Sermon Tone Analysis

We’ve been in a series over the last few weeks called Thanks and Giving and how I want to end this series is to help you understand what thankfulness should produce in your life especially in one area.

Thankfulness should produce in you encouragement to know you are more blessed than most people around the world.

It should also produce generosity.

In fact write that down.

Thankfulness should always lead to generosity!

As I said in the first week of this series, we are blessed!

We are the most blessed nation in the world and we are the richest people in the world!

Most of you in this room would never catagorize yourself as rich, but you are!

In first Timothy, Paul is writing to Timothy who is now a pastor and Paul is helping Timothy with some stuff that he needs to teach his church.

Let’s look at and see what Paul said:

Notice that Paul says to command those who are rich to not be arrogant or to put their hope in their stuff, why?

Because it’s uncertain.

Their hope, our hope, has to be in God, who gives us everything for our enjoyment.

God wants you to enjoy stuff.

He just wants you to enjoy Him more.

Then Paul tells Timothy to command them to do good things, to be generous so that they will lay up treasures for themselves in heaven.

Thankfulness should lead to generosity!

Statistics say that the more Americans make the less they actually give.

You would think that it would be the opposite but it’s not.

Why?

Because the more they make the more they buy and the cycle goes on.

If I asked how many people in this room consider yourself rich, most likely none of you would raise your hand because we just don’t see ourselves that way.

Why?

Because we don’t have the nicest house, car etc…So I want to throw 3 reasons to you as to why rich people are not very good at being rich.

Rich people don’t like to admit they are rich.

Gallup put out a poll and they asked this question: How much does a person have to make to be rich?

What you would think?

Think up an answer in your head real quick.

The answer to the poll was $150,000.

What’s funny is that the person who makes 150K would laugh and say “I’m not rich!”

They also asked people who made 34-35K per year, how much does a person have to make to be rich?

The answer they gave was 75K, to which that person laughs and says “I’m not rich!”

They also asked those who subscribe to Money Magazine, people of course that are really concerned with money and who have some, how much do you think it takes to be rich?

The answer for them was 5 million dollars and as you to your surprise the person with 5 million laughs and says “I’m not rich!”

So, what can we conclude then?

Nobody is rich, but everybody knows somebody who is!

It’s all about perspective isn’t it?

Here’s what I want you to get today.

Statistics say this that if you make between 44K-48K per year in a combined salary, you are in the top 1% of the richest people in the world.

So, when I asked the question earlier “Are you rich?”, your answer should have been yes!

You say, well I’m not rich.

According to majority of the people in the world you are and you need to start admitting that.

Now there is a reason that you are so blessed and it’s not so you can build up a bunch of stuff.

God wants you blessed and favored so He can build His Kingdom through you and me.

God is generous!

Don’t forget that we serve a generous God and He wants you to be blessed so you can make a difference in the lives of other people!

You are rich because God trusts you to do something with it!

2. Rich people are plagued with discontentment.

The more stuff a person has the more stuff a person wants.

Notice that it doesn’t say those who “have” money but those who “love” money never have enough.

You cannot be consumed with what you don’t have, if so you are going to be frustrated all the time because you can’t achieve what you think will make you happy.

I want you to think about this next statement:

I will not let what I want rob me of what I have.

We need to be thankful for everything that we have because every good thing we have has come from God! It should cause us to be full of gratitude.

And...

Gratitude will turn whatever we have into enough!

Rich people have this thing called “upgrades”.

It’s where they take something that is working perfectly well and trade it in for something that will do the same thing but cost more money.

For instance, they will drive a car to a dealership and trade for another one that does the same thing and pay more money for it.

Or they will go to the Apple Store and wait in line for next, best and greatest when what they have is working just fine or...

Rich people have these rooms for their clothes.

They go in and look around at all the clothes hanging and make this statement “I don’t have anything to wear!”

I’m not saying that all any of this is wrong, I’m just saying that don’t take it for granted.

Don’t tell me you’re not rich and when most of you and done the things I’m just talked about.

Don’t tell me that you have no reason to be thankful!

Remember this...

It’s not happy people who are grateful, it’s grateful people who are happy!

3. Rich people live with a false sense of security.

Some people believe they can save their way to security.

They say “If I save enough I will be financially secure.

They believe I can insulate myself from bad things happening if I just have enough money.

Rich people actually think that they can build a wall of defense around themselves with the stuff the accumulate or the money they save.

They “imagine” it to be a wall of safety and it’s anything but.

So, if this is true, how much money would you need to secure your future against all imaginable eventualities?

Answer: More than you currently have.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t have a savings account, Terri and I have a savings account for our future, I am saying don’t put your trust in that.

Trust God!

So then, what do we need to think and do?

One thing for sure is that you don’t be generous through guilt.

It’s the wrong thing to do and it’s the wrong motivation to give by guilt.

Such as, “I feel guilty for being blessed so I’m going to give a little to help a starving child somewhere”.

Not good!

Thankfulness should lead you to generosity that comes from gratitude!

So determine...

I will be grateful

Be thankful that you are rich!

That you live in the greatest country in the world!

That God put you here because He wants to trust you to build His Kingdom! Realize that everything you and I have comes from a loving Father!

When I think about this church and what God has done in 6 1/2 years in Groves, TX! We’ve grown from 2 families that came together to over 1000 people, it’s amazing!! Every week we see anywhere from 20-40 people giving their lives to Christ!

We’ve watched miracle after miracle and God continues to do more miracles.

I am so grateful to be a part of something so great!

And I want God and everyone else to know how grateful I am!!

Gratitude makes us more generous!

How do I fight discontentment?

I will lead with generosity.

Matthew

When generosity leads, your heart will follow!

I will put my hope in God!

I will not trust in riches but in Him who richly provides.