We are blessed to be a blessing! The Bible is full of promises about our finances. 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. Proverbs 11:28 He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like foliage. Proverbs 22:9 He who has a generous eye will be blessed, Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with it. Proverbs 28:20 A faithful man will abound with blessings, Deuteronomy 28:1-2 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the LORD your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 “And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the LORD your God: Galatians 3:13-14 13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. We have been to be a ! Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. The first time bless and blessing is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis. Genesis 12:1-3 1 Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you,And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 22:15-18 15 Then the Angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16 and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son—“blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” Galatians 3:26-29 26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. The foundation of the blessed life is a matter of the heart. Matthew 6:19-21 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 “but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Your soul and your emotions will connect to what you invest in. Matthew 7:1-2 1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 “For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. Whatever comes out of your life will come back to you. The reason we give is because of love and obedience. Malachi 3:6-12 6 “For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob. 7 Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances And have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” Says the LORD of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?’ 8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say,‘In what way have we robbed You?’In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation. 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this,” Says the LORD of hosts, “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. 11 “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” Says the LORD of hosts; 12 “And all nations will call you blessed, For you will be a delightful land,” Says the LORD of hosts. is a prerequisite for preparation for the blessing of God. Jesus is all about giving us a heart change. 1. Deal with a Selfish Heart Ezekiel 36:26-27 26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. We were all born with a selfish heart and need to be born again. John 3:5-7 5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ Everything we have belongs to God. Psalms 24:1 The earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. Haggai 2:7-9 7 ‘and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the LORD of hosts. 9 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the LORD of hosts.” God wants us to live with an open hand and a soft heart. Giving is the primary way for us to push back selfishness in our hearts. Giving isn’t for , giving is for . 2. Deal with a Grieving Heart Deuteronomy 15:10 Give generously to them, and your heart should not be grieved when you give, then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. Selfishness attacks you before you give and grief attacks you after you give. God wants us to have joy before we give and after we give. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 6 But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. You have to deal with the grieving Heart before you can be a cheerful giver. Realize you’re not an owner, you are a stewart. 3. Develop with a Generous Heart Look for all-around you. Luke 6:38 38 “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Whatever comes out of your life will come back to you. If you give and you live generously, Jesus said you will be blessed. 4. Develop a Heart Deuteronomy 15:15 15 “You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today. Don’t fall into the trap of entitlement. You will never out give God.