This post included the adult group discussion guide for the entire Soul Cash Series.
Session 1 Soul Cause
Big Idea God has a cause for your life (and your money) that brings passion and purpose.
Introduction The things we worry about most are usually the things that have the strongest hold on us. They influence where we spend our time and where we spend our money. If you think about it, the majority of our time is spent earning money and the decisions we make are most often based on money. What would happen if we made our decisions based on a cause; something bigger than ourselves? What would it be like to wake up each day driven by a cause rather than making ends meet? The difference may seem subtle but the perspective here makes all the difference.
Ice Breaker Have you ever seen “MythBusters”? What was the best myth you have seen them bust? What are some common myths of today?
Money Myths
There are generally two myths that people believe about money that are more commonly accepted than any urban legend. The first myth is the “Enough Money” myth. We believe that if we just had enough money, our problems would be over. The problem with this theory is that enough money is never enough money. This myth perpetuates itself regardless of how much money is enough money. The second myth is the “God Wants Something From Me, Not For Me” myth. God says all sorts of things in the Bible about money, and we believe that those words are in there to get something from us, not for us.
READ Matthew 6:19-21 (NLT)
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
1. Do you think of this verse as a parent telling what to do in a “because I said so” way or do we hear a caring God trying to help us in a “I want to help you” way?
2. When we hear this verse who do you think our treasures in heaven are for?
3. Take a close look at what the verse says. For who does Jesus say we are storing up our treasures in heaven?
Jesus said, “I've come that you might have life and have it more abundantly”. He is saying what I do and say, I do and say for you. So when it comes to money, He wants to help us live an abundant life full of joy. That is why He is trying to help us see that wherever we put our treasure, wherever we put our money, our hearts will follow. The Message version says it bluntly, “It’s obvious, isn’t it?”
Read Matthew 6:19-21 (The Message) Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.
We Can’t Serve Two Masters
When we believe the myth that God wants something from us, we begin to feel like there might not be enough for us. When we believe the “Enough Money” myth we fall into the trap that God wants what we never have enough of. These two myths fuel each other and in turn, we choose to love money over God.
READ Matthew 6:24 (The Message) You can't worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you'll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can't worship God and Money both.
4. What are the things that make you feel like you need to serve money?
5. Do you believe that if you serve God and focus on a greater cause that you will be happier than if you focus on money?
No Worries!
Most of the things we worry about are outside of our control. Some of the things we worry about are things that we create in order to be able to control. The problem of worry is one of mindset; we want control. If it’s control that we want, then let us focus on the one thing we can control which is out mindset.
6. What things do you worry about the most?
7. What cause or causes do you get most excited about?
8. How are a worry mindset and a cause mindset different?
READ Matthew 6:25-26,33 (The Message) If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds. What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
9. What does it mean to steep your life in God-reality? God-initiative? God-provisions?
10. What do you believe God wants you to do with your life?
11. What do you believe God wants you to do with your money?
What’s Next? Invite God into your personal finances. Each time this week that you worry about money, write it down. Try to deal with it in the most rational, God-trusting manner; but no matter how you deal with it at that moment, just write it down. Then look at your list at the end of the week and see what things you are still worrying about and what things now seem insignificant. If you make this a habit you will begin to see where God moves and how He is taking care of you and where your heart is.
Session 2 Soul Care
Big Idea
God wants to provide a way for you to care generously for the people He brings into your life.
Introduction We've all experienced having our heart strings pulled by pictures of starving children on TV, but pitying people and feeling guilty are different from what God wants the motivation to be when it comes to what we do with our money. He wants our giving to be a reflection of what we care deeply about in our souls: people matter to us because they matter to God.
Ice Breaker What is the best gift you have ever gotten? What is the best gift you have ever given someone?
PART I A Generous Sacrifice
READ 2 Corinthians 8:9 (The Message) You are familiar with the generosity of our Master, Jesus Christ. Rich as he was, he gave it all away for us—in one stroke he became poor and we became rich.
1. How did Jesus become poor?
Consider this story: When I was in college, one of my best friends became pregnant with her second child. We were both 19 years old. She was newly married after the birth of her first child. She and her husband also cared for a child from his first marriage, leaving them in significant finanicial stress. My friend pondered the idea of an abortion because she couldn’t bear the thought of giving birth to her baby and not being able to afford to keep it.
Knowing that my friend would later regret an abortion and knowing how much she loved her son and stepdaughter, I thought about what I could do to help. I suggested to her that I take care of her son and stepdaughter for one year while she took care of her soon-to-be-born baby.
That year, I learned how selfishly I had been living. From a life that was previously centered on my own needs, I transitioned to a life centered on the needs of these two children. Outside of my rent payments and groceries, the rest of my expenses were on the children. I paid for her stepdaughter’s private school, for her son’s daycare, for diapers, for food and entertainment, for additional bedding, and for whatever unexpected expenses came our way.
It was a time I will never forget. And it was a time I will always be thankful for. I learned that our true cause for living is something so much greater than ourselves. It has to do with a God-given care we have for those around us.
2. Share a time when someone has sacrificed for you for your gain and not theirs.
II Loving God Means Loving Others Too
READ 1 John 4:20 (The Message) If anyone boasts, "I love God," and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You've got to love both.
Once a religious leader asked Jesus about what is the greatest commandment (from the 10 Commandments). Jesus answered that loving God with our entire being is the first one, and the second is just as important: to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt. 22:34-40). He said that the whole list of the Ten Commandments is based on these two inseparable commands. If you look at the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20), the first four commandments are about loving God, and the last six are about loving people.
3. What is the relationship between loving God and loving people?
4. Everyone is made in God’s image.
5. What does it say about us when we can’t love one of our brothers?
For the Least of These
READ Matthew 25:35-36, 40 (The Message) For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me…I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me. Jesus is displaying for us the importance of taking care of all of God’s people, regardless the circumstances. The ‘caring for people’ part is usually not the problem; we are convinced of the need to care for people. The difficult part is caring for people even when it’s not convenient for us, even when it might cost us something.
5. When Jesus says, ‘the least of these brothers,’ to whom is he referring?
6. How does the world discourage us from “taking care of the least of these?” How can we deal with this?
7. What are we holding onto in our lives (money, time, relationships) that might be preventing us from generously taking better care of “the least of these?”
What’s Next?
Do something this week ‘for the least of these’ that goes unseen. Feed someone who is hungry. Invite someone into your life who is a stranger. Clothe someone who has no clothes. Look after someone who is sick. Visit someone who has no reason for visitors. Keep it between you and God and journal about it during the week. Pray about where God might be calling you to do this on more of a regular – and perhaps relational – basis. This will likely require some radical generosity of your time and money. How might God be calling you to sacrifice generously in order to do this?
Session 3 - Soul Legacy
Big Idea
God wants your life to leave a legacy, and leaving a legacy requires generosity of our time, money, and relationships.
Introduction There is a story about two girls from Taylor University who were involved in a car accident and then were misidentified as each other. One of the girls died in the crash. The other survived, but was in a coma and unrecognizable for a while. The family of the girl who was pronounced dead mourned her passing and held a funeral service for her. Meanwhile, the family of the girl in critical condition clung to hope of her survival.
Two weeks into the crisis, it was discovered that the two girls’ identities had been confused, and the girl who was thought to still be alive was actually dead. And the girl whose family had just held a funeral service for her was in fact, still alive. But what was that funeral like? What was said to her? What was said about her? She was already a Christ-following young woman, but her life changed as a result of this “mistake.” She had the opportunity to reevaluate the legacy she was leaving.
Ice Breaker
What if you were alive at your own funeral but no one knew you were there? What would people say about you? Who would you want to speak? Who would you not want to speak and why? Would you be satisfied with the legacy you have left so far?
Ripe for Opportunities…Finances
READ 2 Corinthians 9:11 This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.
1. What do you think “wealthy in every way” means?
2. Do you think this verse is referring to financial wealth?
3. What other kinds of wealth can we give away?
PART III
Ripe for Opportunities…Time & Relationships
READ 2 Corinthians 9:12-14 Carrying out this social relief work involves far more than helping meet the bare needs of poor Christians. It also produces abundant and bountiful thanksgivings to God. This relief offering is a prod to live at your very best, showing your gratitude to God by being openly obedient to the plain meaning of the Message of Christ. You show your gratitude through your generous offerings to your needy brothers and sisters, and really toward everyone. Meanwhile, moved by the extravagance of God in your lives, they'll respond by praying for you in passionate intercession for whatever you need. Thank God for this gift, his gift. No language can praise it enough!
As Christ followers, our lives are supposed to be a representation of Christ. If we remember that each thing that we say and do is a representation of our relationship with God, then that should change the way we live and make decisions. Not only with our money but in the way that we treat the ones we love and those we don’t even know. We have many resources and how we choose to use them should be a reflection of God in us.
4. What have you done recently that showed generosity of your time?
5. What have you done recently that showed generosity in your relationships?
6. What other resources might you have to offer?
Soul Legacy…Written on Our Hearts
READ 2 Corinthians 3:2-3
Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just looking at you. Christ himself wrote it—not with ink, but with God's living Spirit; not chiseled into stone, but carved into human lives—and we publish it.
7. What would you want to be said at your funeral? How does that compare to what you think people would say?
8. Can you identify the event or person that left an impression on your heart?
9. How can your life leave an impression on someone’s heart?
What’s Next?
Make a move to do something this week to increase your legacy by investing in things that will change a life, impact a community, and affect generations. Consider the following places where you can join other Keystone people by investing both time and money to make an eternal difference in someone's life.
The Sibley Team
Sibley School is located downtown and part of the Grand Rapids Public Schools. 98% of the families who send their kindergarten-5th graders to Sibley live at or below the poverty level. Your gifts of time and money are expressions of Christ's love and will provide desperately needed support for families in this area of Grand Rapids.
The TLC Team
There are people within our Keystone "family" who are going through difficult circumstances, and need extra tender loving care. Financial gifts to our Care Fund, acts of kindness, and prayers all help support these individuals in times of need.
Reproducing Keystone Team
Keystone is a reproducing church, currently with locations in Forest Hills and East Grand Rapids. We believe God desires us as His church to reach more and more people for Him through starting more churches. Your investment of time, energy and money will help impact lives now, in the years to come, and for eternity.
