AUGUEST THEME – “Seeing Revival from God’s Perspective”
Join us in prayer and celebration as Belmont Baptist Church celebrates our Year of Jubilee, marking fifty years of God’s amazing faithfulness and looking forward with grateful hearts to all He has yet to do.
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART’S
IT’S EASIER TO CUT GOD OUT THAN TO CUT BACK
“Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase.” — Proverbs 3:9
When money gets tight, something has to change. Prices rise, unexpected expenses come, the car needs repairing, insurance increases, groceries cost more, and suddenly there is more month than money. That is when we begin looking for places to cut—and that is also when our priorities are revealed. We cancel the tithe before we cancel the subscription. We reduce the offering before we reduce the eating out. We cut back on giving before we cut back on entertainment. We tell ourselves, “When things get better, I’ll start giving again.” Without realizing it, we have made God the most expendable item in our budget. Yet biblical giving was never intended to be what we give God after everybody else has been paid and we see what is left. Proverbs says, “Honour the LORD…with the firstfruits.” Firstfruits means God is considered first, not last. When finances get tight, faith doesn’t ask, “What can I take from God?” Faith asks, “What can I surrender so I can remain faithful to God?”
FINANCIAL PRESSURE REVEALS MY PRIORITIES
It is easy to say, “God is first in my life,” when there is plenty. The real test comes when there is not enough for everything I want. A budget is more than numbers on paper; in many ways, it is a spiritual autobiography. It reveals what I value, what I protect, what I refuse to surrender, and what receives first consideration. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” — Matthew 6:21. My money has a remarkable way of revealing where my heart really is. Notice how quickly we can defend our spending while questioning our giving. We say, “I have to have this,” “We deserve that,” “It’s only a few dollars a month,” or “Everybody eats out.” Individually, those expenses may seem insignificant, but together they can consume the resources God entrusted to us. Then Sunday comes, and suddenly we say, “I can’t afford to give.” Perhaps sometimes the more accurate statement is not, “I can’t afford to give,” but “I have already spent what I should have given.” Financial pressure does not necessarily create our priorities—it often reveals them.
GOD DOESN’T WANT WHAT IS LEFT; HE DESERVES WHAT IS FIRST
Proverbs 3:9 does not say, “Honor the Lord with whatever remains.” It says, “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase.” There is a tremendous difference between first and left. Giving God what is left says, “Lord, let me take care of everything else, and then I will see what I can do for You.” Giving God first says, “Lord, before I make decisions about everything else, I acknowledge that everything I have came from You.” That is why the tithe is about more than mathematics. Ten percent describes the proportion, but first describes the heart. When I honor God first, I am declaring, “God, You are my Source. My employer is not ultimately my source. My retirement account is not my source. My savings account is not my source. You are.” This does not mean we ignore bills or financial responsibilities. Biblical stewardship includes wisdom, planning, paying what we owe, controlling spending, and living within our means. But when the budget becomes uncomfortable, our first response should not be, “Let’s remove God.” Before cutting back on faithfulness, perhaps we need to examine what we have added to our lifestyle.
SOMETIMES I DON’T NEED MORE MONEY; I NEED MORE SURRENDER
When finances become strained, our immediate prayer is often, “Lord, give me more.” More income, more opportunity, more resources, more breathing room—and God certainly can provide. But sometimes God may answer by showing us that the problem is not simply what is coming in; it is what is going out. Perhaps the Lord is saying, “You don’t need another dollar nearly as much as you need another look at your priorities.” There are wants we have gradually promoted into needs. Conveniences become necessities. Luxuries quietly become expectations. Our standard of living rises, and eventually maintaining that standard begins competing with our obedience to God. That is when stewardship becomes surrender. Can I cancel the subscription? Can I eat at home more often? Can I postpone the purchase? Can I keep what I already have instead of upgrading it? Can I tell myself “no” so that I can continue telling God “yes”? The flesh says, “Protect my lifestyle and reduce my giving.” Faith says, “Lord, show me what I can surrender before I surrender what belongs to You.” Sometimes the greatest financial breakthrough is not receiving more. It is learning to need less.
Imagine receiving your paycheck and placing several envelopes on the kitchen table. One says Mortgage, another Utilities, another Groceries, another Car, another Entertainment, another Eating Out, and another Subscriptions. Then there is one envelope marked GOD. Imagine paying every other envelope first. We cover our obligations, enjoy what we want, maintain our conveniences, and finally reach for God’s envelope—but the money is gone. We might say, “Lord, I’m sorry. There wasn’t enough left for You.” But perhaps the question heaven would ask is, “Why was My envelope the last one you opened?” The issue was not simply that the money ran out. The issue was the order in which it was distributed. Firstfruits changes the order. Before lifestyle gets its vote, before wants become needs, before convenience consumes what God provided, faith says, “Lord, You are first.”
DON’T MAKE GOD THE FIRST CUT
There are seasons when families genuinely must make difficult financial decisions. Budgets sometimes have to be reduced dramatically. Vacations may have to wait. Vehicles may have to last longer. Eating habits may have to change. Purchases may have to be postponed. Some conveniences may have to disappear. But those moments give us an opportunity to ask a deeper question: “What does my response to financial pressure reveal about who is really first?” It is easier to cut God out than to cut back because cutting back requires something painful—self-denial. Jesus said, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” — Luke 9:23. That principle reaches even into our wallets. Before saying, “God, I cannot afford to honor You,” perhaps I need to ask, “What am I unwilling to deny myself?” Don’t ask God to finance a lifestyle that leaves no room for faithfulness. Don’t make Him compete with conveniences we have convinced ourselves we cannot live without. Don’t give everyone and everything else first claim on what He provided and then offer Him the leftovers. God does not belong at the bottom of my budget because He does not belong at the bottom of my life.
WARFARE PRAYER
Father, in the name of Jesus, expose every place where money, possessions, comfort, or lifestyle has gained control of my heart. Deliver me from greed, fear, materialism, impulsive spending, discontentment, and the deception that having more will make me secure. Rebuke every attempt of the enemy to use financial pressure to weaken my faith or turn my heart away from You. Give me wisdom to distinguish between what I truly need and what I merely want. Give me courage to cut what needs to be cut, discipline to say no to myself, and faith to continue honoring You first. Teach me to handle every dollar as a steward rather than an owner. My security is not in money, my provider is not this world, and my confidence is not in what I possess. You are my Source. You are my Provider. You are my Lord. By Your grace, You will remain FIRST. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
DAILY CHALLENGE — CUT BACK BEFORE YOU CUT GOD OUT
Today, look honestly at your spending. Don’t begin by asking, “Where can I reduce my giving?” Begin by asking, “Lord, what can I live without?” Find one unnecessary expense you can reduce or eliminate. Then, when your next increase comes, deliberately honor God first. Before spending it, pray, “Lord, everything I have comes from You. You will not receive what happens to be left. I choose to honor You first and trust You with the rest.” Because when money gets tight, the answer is not automatically to give God less. Sometimes the answer is to want less, spend less, surrender more—and trust God more.
THURSDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS
Darlene Kelley – Our Cousin _ Recovering from Cancer
Darlene Thaxton
Ginny Ford
Deanne Boynton
Anna Belle Taylor – Irregular Heartbeat – Jackson’s Special Friend
Rob Davis – cancer
Kim McClain’s Mother