Uncontained

I had a guy come into the office not too long ago. He was an earnest guy who was coming up in the Lord, and he had encountered in the scripture some rules about the use of money, like tithing. He was a man of some means, having some money in his life.  So he did what people do when they think about God and money.

He made a spreadsheet.

And he said, "How much money, Jordan, do I have to give to God? And should I give it to the church or can I just give it to godly charities? And how do I calculate the 10%? On gross or net income?"

Stuff like that. He expected me, I think, to answer him with Bible knowledge.

Instead what I said was, "Oh, I don't know. Why don't you ask Him?"

"But, no, what does the Bible say?"

"Well, what the Bible says is that God is not a carven image. If there are rules about sacrificing ten percent of your income to God, then that rule has a point. It's to teach you to be generous and trusting of God, right? It's really not about the percentage. It's about the nature of God behind the rule: God is generous and He will take care of you. So, ten percent? fifty percent? one hundred percent? I don't know. Why don't you ask Him what He wants you to do with your money?"

Because He's not carven. He's not mute. You have to walk with Him in that. You have to make it an adventure. Have an adventure with your money and God. Make it an interesting story, for Pete's sake!  Don't show me your spreadsheet. Don't show me your carven image. Ask Him what He wants you to do.

So I think that was very challenging for this guy. He came back a few weeks later for another appointment, and he had just had a very interesting story. He said, "Well, you know, God wanted me to not do this investment with my money, but to give that away instead." He had been very generous at bottom. And he was smiling.

What I think he learned there was that God is good. And that's one point about walking with an uncarven God:  it's that it's really good to walk with a God who is alive, wild and unmeasured.

Is it easy? Is it predictable? Is it always not frustrating? Of course not. But it's really good. Because He's into you. He's jealous for you. And He has it in mind to bless a thousand generations of people through you.


Do you have a contained, carven God? Or an alive, everywhere God?


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If you want to hear more on this topic, check out the 2 minute preview below and a full audio teaching "Everywhere God" based on a study of Exodus 20:4-6.



11/24/13 "Everywhere God" from Bluewater Mission on Vimeo.