Grab it and Blab It?

       God wants you to be rich!  I'm not talking about just being rich in relationships.  That would be lame.  I'm not talking about being rich in knowledge.  I'm not talking about being spiritually rich.  I'm talking about the money.  I'm talking about the stuff money can buy.  I'm talking about the peace of mind and security money can buy.  I'm talking about the great relationship you will get with your kid if you give her a Beemer for her 16th birthday.

       How do I know that God wants you to be rich?  God tells us in His own words.  God promises, "I will throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."

       "But Pastor Dave," you say, "there must be a catch.  If God wanted me to be rich, I would be rich.  If God wants it, God can do it.  And I'm sure open to all the good things He wants me to have.  What's the catch?"

       Well there is a catch.  But the catch isn't in God.  The catch is in you.  If you aren't rich yet it's because you haven't primed the pump.  You haven't given God His fair share so He'll give you what you want.  You haven't paid attention to what the Word says.  You gotta pay attention to the fine print.  You have to prove to God that you are worthy of all the stuff He has to give you by giving Him your stuff first.

       Listen to the whole text. Malachi 3:8-10: “Will a man or woman rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?'  "In tithes and offerings."  You are under a curse-the whole nation of you-because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."

       The Bible is clear.  You can't expect to get from God until you give to God.  God wants His full ten percent - His full tithe.  He doesn't want five percent or even nine percent.  He wants the whole ten.  He wants it brought into His storehouse - Moorpark Presbyterian Church.  Once you do that, once you prove your worthiness, once you demonstrate your faith, God will act.  That little company you have stock in will be bought out by Amgen.  That weekly lottery ticket you buy will be the big winner.  That ...

      Moses interrupts.  "I can't believe what I'm hearing!  This is the same stuff I'm writing my doctorate about - it's not what the Bible says.  Take off that shiny coat and preach the word.”

     I'm sorry.  I've been watching waaay too much television.  It’s time to take of the coat and preach the word,  I’ve fallen into the trap of “name it and claim” it or “grab it and blab it.”  Thanks, Moses.  

     It's time to get real.  Yes, Malachi 3 does say that God expects us to give to Him.  It does say that the tithe matters.  It does say that God promises to respond to our faithfulness by His faithfulness.

      But Malachi 3 does not mean that God wants any one of us to be individually rich.  If that happens, fine.  We can give more.  But it is a promise that as we invest, we will receive.  It isn't that we get what we pay for.  It's that we become what we invest in.  That is true for us as individuals and for us as a congregation.

       We become what we invest in. 

       Do you remember the Parable of the Talents? You should because Moses read it ten minutes ago.  The principle Jesus lays down in this parable is that those who are faithful have ever expanding opportunities for faithfulness.  Those who aren't faithful in the use of what God gives them will not only fail to grow but will lose even what they start with.

      A few weeks ago I was taking some old slides and scanning them into my computer.  Yes, I'm finally entering the 21st century.  Some of these pictures were from earlier years here at Moorpark Presbyterian.  I was struck by how many pictures there are of people most of you don't know.  They moved from the area long ago.  But even though you don't know them, you are standing on their shoulders as you work for the Lord today.  They were key to our past success.  We have the opportunities we enjoy today as a congregation because these people gave so faithfully of their time, their treasure and their talent. 

       A good friend of mine, Len Senukian, an executive with the Missionary Church asked me:  "When you finally leave Moorpark Presbyterian, or if you die in your study, what is the legacy you would most like to leave?  What would you like people to be able to say about you?"

       I immediately thought of a verse from 1 Corinthians where Paul compares himself to a wise master builder.  I thought of this verse because I'd like people to be honestly able to say that I helped build this church with integrity and health.  I will know that I have if the person who follows me in this role is able to accomplish way more than I have been gifted to do.  I want to help build something that lasts.

       Now let me ask you the same question.  What is the legacy you would like to leave in this place?  How do you want your church to be stronger and more effective the day you leave than the day you came?   How will tomorrow’s people be able to stand on your shoulders? 

       This is a crucial question for each of us because we stand at such a pivotal time in the life of our church.

       This is true in several ways. 

       First, if you look out this window you can see the audio visual aid I arranged for this morning - our large construction project.  We are clearly moving forward.  God has blessed us richly. 

       I mean that in the most literal way.  Back in 2001, God led us to buy the 2.7 acres of vacant land between our church and Pinecrest School for $750,000.  When we bought the land we had a number of possible uses in mind.  We weren't sure how we would make the land useful because of the difference in elevation.  But we knew that buying the land was the right thing to do.        

      Then came the spring of last year when we faced both a need and a realization.

      The need was the large gap between the financial resources we had and the projected cost of building what we need to build.  Building costs have risen dramatically the last three years.  The gap was over a million dollars.  We couldn't reduce the size of the project and have the facilities we need for our ministry in the community.  We seemed to be stuck.

       But we also faced the realization - the realization of what creative, and I believe Holy Spirit inspired, architectural design can accomplish.  We realized that we don't need the upper property to meet our facility needs.

       We knew that the land had increased in value.  We didn't know how much.  Initial estimates were between 1.6 million (not nearly enough once we pay off the debt) and 2 million (almost enough).  Well as you know, we are in escrow for 2.25 million.  And, as I said a year ago, “If we aren't thankful, if we don't sense God's strong leading and blessing on our congregational life, then there is something way wrong with our thinking and our praise.  “This is the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes.’”

       But let me make an observation here about how God works.  He acted to give us enough to close the gap we honestly could not close.  But He gave us just enough to close the gap.  He did not give us enough to keep us from doing what we can and should do.

        This ties in with what Paul writes in Galatians 6:2 and 6:5 – our call to worship. Paul writes that we are to carry each other’s burdens and thus fulfill the law of Christ.   But, at the same time, each person is to carry his or her own load.   That’s not a contradiction.  The burden is something that is genuinely too hard for one person to carry by themselves.  That might be an emotional burden or a physical one.  We are to help carry those.  But we aren’t to carry the loads – the backpacks -- people should be made to carry for their own growth. 

       God has clearly picked up our burden – the insurmountable gap – in a big way.  But He also hands us our “backpack” in the form of the “building fund” portion of the pledge card you will receive this week and says.  He says, “you can do this part so it is yours to do.”

        Just because we have started the building doesn’t mean we are done pledging and giving.  There are still crucial things to be finished that are outside the resources we now have.  There is the ongoing debt to be paid.  And we don’t just have needs in the building fund.  Buildings alone aren't enough. Stucco and wood can't touch lives. That requires people.

       We also have increased needs and wonderful opportunities in the other side of the budget – the operating fund.  The fact is that we have to move forward now with the resources of the people who are here now.  This is how we prepare for what God intends to do in our ministry with the completion of the building.

       We have multiple needs and opportunities.  One is in our ministry to youth. 

       Last Sunday, Lynda Rummelhoff shared with you about our vision for an expanding outreach to the youth in our own congregation and the larger community.  I am excited about Em Blattner coming as our youth pastor in January.  The fact that Carol and I “just happened to be in Switzerland ” to do an initial interview convinces me that God is at work.  We don’t really be in Switzerland all that often.  But we also want to expand our ministry beyond the good places it has been with a larger, ongoing role for Kristin Giffin on our youth staff and also for ample resources for outreach.  The resources to do all this are not in our budget yet.  But through your increased giving as reflected on the pledge card, I believe they will be.  And that’s a pretty darn joyful backpack to be able to carry.

       Many of you don't yet have teenagers. Maybe you never will.  But you care about the future.   And as a parent let me tell you that good, biblical youth programs through the church are among the most important things in the world. Those of you who have children heading into the teenage years should be especially concerned that we continue to strengthen our youth programs through the church. It is an act of enlightened self- interest from you to make this new position happen by supporting the increased budget with your pledges. Your teenagers are going to be very influenced by their peers. You will do well to make sure that they are the right peers exerting the right kind of peer pressure and also that they have contact with the right adult models.

       The needs aren’t only in the ministry to youth.  We have increased needs and wonderful opportunities in our ministry, to children, our small groups, evangelism, and world and local mission.  I believe that God is going to do some amazing things in our common life together over the next years.  You believe that too.  In the survey we took last May, an incredible 90% of you said that you have a sense of excitement about our congregation’s future.  The best is ahead.

       But we have to step out and plant now in order to get a harvest later.  And we have to plant right.

       Some time ago I shared a true story about farming in northwest China some centuries ago. The farmers planted potatoes by putting pieces of the previous year's potato crop into the soil. They did this year after year. Then someone got the bright idea of sorting out all the very smallest potatoes, called runts, to use for planting the next year. They would sort out all the large potatoes, save those to eat, and cut up and plant all of the runts. Of course, they did not know anything about genetics. But you might guess the problem. After several years of planting the runts, they found that all the potatoes they grew were very small. By keeping the biggest ones to eat and planting only the smallest, soon all they were able to grow were small potatoes!

       The only thing that grows from small potatoes in our lives are small potatoes. To tithe, as Malachi says, means to give part of our breeding stock, our seed corn -- to trust God with our futures. We are not to give God what really costs us nothing.   And we are to do it now for future results.

       Often we approach our stewardship with a fist that is either tightly closed or just open enough to shake out a little bit--like putting salt in a piece of meat. God says that we are to come to him with our hands wide open -- as living sacrifices -- without reservation. The danger is that God may take all we have. The blessing is that when our hands are open God can fill them to overflowing. It's hard to put something into a fist. God says that He wants our lives. But he wants our lives in order to give us greater life. God's desire is not to take but to give and it is by our willingness to give that we make ourselves capable of receiving.

       Between the operating budget and the building fund, my family gives a full tithe of our gross income. And we have found God’s promise to be absolutely true. We cannot out give God. Our needs are always met. I invite you to put God to the test in the same way.

       You may have heard about the man who stood in front of the group of high-powered over achievers at a conference he said, "Okay, time for a quiz." He pulled out a one gallon, wide-mouthed clay jar and set it on a table in front of him. Then he produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked,     "Is this jar full?"

       Everyone in the class said, "Yes."

       "Really?" He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing the pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. Then he asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?" By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied.

       He then reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, "Is the jar full?" "No!" the class shouted. Once again he said, "Good!" Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked up at the class and asked,

        "What is the point of this illustration?"

       One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit some more things into it."

       "No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is: If you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all."

       That's certainly true of our giving to God. If we don't intentionally put it in our budget first, it will be squeezed out. Priorities have to be established up front and held on to. That's true for the use of both time and money.

       Remember to put these big rocks in first or you'll never get them in at all. As you consider who you are and who you want to be, ask yourself this question: What are the 'big rocks' in my life? What things are the most important to me? Then, put those in your jar first. There'll still be plenty of room for the small stuff.

       The pledge card that comes in the mail this week for the Operating Budget and the Building Fund is the opportunity to make the future happen.  I believe that we stand at a crossroads. The decisions we make now will influence the direction of our shared ministry for years to come. Stewardship is much more than money. It is about us and our Lord and our commitment to Him.