Christians from other churches paid $350,000 in 1998 for the 15 acres of property our church building is on. Christians from other churches gave us about $400,000 during our first four years as a church to purchase equipment, pay for staff, rent for worship space and outreach ministries. Christians from other churches gave us over $200,000 for building costs and mortgage support during our first year in the building. That is nearly a million dollars of support from Christians in other churches that helped Spring of Life get her start.
As Spring of Life began to grow and become a church that was sustained financially by the people at the church, I had this nagging question. Will we be the kind of church that teaches people how to manage their money God’s way so that one day other churches and ministries will benefit? Will there be a new church pastor who will go to their mailbox in the future and pull out a check for $35,000 written by a person who learned to manage their money God’s way at Spring of Life? (That happend to us, by the way.) Will orphan children in Burundi, Rwanda and Kenya be empowered and equipped to become secure, confident, self-sufficient and mentor one another as a result of generous gifts from people who learned to manage money God’s way at Spring of Life? Will you become increasingly free from financial burdens so that you can know the joy of giving like never before? I hope the answer is yes!
This is why Spring of Life Church keeps offering the Financial Peace University Course. We believe that when God gets hold of our heart we want to give generously to God’s work in the world. The problem so often is that people are over committed and over extended financially. As a culture we continue to spend more than we have. We are enslaved to debt, and we cannot be the kind of generous people God created us to be. Those who have gone through the Financial Peace University Course are slowly changing that culture.
125 people have gone through FPU at Spring of Life, and 82 of those are regular participants at Spring of Life. While this is an ongoing process, those people have the tools to eliminate debt, live on a budget within their means and therefore plan generosity into their way of life.
Here is where this work makes a difference. When I find out about needs in our church and community Spring of Life is in a position to respond. For example, one family in our church is caring for a sick parent. They needed a wheelchair ramp to get her out of the house and couldn’t afford to have it built. Two guys stepped forward to build it, and the generous financial giving we have seen this July (up significantly over last July) gave the Church the ability to purchase the materials for the ramp. Another woman called the church and shared that her 4 year old son had been diagnosed with cancer and she had missed work in order to take him to the doctor. She couldn’t cover the weeks stay at the hotel they are living in because she fled an abusive relationship. Because of your generosity in July we were able to help her through this difficult spot and refer her to Hailey’s Hopes and Hugs foundation that helps families with children battling cancer.
Last July I would have had to turn down both of those opportunities to bless those families in a practical way. Thank you for your generosity in July. I hope you sense the joy of sharing in the Lord’s work in this way. Keep up the great work you have begun!
And let me challenge you to pass on what you have learned by considering leading an FPU class at Spring of Life. All the materials are new. Dave Ramsey has shortened the course to 9 weeks, updated the course videos and it is better than ever! Please pray about stepping up and being a leader in this area. One of the marks of a disciple of Jesus is not just what you accomplish, but what others accomplish because of you. Email me if you will consider being a course facilitator.
Still dreaming of what the people of God could do for the kingdom of God if they were debt free!
No comments:
Post a Comment