE IN THIS ROOM WILL OUTGIVE THE GOD THAT WE SERVE!