Support The Ministry : Praise And Thanksgiving

How Will You Glorify God With Your Economic Stimulus Package?

BobRoberts — Sat, 31 May 2008 19:22:32 GMT

A Challenge
Here is a great article by Pastor John Piper that has recently challenged me to think differently about how I will spend my forthcoming "economic stimulus package."

Piper says:

For a moment, forget the political puzzle of getting money back when the country is nine trillion dollars in debt. The more immediate question is: How will you make much of Christ with your "economic stimulus payment"? The president says it will be in the mail in time for Cinco de Mayo.

Clue: Nobody in the world will see you spend your money on yourself and conclude that Christ is your treasure. They will assume you are just like them, no matter how loudly you thank God for this boon. That doesn't mean you shouldn't spend it on yourself (the way we do with most of what we earn). Not everything we do can look different from the world-eat, pay utilities, fill up the car, wear clothes (even thrift-store clothes). And yes, we hope (somehow) that spending on ourselves in some way contributes to our being more Christ-exalting people.

But do we really need this money? Very few do. We would have gotten on fine without it. If we didn't know it was coming, we wouldn't even be feeling the desires we are feeling right now.

May I encourage you to be radically creative and hedonistic. Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). And those crazy Macedonians in a "severe test of affliction" and in "extreme poverty" had an "abundance of joy" that overflowed in a "wealth of generosity." They even begged Paul "for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints" (2 Corinthians 8:2-4). They really believed what Jesus said. Really.

Before the check comes dream of some person or ministry which might make much of Christ because you treasured him above your next home project. The reason God created money and enabled us to earn it is so that we could show by the way we use it that money is not our treasure, Christ is. That's why the checks are coming. So we can make Christ look great. "Be content with what you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you'" (Hebrews 13:5-6).

Welcome To The Support The Ministry Blog

BobRoberts — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 03:44:00 GMT

Hello and welcome to the Support the Ministry Blog of Kids 4 Truth! Thank you for dropping by.

My name is Bob Roberts and I’m privileged to be the Director of Kids 4 Truth International. If you’re reading this, I assume you are interested in finding out more about our ministry and possibly giving to our cause. If that’s the case, thank you.

This blog exists for people like you. It’s designed to effectively communicate up-to-date support information. We want you to feel a part of our ministry by:

Informing you of current ministry needs,
Encouraging you with how God is providing through people like you, and
Inspiring you with creative ways to support the ministry (non-cash giving).

Each post at this blog will accomplish one of the three objectives mentioned above. All blog posts are separated into one of three corresponding categories or “tags”:

Bottom line: We want to keep you informed about what God has done, what God is doing, and what God can do through you. Please click one of the three links above, below, or to the right of this screen under “Tags” to be informed, encouraged, and inspired!

Please e-mail me if you think we can do something better in relation to our ministry partners. We love feedback and we’re continually listening, evaluating, and taking action in areas we can improve.

Sincerely,

Bob R. Roberts, Director

Ephesians 3:20–21 -- Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. (nasb)