Luke 19:1-26 is the story of a man named Zacchaeus. He was a "dirt-ball" to the rest of the Jewish community because he was a tax collector for Rome. Not only that, he was the chief tax collector . . . so he was the "chief dirt-ball." In this account we see that he spent the afternoon with Jesus, and that visit changed his life forever. He gave his heart over to God that day. Something else he discovered that day was that the money he was so fond of before had somehow become different to him after meeting Jesus. He now recognized that money was not just for him, but for God's work. He discovered that money is an earthly resource with an eternal potential. If Zacchaeus would invest it back into God's mission, eternity could be impacted.
This last week we were challenged to look again at the resources God has given us and ask a better question than what we normally would. Instead of asking "Why don't I have more money?" God would challenge us to see His heart and mission and ask an abnormal question of "Why do I have so much?" When God views money he always has eternity in mind . . . do we? Our hearts can change in an afternoon as well, just like Zacchaeus', if we will choose to see God's heart.
Our church is part of God's mission for our city and generation. It is up to us to see God's heart and not look away. Grab hold of God's plan for your finances and invest 10% into the church (God's mission), save 10% for the security of your family, and then let's live within our means on the remaining 80%. Let's live generously, knowing that God's plan is for security in any economy. We need not live in doubt or worry about money. Let's follow God's heart and be led by him to financial freedom. If you missed last week's message please go the website or download our church App "Bayside 3.0" and watch it in HD video. God wants great things FOR us in the area of our finances. The following link is an 11 minute video discussing finances a little further. We answer questions that we did not have time to unpack in the message.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K26VXwH3JYA&feature=youtu.be
This coming Sunday we will be continuing our series "Abnormal." It also happens to be Jersey Day! We are going to have a blast!
We love you and can hardly wait to see you this weekend.
Pastor Craig, Becky, Seth, Hannah and Riley the dog
