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[MUSIC]
>> WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE GENEROUS?
IS GENEROSITY A WAY OF LIFE OR IS IT A STRUGGLE
EVERY TIME YOU GIVE? HAVE YOU MADE GENEROSITY
A WAY OF THINKING, A WAY OF SEEING AND A WAY OF LIVING?
THE BIBLE SAYS THAT GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER.
WELL, I'M LOOKING FORWARD, TODAY, TO SPEAKING TO YOU
ABOUT SOME OF THE GREAT TRUTHS OF GOD'S WORD.
GOD'S WORD IS POSITIVE. IT BUILDS.
IT LIFTS US UP. IT CHALLENGES.
IT STRETCHES. I PRAY YOU ENJOY THIS PROGRAM.
>> I'M SPEAKING THIS MORNING ABOUT AN INDESCRIBABLE GIFT.
THANKS BE TO GOD FOR HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT.
HAVE YOU EVER RECEIVED A INDESCRIBABLE GIFT?
KIND OF LOOK AT IT AND IT'S LIKE...
WHAT IS IT? WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I REMEMBER ONE
TIME MY MOM GAVE ALL OF US KIDS, THERE WERE FIVE OF US,
A LITTLE BIT OF MONEY EACH TO BUY CHRISTMAS PRESENTS
FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY. WELL, IT WAS ONLY A LITTLE BIT
OF MONEY BECAUSE MY PARENTS DIDN'T HAVE TOO MUCH OF THAT.
BUT, I CAUGHT THE TRAIN INTO DOWNTOWN WELLINGTON WHERE
I GREW UP FROM TAITA, WHICH IS SPECIFICALLY WHERE I LIVED.
AND WENT INTO WOOLWORTHS, THE DEPARTMENT-STORE-TYPE
WOOLWORTH. I WAS LOOKING AROUND TO TRY AND
BUY SIX PRESENTS, MOM, DAD, MY OLDER SISTER, MY OLDER BROTHER,
MY YOUNGER TWO SISTERS AND TRYING TO FIND SOMETHING
FOR EVERYBODY. AND MY OLDER SISTER,
SHE WAS 5 YEARS OLDER. I WAS MAYBE 8 SO IT
WOULD HAVE MADE HER ABOUT 13. I SAW WHAT I THOUGHT
WAS A PIECE OF JEWELRY. IT WAS KIND OF SILVER AND SHINY
AND I THOUGHT WOW, SHE'S GONNA LOVE THAT.
NOW AS IT TURNS OUT, IT WAS A KEY RING AND MY SISTER
WAS ONLY ABOUT 13. SHE DIDN'T HAVE KEYS
TO ANYTHING. SHE COULDN'T DRIVE A CAR AND
WASN'T GIVEN KEYS TO THE HOUSE SO SHE DIDN'T REALLY NEED
A KEY RING. BUT I WAS SO EXCITED 'CAUSE
I'D GOT MY SISTER THIS JEWELRY. SO I'LL NEVER FORGET IT.
WHEN CHRISTMAS MORNING CAME AND WE'RE ALL OPENING OUR PRESENTS
AND MY SISTER, MY OLDEST SISTER, YOUNG TEENAGE SISTER,
OPENED MY PRESENT AND I WAS JUST FILLED WITH ANTICIPATION.
AND SHE WENT... "WHAT IS IT?"
I WAS CRUSHED. I STILL REMEMBER IT
'TIL THIS DAY. I REMEMBER A FRIEND OF MINE
BUYING ME, ONCE, A TIE WHEN I WAS, AGAIN, YOUNG,
BUT NOW MAYBE A YOUNG TEENAGER. AND THE PATTERN ON THE TIE
WAS INDESCRIBABLE. AND SO I WAS PUTTING IT ON
IN THE BATHROOM AT CHURCH BECAUSE HE'D GIVEN IT TO ME.
AND ANOTHER GUY CAME IN AND SAYS, "OH, NICE TIE."
AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, I DON'T REALLY LIKE IT
BUT SUCH AND SUCH GAVE IT TO ME SO I THOUGHT I'D BETTER WEAR IT.
AND AT THAT IN ONE OF THE CUBICLES, YOU COULD HEAR
THE TOILET FLUSH AND SUCH AND SUCH WALKED OUT
OF THE CUBICAL, SO I LEARNED EARLY, BE CAREFUL
WHAT YOU SAY ABOUT ANY GIFT, LET ALONE AN INDESCRIBABLE GIFT.
WELL, HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT.
HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT, HIS NAME IS JESUS.
IT'S THE GIFT OF GRACE, SOMETHING THAT'S AVAILABLE
TO EVERY PERSON IN THIS ROOM, THE UNMERITED,
UNDESERVED FAVOR OF GOD. IT'S INDESCRIBABLE BECAUSE
IT'S NOT ONE-DIMENSIONAL. THE GRACE OF GOD DOESN'T
JUST HAVE ONE SIDE. IT HAS MANY SIDES.
1 PETER 4:10 CALLS IT HIS MANIFOLD GRACE.
WE'RE CALLED TO BE STEWARDS OF HIS MANIFOLD GRACE, MANIFOLD,
MANY FOLDS, MANY COLORS, LITERALLY MANY SIDES.
YOU KNOW, WHEN A DIAMOND SPARKLES,
IT HAS ALL SORTS OF REFLECTIONS AND ALL SORTS OF SIDES.
WELL, EVEN THAT WOULD BE NO COMPARISON WITH THE VARIOUS
SIDES OF THE WONDERFUL GRACE OF GOD.
YOU CAN'T PIN IT AS JUST BEING THIS BECAUSE
IT HAS SO MANY SIDES. THE WONDER OF THIS GIFT
IS INDESCRIBABLE. HOW WONDERFUL IS THAT?
AND THE THING IS THE CONTEXT IS 2 CORINTHIANS 8
AND 2 CORINTHIANS 9. AND THE CONTEXT IS GENEROSITY
AND GIVING. AND THE REALITY IS WE'RE TOLD
IN THOSE VERSES THAT WE ARE TO ABOUND IN THIS GRACE ALSO,
THE GIFT OF GENEROSITY, LIVING OUR LIVES IN A GENEROUS WAY.
DO YOU KNOW GENEROSITY IS NOT ONE-DIMENSIONAL;
IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT WHAT YOU DO WITH YOUR FINANCE.
IT IS MULTIDIMENSIONAL. ISAIAH 32:8
TALKS ABOUT A GENEROUS MAN. IT SAYS THE GENEROUS PERSON
DEVISES GENEROUS THINGS, DEVISES, STRATEGIZES,
THINKS THAT WAY, DEVISES GENEROUS THINGS.
AND IN HIS GENEROSITY, HE SHALL STAND.
WELL, THAT'S A PRETTY WONDERFUL THING WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT
GENEROSITY, WHEN IT DEFINES A PERSON, A GENEROUS PERSON,
THEY ARE DEVISING, STRATEGIZING, THINKING GENEROUS THOUGHTS.
THEY DEVISE GENEROUS PLANS. I LOVE THE WAY YOUNG PEOPLE
THESE DAYS, YOUNG PEOPLE I KNOW WITHIN THEIR LIFE OF OUR CHURCH
AND WHEN THEY PROPOSE, IT'S NOT JUST AN AFTERTHOUGHT AT THE END
OF THE MEAL, "OH, BY THE WAY, WILL YOU MARRY ME?"
NO, THEY DEVISE A GENEROUS PLAN, AN ELABORATE PLAN.
OFTENTIMES IT'S DIFFERENT THAN OTHERS AND SOME A LITTLE MORE
SIMPLE, PERHAPS, BUT I'VE KNOWN OF PROPOSALS THAT HAVE INVOLVED
A SIGN ON THE HARBOR BRIDGE. I'VE KNOWN OF PROPOSALS THAT
HAVE INVOLVED DECOYS, SOMETHING WAS EXPECTED THERE BUT IT'S
ACTUALLY HAPPENING OVER HERE. I'VE KNOWN PROPOSALS THAT,
YOU KNOW, HAVE INVOLVED A HELICOPTER.
I MEAN, I'VE KNOWN ALL SORTS OF GENEROUS PLANS.
I WONDER IF GENEROSITY IN YOU IS THE WAY YOU THINK.
I WONDER IF IT'S A STANCE. "IN HIS GENEROSITY,
HE SHALL STAND." LISTEN TO PROVERBS 11.
IN PROVERBS 11:25 IT SAYS, "THE GENEROUS SOUL
WILL BE MADE RICH, AND HE WHO WATERS
WILL ALSO BE WATERED HIMSELF." IT SAYS IN
THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION, "THE WORLD OF THE GENEROUS
GETS LARGER AND LARGER. THE WORLD OF THE STINGY
GETS SMALLER AND SMALLER." DO YOU KNOW THINK ABOUT
A GENEROUS STANCE. GENEROUS PERSON, THEY DEVISE
GENEROUS THINGS AND IN THAT GENEROSITY, THEY SHALL STAND.
I BELIEVE THAT WHEN GENEROSITY IS A STANCE, IT LITERALLY
IS A WAY OF THINKING. IT'S A WAY OF SEEING.
IT'S A WAY OF LIVING. DEVISES GENEROUS THINGS.
THEY THINK THAT WAY. THEY STRATEGIZE THAT WAY.
THEY ARE WIRED THAT WAY. THEY HAVE A WAY OF THINKING
THAT IS GENEROUS. OFTENTIMES AS A BELIEVER,
YOU HAVE TO ALLOW THE WORD OF GOD TO BUILD THAT THINKING.
BUT YOU TRANSFORM BY THE RENEWING OF THE MIND BECAUSE
MANY TIMES THE WAY THAT WE ARE RAISED IS NOT
TO THINK GENEROUS THOUGHTS. IT'S A WAY OF THINKING.
IT'S A WAY OF SEEING. PROVERBS 22:9 SAYS,
"THE GENEROUS EYE WILL BE BLESSED."
A GENEROUS EYE IS NOT JUST ONE GREAT BIG EYE.
NO, NO, IT'S A WAY OF SEEING. WHEN PEOPLE SEE THROUGH EYES OF
GENEROSITY, THEY SEE OPPORTUNITY TO BE GENEROUS EVERYWHERE.
THEY SEE OPPORTUNITIES TO BE GENEROUS IN THE PEOPLE
ENCOUNTERS THEY HAVE, WHETHER IT'S WITH THEIR FINANCE,
WHETHER IT'S WITH THEIR WORDS, WHETHER IT'S WITH THEIR TIME.
NO MATTER HOW IT IS, WHEN SOMEBODY HAS A GENEROUS EYE,
THEY JUST SEE OPPORTUNITIES EVERYWHERE TO BE GENEROUS.
IT'S A WAY OF SEEING. IT'S A WAY OF THINKING.
IT'S A WAY OF LIVING. WHEN GENEROSITY IS A WAY OF
LIVING, IT'S BEING ENGINEERED FROM SOMETHING.
I READ 2 CORINTHIANS 9:15 TALKING ABOUT GOD'S GENEROSITY.
THANKS BE TO GOD FOR HIS GENEROUS GIFT.
A FEW VERSES BEFORE THAT IT SAYS, "LET EACH ONE GIVE
AS THEY PURPOSE IN THEIR HEART." IF GIVING IS SOMETHING
THAT IS PURPOSED IN OUR HEART, IT'S BEING THOUGHT ABOUT, WE
SEE THROUGH EYES OF GENEROSITY. WE LIVE IN A GENEROUS WAY.
IT SAYS, "LET EACH ONE GIVE AS THEY PURPOSE IN THEIR HEART,
NOT GRUDGINGLY OR OF NECESSITY; FOR GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER."
GIVING ONLY BECOMES CHEERFUL WHEN IT'S BEING GENERATED
FROM THE INSIDE. A GENEROUS SOUL, THINK ABOUT
THAT, A GENEROUS SOUL WILL BE BLESSED OR "A GENEROUS SOUL,"
PROVERBS 11:25, "WILL BE MADE RICH."
IT'S ACTUALLY TALKING ABOUT BEING WEALTHY ON THE INSIDE.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S A WEALTH ON THE INSIDE, A GENEROUS SOUL,
A GENEROUS SOUL. IT GENERATES A WAY OF SEEING,
A WAY OF THINKING, A WAY OF LIVING THAT IS
ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THAN, PERHAPS,
WHAT OUR HUMAN NATURE HAS. IT'S A SOUL.
YOUR SOUL IS YOUR EMOTIONS, THE WAY YOU FEEL.
IT'S YOUR THINKING. IT'S THE WAY YOU THINK
AND, OF COURSE, IT'S YOUR CHOICES, YOUR WILL.
IT AFFECTS THE DECISIONS YOU MAKE.
WELL, WHEN GENEROSITY IS IN THE SOUL,
A WEALTHY, A BLESSED SOUL, A BLESSED SOUL,
YOU DON'T HAVE THOSE THINGS WORKING AGAINST EACH OTHER.
GENEROSITY, IT'S IN OUR THINKING.
IT'S IN THE WAY WE FEEL, IN OUR EMOTIONS
AND IT DETERMINES OUR CHOICES. BUT YOU KNOW, WHEN PEOPLE DON'T
HAVE THAT WEALTH ON THE INSIDE, OFTENTIMES WHEN IT COMES TO
GIVING OR GENEROSITY, NO MATTER WHICH FORM IT COMES IN, YOU'LL
FIND THAT THOSE THREE CAN'T EVEN GET THEIR SELVES TOGETHER.
YOU MIGHT SEE SOMETHING THAT MOVES YOU,
SO YOU KNOW, YOUR EMOTIONS, YOU FEEL LIKE GIVING TO SOMETHING.
YOU SEE SOMEONE IN NEED. YOU SEE SOMETHING.
YOU KNOW, SO AT THAT MOMENT YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WANT TO DO
SOMETHING BUT OFTEN OUR THINKING SAYS, NO, NO.
MY THINKING SAYS I CAN'T DO THAT.
I CAN'T AFFORD IT. OUR THINKING AND OUR SOUL
AND OUR--THEY'RE NOT GEARED UP TOGETHER AT ALL.
THEY'RE WORKING IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS.
AND OFTEN THAT MEANS WHEN IT COMES TO GENEROSITY,
WE DON'T MAKE STRONG CHOICES, WE JUST STAY INDECISIVE.
"MAYBE I WILL, MAYBE I WON'T. OH, YES, OKAY, I'LL GIVE TO
THAT, BUT I WON'T GIVE TO THAT." BUT WHEN LITERALLY GENEROSITY
BECOMES A MATTER OF OUR SOUL, THEN THE WAY WE FEEL AND
THE WAY WE THINK AND THE CHOICES WE MAKE, THEY ALL COME FROM
SOMETHING THAT IS GENERATED ON THE INSIDE.
AND IT'S A POWERFUL THING WHEN THAT HAPPENS BECAUSE
NOW GENEROSITY, WE'RE TOLD TO BE CHEERFUL GIVERS.
NOW, GENEROSITY IS A STANCE. IN OUR GENEROSITY, WE STAND.
WE KNOW THIS IS WHAT WE'RE ALIVE FOR.
WE'RE ALIVE TO BE BLESSING. WE'RE ALIVE
TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE. WE'RE ALIVE TO HELP THE WORLD
AND AROUND AND ABOUT US. SUDDENLY A GENEROUS SOUL,
A BLESSED SOUL, IT JUST TOTALLY CHANGES
THE WAY WE LIVE OUR LIVES. WE CAN BE CHEERFUL GIVERS
AND NOT TEARFUL GIVERS. SOMETIMES PEOPLE, RATHER THAN
BEING CHEERFUL, GIVING MAKES THEM TEARFUL AND THEY MIGHT
GO HOME AND GET AN EARFUL, FROM A PARTNER OR A HUSBAND OR A WIFE
WHO'S NOT ON THE SAME PAGE AND THAT'S THE POWER, BY THE WAY,
OF UNDERSTANDING A MARRIAGE. A RELATIONSHIP
HAS A SOUL AS WELL. AND WHEN ON THAT RELATIONSHIP
IT COMES TO GENEROSITY, GIVING IS A STANCE.
GENEROSITY IS A STANCE. YOU DEVISE GENEROUS THINGS
THAT MEANS YOU MAKE YOUR PLANS TOGETHER
AROUND THE IDEA OF GENEROSITY. IT'S A STANCE.
IT'S A WAY OF SEEING. IT'S A WAY OF THINKING.
IT'S A WAY OF LIVING. YOU'RE ON THE SAME PAGE.
MANY TIMES IN A MARRIAGE, YOU GOT ONE PERSON,
WELL, THEY FEEL LIKE BEING GENEROUS HERE, BUT THE TRUTH IS
THEY KNOW THEY'VE GOT A PARTNER WHO THE WAY THEY'RE
THINKING OVER HERE IS GONNA BE ENTIRELY DIFFERENT
AND THEY'RE INHIBITED. THEY CAN'T EVEN MAKE A DECISION
TO BE GENEROUS. WHAT A BLESSING.
HERE WE ARE, WE'RE 12 MONTHS RIGHT NOW, AS I TALK, 12 MONTHS
FROM OUR NEXT COLOUR CONFERENCE. WE'VE JUST HAD
THE COLOUR CONFERENCE AND ALREADY OVER 9,000 WOMEN
HAVE REGISTERED FOR COLOUR 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CONFERENCE
EVEN COMES AROUND. I MEAN, THAT'S A MIRACLE.
NO MATTER WHICH WAY YOU LOOK AT IT.
BUT ONE THING BOBBIE SAID TO ME, IN FACT, SHE SAID A FEW TIMES
TO ME OVER COLOUR, SHE SAYS, "YOU KNOW A LOT OF
WIVES, THEY CAN'T JUST DECIDE TO REGISTER EARLY BIRD."
THEY HAVE TO GO HOME AND TALK TO THEIR PARTNER WHICH,
OF COURSE, IS GOOD. IT'S GOOD THAT
THE TWO ARE TOGETHER. BUT IN ANOTHER WAY,
IN ANOTHER WAY, I WONDER IF OUR RELATIONSHIPS
HAVE THE KIND OF SOUL. I WONDER WHETHER WE HAVE
THE KIND OF STRATEGY AND PLANNING,
IN OTHER WORDS, BUDGETING THAT ALLOWS FOR GENEROSITY.
I WONDER IF WE HAVE THAT THINKING, WHETHER WE'RE IN IT
TOGETHER BECAUSE THAT'S THE WAY YOU'LL HAVE A MARRIAGE
THAT HAS A BLESSED SOUL. AND 3 JOHN 2, YOU KNOW
WHAT THE APOSTLE JOHN SAID TO HIS FRIEND, GAIUS?
HE SAID, "BELOVED, I WISH ABOVE ALL ELSE THAT YOU MIGHT PROSPER
AND BE IN GOOD HEALTH, AND EVEN AS YOUR SOUL PROSPERS."
WELL, WE HAVE A SOUL AND YOU CAN FLOURISH
OUT OF A PROSPEROUS SOUL. YOU KNOW, AND A MARRIAGE
HAS A SOUL AND IF THE SOUL OF THE MARRIAGE IS PROSPEROUS,
IT'S FLOURISHING, IT'S BLESSED, IN THE BIGGER SENSE, DON'T THINK
OF PROSPERITY IN ONE WAY, MONEY. THINK OF IT IN ITS GREATER
SENSE, WHICH IS JUST A WEALTH ON THE INSIDE.
IF THERE'S A HEALTH INSIDE THAT MARRIAGE, YOU WATCH IT FLOURISH
IN THE SAME WAY AS ITS SOUL FLOURISHES AND IT'S EXACTLY
THE SAME FOR A CHURCH. WHEN THE SOUL OF A CHURCH
IS GENEROUS, IT WILL BE IN GOOD HEALTH AND FLOURISH IN THE SAME
WAY AS ITS SOUL FLOURISHES. SUDDENLY, GENEROSITY,
IT BECOMES A STANCE. NOT ONLY DOES IT BECOME
A STANCE, BUT GENEROSITY BECOMES A STRATEGY.
YOU START THINKING GENEROUS THOUGHTS.
YOU MAKE GENEROUS PLANS. YOU DEVISE GENEROUS THINGS.
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE BUILD GENEROSITY INTO A PART
OF THE CORE OF WHO WE ARE. NOW, IT'S THE STANCE.
IT'S A WAY OF THINKING. WE STRATEGIZE THAT WAY.
IT'S A WAY OF SEEING. THE GENEROUS EYE
SHALL BE BLESSED. YOU SEE THINGS THROUGH
AN EYE OF GENEROSITY. IT AFFECTS YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
I WANT TO SEE THROUGH THE KIND OF EYES THAT BELIEVES
THE BEST OF PEOPLE. I WANT GENEROSITY TO BE A WAY
OF THINKING, A WAY OF SEEING. IT'S YOUR OUTLOOK.
YOU SEE THINGS THROUGH GENEROUS EYES.
YOU BELIEVE THE BEST OF PEOPLE. YOU SEE OPPORTUNITIES
TO BE GENEROUS EVERYWHERE. YOU SEE IT IN CONVERSATION.
YOU SEE IT WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO JUST WRITE A NOTE.
WE DON'T UNDERSTAND THE POWER OF AN ENCOURAGING NOTE MANY TIMES.
YOU SEE IT WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR RESOURCES AND YOUR FINANCES.
IT'S NOT JUST ONE-DIMENSIONAL. YOU'RE NOT JUST GENEROUS THERE.
IT'S A WAY OF THINKING. IT'S A WAY OF SEEING.
IT'S A WAY OF LIVING. IT BECOMES A STRATEGY.
IT BECOMES A STANCE AND IT BECOMES A PERSPECTIVE.
THE GOD WE SERVE, THANKS BE TO GOD FOR HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT.
>> INDESCRIBABLE GIFTS. I WONDER IF YOU'VE EVER RECEIVED
ONE, THAT IS A GIFT THAT, WELL, YOU DON'T KNOW
WHICH WAY UP IT GOES. YOU'RE NOT QUITE SURE
WHAT IT IS. THE SCRIPTURE SAYS, THANKS BE TO
GOD FOR HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT, BUT THIS IS INDESCRIBABLE
BECAUSE IT IS SIMPLY SO GRAND, SO MANY COLORS AND DIMENSIONS
WHEN IT COMES TO THE GRACE OF GOD, THAT IS,
HIS INDESCRIBABLE GIFT. IT'S CALLED MANIFOLD GRACE,
MANY FOLDS, MANY COLORS, MANY DIFFERENT SIDES AND,
OF COURSE, IT'S THROUGH GRACE THAT JESUS CHRIST,
HIS LIFE WAS LAID DOWN. HE GAVE HIS LIFE.
GOD GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON SO THAT YOU AND I
COULD HAVE LOVE. IT IS THE ULTIMATE,
ULTIMATE GIFT. WELL, GENEROSITY
IS IN GOD'S VERY CORE. IT'S WHO HE IS AND I WANT TO
ENCOURAGE YOU TO LIVE YOUR LIFE SO THAT YOU'RE GENEROUS
ON THE INSIDE. IN THE BOOK OF PROVERBS,
THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THE GENEROUS SOUL WILL BE MADE RICH.
IT'S TALKING ABOUT A WEALTH ON THE INSIDE, THE KIND
OF BLESSING ON THE INSIDE THAT JUST COMES OUT FROM YOU.
AND WHEN WE ARE THAT WAY, WE THINK THOUGHTS OF GENEROSITY.
WE SEE THROUGH EYES THAT ARE LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITY
TO BE GENEROUS AND WE LIVE IN A STANCE.
IT'S NOT JUST SOMETHING WE DO FROM TIME TO TIME,
WE STAND IN GENEROSITY. AND WHY'S THAT IMPORTANT?
IT'S IMPORTANT BECAUSE I BELIEVE GENEROSITY, APART FROM
ANYTHING ELSE, WHAT IT DOES IS IT JUST OPENS US UP.
WHEN WE LIVE OUR LIVES TIGHT, THEN IT RESTRICTS, IT MAKE US
TIGHT AND PEOPLE CAN LIVE SO MUCH ANXIETY AND SO ON BECAUSE
THEY'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO HOLD ON AND THAT'S NOT WHAT
GOD'S WILL IS FOR YOU. SO I ENCOURAGE YOU, JUST OPEN UP
TO GENEROUS POSSIBILITIES AND THINK ABOUT HOW YOU CAN BLESS
SOMEONE WITH GENEROUS WORDS, HOW THAT YOU CAN MAYBE JUST WRITE
A LITTLE NOTE THAT IS GENEROUS AND ENCOURAGING TO SOMEBODY.
IT CAN BE GOLD IN THE MIDDLE OF A DRY TIME WHEN WE JUST
TAKE A MOMENT TO BE GENEROUS. GOD IS SO GENEROUS TOWARDS YOU,
HIS GIFT OF GRACE IS INDESCRIBABLE.
I PRAY THAT YOU ALSO WILL HAVE A HEART TO BE GENEROUS,
WHETHER IT'S BEING GENEROUS IN A CORPORATE WAY, MAKING
A DIFFERENCE ALONG WITH A WHOLE LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE TO A NEED
OR A CAUSE OR WHETHER IT'S JUST THE SMALLEST LITTLE THING
THAT REFLECTS A HEART THAT WANTS TO BE A BLESSING,
WANTS TO BE A HELP TO PEOPLE. LET'S DECIDE TOWARD GENEROSITY.
WHEN I PRAY FOR YOU IN JUST A MOMENT,
I'M GONNA PRAY IN PARTICULAR THAT GOD WILL GIVE YOU
OPPORTUNITIES TO BE GENEROUS.
>> WHEN I GREW UP, I NEVER EXPECTED THAT I WOULD ENCOUNTER
SOMETHING LIKE DIVORCE. AND YEAH, THAT TURNED
MY WHOLE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN. EVERYTHING CHANGED
AT THAT POINT. IT WAS QUITE A SUDDEN SPLIT
AND VERY UNEXPECTED AND THAT'S KIND OF WHERE
THAT SCRIPTURE COMES IN FOR ME. JEREMIAH 29:11 SAYS, "I KNOW
THE PLANS THAT I HAVE FOR YOU," SAYS THE LORD, "PLANS TO GIVE
YOU A HOPE AND A FUTURE." FOR QUITE A LONG PERIOD OF TIME,
I WAS LIKE, WHERE IS THIS SCRIPTURE NOW?
AND THAT'S WHEN I SAW THE SCRIPTURE AGAIN IN ANOTHER
VERSION OF THE BIBLE AND IT READS JUST SLIGHTLY
DIFFERENTLY AT THE END. IT SAYS TO GIVE YOU AN EXPECTED
END AND I REALIZED THAT I'D FACED HEAD-ON A LOT OF
UNEXPECTED ENDS TO THINGS IN MY LIFE AND THAT GOD WAS GONNA
GIVE ME AN EXPECTED END. AND THAT FUTURE AND HOPE IN
FRONT OF ME BECAME SO MUCH BRIGHTER THAN THE CIRCUMSTANCES
THAT I WAS LOOKING AT HEAD-ON AND I CAME TO UNDERSTAND
A STRENGTH THAT I HAVE NEVER KNOWN BEFORE.
GOD IS LOVING. HE DOES IT IN SUCH A WAY THAT IS
SO PERSONAL TO THE INDIVIDUAL. HE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED
AND HE'S ABLE TO DELIVER ME THROUGH SITUATIONS
THAT I'M JUST CONFOUNDED BY. HE KNOWS ME
BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE. HE'S STRONG AND HE'S LOVING.
[MUSIC]
MIRACLES ARE YOUR MEMORIAL THE PROMISE OF WONDERS TO COME
YOU ARE THE AUTHOR GOD YOU COMPLETE IT ALL
OUR GOD OUR GOD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS
OUR GOD IS GREATER THAN ALL
OUR GOD OUR GOD HAS DONE GREAT THINGS
OUR GOD IS GREATER THAN ALL
[MUSIC]
OH OH OH OH OH
OH OH OH OH OH
ALL OF THE PRAISE UNTO YOUR NAME
BE LIFTED HIGHER ALL OF THE PRAISE
UNTO YOUR NAME FOREVER
>> WELL, LET ME PRAY FOR YOU. FATHER, I JUST THANK YOU
IN JESUS' NAME FOR YOUR ULTIMATE GENEROSITY TOWARD US.
I THANK YOU, LORD, THAT YOUR WORD IS FILLED WITH PAGES
THAT JUST REFLECT THE HEART OF A GENEROUS GOD WHOSE GENEROSITY
TOWARD US IS INDESCRIBABLE. LORD, I PRAY THAT YOU'LL GIVE US
THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE GENEROUS AND THAT WE'LL SEE THROUGH THOSE
KIND OF EYES, LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITY TO BE GENEROUS,
LORD, THAT WE'LL THINK GENEROUS THOUGHTS, THAT WE'LL
TAKE A GENEROUS STANCE AND LIVE AND STAND
WITH A HEART OF GENEROSITY. FATHER, I JUST THANK YOU FOR
YOUR GOODNESS AND I PRAY THAT OUT OF YOUR GENEROSITY, YOUR
INDESCRIBABLE GIFT EVEN NOW, PEOPLE WILL KNOW THE GRACE
OF SALVATION, THE GRACE OF OPPORTUNITY TO RECEIVE YOU
INTO THEIR LIVES AND ALLOW YOU TO FRAME THEIR WORLD.
THANK YOU, FATHER, IN YOUR NAME, AMEN.
AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING ME TODAY.
SEE YA NEXT TIME.