Sunday Review: 1/19/20
On Sunday, January 19, 2020, Bruce Robertson led worship, Rich Siefring gave a Prayer of Praise, and Matthew Williams preached the message, “The Grace of Giving (Part 1)" as part of our current series, Sunday Matters from 2 Corinthians 8:1-15. Click here for projection from the message. Below are a few discussion questions for Community Group or personal study this week. To listen to this message again, click here.
Prayer of Praise:
Father God, we come before you this morning to praise you for the gift of life. It was you, Father, who spoke the universe into existence. By Your Word, you created the heavens and the earth, and you filled them with life. All of the plants and animals both on the land and in the sea were formed at Your Word It was you who spoke man into existence, and filled his nostrils with the breath of life.And, even though we have sinned and turned our backs to You, by Your divine purpose, You sent the gift of Your Son to save us, to redeem us, to adopt us and to impart to us the gift of eternal life.
The world may look down upon the sick, the weak, the helpless, the poor, the orphaned, the maimed and the mentally ill, but You consider them most precious. For Your Word says that “God has chosen the foolish things of this world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God." And because You have chosen the weak of this world, You uphold them by Your mighty Hand and Your outstretched Arm. You hear the cry of the orphan. You answer the prayer of the widow. You comfort the poor, the lonely, the hurting, and the sick. All life is precious to you, no matter what its condition. You are the Lord of life. As the scripture says, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord."
Discussion Questions:
Is it easy for you to see your bank account, budget, pantry, or retirement plan as your refuge and security?
2 Corinthians 8:1-15 teaches that the opposite of loving money is not hating money, but loving God with your money. Do your spending habits speak to loving God with your money?
The grace of giving starts with God giving generously to us. Does this encourage you to give generously?
We love to spend money on the things that bring us joy. Do you give joyfully, or is your giving begrudging and transactional?
Is your life characterized by a wealth of financial generosity toward God and others?
Do you consider it a privilege to meet the spiritual and physical needs of the men and women around you?
Is some other treasure besides Jesus sitting on the throne of your heart and stealing the resources that would otherwise be devoted to worshiping him?