Priceless Christmas - Teach Them to Manage Their Money, Part 1

Of all the talks you need to have with your children. There is one that we avoid like no other back. Most parents I know have never had this talk with their preteen were their teenage children, yet it's an area that will direct the course of their entire lives. So today you have that talk and by the way, it's not about sex. Welcome to this Wednesday. Addition of Living on the Edge Chip Ingram chip serves as our Bible teacher on this international discipleship program by February nature continues a series of priceless crisp or talking about specific we can give our kids and grand kids that will last far beyond Christmas Day taking a look at what only when we're not around.

Kids are with what matters most. Well, just before we get started, let me encourage you to take a second to download chips message notes of these three notes contain chips, fill in the outline and will help you follow along as you listen.

Just go to LivingontheEdge.org and click the broadcasts tab. Now here's chip with his message from Luke chapter 16, there is an awkward moment in every parents life when your kids hit that pre-teenage and take a deep breath and you realize you know you need to have the talk I mean the big talk the talk that makes you uncomfortable.

Very committed men and women often come to me when they realize they need to have a talk with one of their kids and do you have any resources or if you done this with your kids.

And, what did you say and I'm kind of uncomfortable and the conversation at home.

Go something like this you know honey why don't you have the talk with them you're really better at this and the answer is normally will. Don't you think she needs to hear that from her mother. Or, conversely, will, don't you think he really needs to hear that Ms. Waller and sadly, despite all the information is about the talk and how important the talk is even from very strong Christian homes.

Most children never hear about the subject from their mom or dad. Most of them pick up their values from the media or TV or friends and they just kinda catch and unfortunately when you don't talk about this subject and have ongoing discussion education. After the big talk with your kids. It is probably the clearest predictor of heartache of pain and suffering in the future of dissolving relationships and in many many cases walking away from the faith, and so one of the questions I want to have for you as we sort of start this is. Have you had the talk with your kids regardless of their age. At this point time. I'm imagining some of you are thinking to yourself, all while you know I've already get those teenage years and we sort of hinted around the talk in your thinking that I'm really talking about the ass. E ask talk and if you haven't had that talk. Let me encourage you. You need to have that talk but that's not the one that I'm talking about the one that I'm talking about this subject. If you don't cover it clearly and well, and with ongoing strategy and education. I mean the implications are significantly more important for your kids than the sex talk. What I'm talking about this morning is the money talk you open your notes with me on Mark. Talk to you about giving a priceless gift to your children and it's maybe a gift you haven't thought about. Let me tell you why the money talk is so important and now let me ask you since your mind is in a different place. Have you had the money talk with your kids not notice the implications if your kids don't think and have biblical values around money. Number one money issues because 50% of all divorces. If you kids don't learn about money and learn about it well and how to think about it and handle their money.

They are set up in their marriage relationship. About half of huge issues.

The second reason you need to have the money talk is it will direct the course of their hearts. Money directs the course of people's hearts. Jesus said in Matthew 621 wherever your treasure is, there your heart will follow. So wherever your kids consciously or unconsciously learn from you and others to put their money. That's where their hearts can the land if it lands in places where God isn't and they won't be following Christ. The third reason to have the money talk is money is the number one competitor for your child. Soul if you ever thought about like that your child or someone in your small group. Their soul is a progress.

Luke chapter 12 Jesus in response to someone who screamed out of the crowd. Hey tell my brother to share had the inheritance that we got with me. Jesus responded and said who made me judge over that, but his application in Luke 15 was watch out and be on your guard against all kinds of greed because a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions and then just to make the point.

He told this little story.

He said there was a man that grew richer and richer and richer and he had no room for his riches and he said to himself. This is what I'll do build bigger and bigger barns and will take all my riches and I'll put it in these barns and then I'm gonna relax and have it easy, comfortable quote retirement type life and can eat drink and be merry. And then Jesus says in the story, you fool for this very night God will require your life of you and then he makes this application to this large crowd listening to them. He goes and so it will be with everyone who's not rich toward God and he makes this point that how you think about money. He says there's going to be two competitors. There's God and there's money. Often we think of. There's good and evil.

We think God and Satan that the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches theirs to God's there's God and there's money now Satan and demonic forces may cause you to believe that money can deliver some things, but those are the two gods compete and souls have you had the money talk final reason to have the money talk is this money problems are the root of greed and the debt, alcoholism, pride, conflict, anger, guilt, and lack of contentment and peace. The apostle Paul would write to his young son in the faith.

He said people who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and describe instruction for the love of money is not the root, but a root of all kinds of evil. And some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many grease. Here's all I want you to get most of us don't think clearly or think that giving our kids a wise preparation about finances and money is all that important that lack of preparation is probably one of the greatest hindrances for your child's success with God.

Success with people success and work, personal peace, a great relationship in the future and if you haven't had the money talk.

Then one of the most priceless gifts bigger and better than any gift you give them this Christmas or any other Christmas is to sit down with them and teach them to manage their money biblically teach him to manage their money in a way that aligns their heart and their life and their priorities around what God says because the reason Jesus talks so much about money. It's the tool where you teach values. It's the tool where you teach priorities and its measurable.

It's so clear you can know exactly where your kids are at and you teach them through money and so with that open your notes if you would or from the sound that I heard. I will open my notes and catch up with you and I want to do this very simply, I want to give you a theology of stewardship and then I want to get you on the road to some very practical ways to teach your kids about how to manage their money biblically, a theology of stewardship point number one is that God owns everything.

Psalm 5012. The Lord says, if I were hungry I would not tell you, for the earth is mine and everything in it. This is the game changer for your kids.

Psalm 24 says exactly the same thing.

God owns everything.

So were stewards or managers. Your kids need to get from early ages into the preteens and teenagers. All adult years and even when they're completely grown when you're trying to figure out what to leave them or what not to leave them and whether the responsible. It's not yours.

It's not there.

It's his and so your job is to be a good steward your job and their job to teach them what they're to do with God's time entrusted to them what they're supposed to do with God's talent entrusted to them and what they're to do with God's money. Second, in a theology of stewardship is God has entrusted his things time, talent and treasure to us to manage for him see this this will change your kids attitudes about stuff, but life about the future. It's Christmas time at Christmas time. I love to read stories. I did it when my kids were small and when she leaned back, you can follow along if you like. It's in Matthew chapter 25 but I want you to hear a story because Jesus talks so much about this idea of stewardship and there's so many core principles.

This one story encapsulates most all of them, so leaned back and when I share the story. What I want you to understand is Jesus is very clearly teaching that God owns everything.

He's the master in the story that he's going to go away for a period which he did went to heaven. That is going to come back and he's going to give asked people to give an account for what he longed to them to manage for him. The stories in Matthew 25 and we pick it up in verse 14 trying picture in your mind's eye. You can even close your eyes. If you want what this would be like again. It will be said there was a man going on a journey he called his servants and entrusted his property to the notice it's his property to one of them. He gave five talents into another he gave to Townsend when he gave one talent each according to his ability. Many went on his journey and the man who would receive the five counts when it wants, and gained five more in the one had to talent when it wants, and gained two more but the one who received just one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hit his master's money. After a long time to master the servants returned any settled accounts with them. The man who received the five talents brought the other five sit master you gave me five talents see again five more his master replied. Well done no good and faithful servant. You been faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things come now and share the joy happiness of your master the memo to talent also came to master you gave me to notice I've given you and created two more. His master replied.

Well done no good and faithful servant even faithful. The few things I'll be put you in charge of many things come now and share your masters joy and happiness.

Then the man had received the one came at submaster. I knew that you were a hard man harvesting were you had not sown in gathering. We had not scattered so I was afraid. So when I hid your talent in the ground. See here.

It is, it belongs to you is master replied, you wicked lazy servant. So if you knew that I harvest where I had not sown, and gathered where I had not scattered, then you should at least put the money on deposit with the bankers only receive interest when I return.

Take the talent from him, and give it to the one that has 10 for everyone who has will be given more.

Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away and throw that worthless servant outside into darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Jesus picture is completely a metaphor for our lives and for us with our children, for reasons I don't understand, and you don't understand, but according to your ability and according to your children's ability.

God deposited in their DNA.

Certain talents certain abilities certain personalities certain ways their mind works. God placed them in a very specific family in a very specific time in history and that he has so many days that he's going to give them on the earth, and I don't know what they are and you don't know what they are and then he's going to give them money and material possessions and what God is saying is that he will hold your kids accountable for what they do with their time. What they do with their talent and what they do with their treasure because he is an all-knowing, all-powerful, all sovereign God of the universe. He has a purpose for their life and he gave them the very talents the very amount of time and the right amount of money for them to accomplish his purpose. Now notice out of that passage is number principles.

The third aspect of a theology of stewardship is that God expects a positive return as investments. Don't you get that he expects a positive return for he will hold you and he will hold your children accountable and is not just on this passage up at seven printings 562 10 with the apostle Paul says you need understand every single believer in Jesus will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account. We will be judges believers, not for us in Jesus took care of that. But we will be judged by God for what we did with what we have and some will receive great reward and others will receive loss and that's real stuff for God once to share his joy with your kids. This is not like prohibitive. This isn't like he's trying to take money away your time away her talent away. He knows your children he's wired your children if he has a plan and when their good stewards and when they invest their time and their talent and their treasure according his purposes. They will explode with joy. This is why it's so important for us parents and those people there helping people in small groups you want to help them discover and align their talent and the time and the treasure around God's purposes because unconsciously this other God is pulling. I wonder how many kids had a desire for us to do something with their life and somewhere along the line they either heard from a friend or from a teacher or maybe from a counselor or maybe from us as parents we you could do that but you'll never make any money. There I mean you can't get a degree in that because you never get a good job that pays a lot of money and you need a lot of money because you need a lot of money to be upwardly mobile because if you're not upwardly mobile. I look like a failure as a parent and if you're not overly mobile. You won't have money to get a really great education you're really great education taken stay upwardly mobile so our whole lineage and generation can be upwardly mobile so that you can make more money and work more hours and look at your cell phones more often to get bound up completely technology to Khmer someone who's as busy as you are so you don't see each other in your past other night so you have it, life some really concerned about you, what would happen if some of her kids discovered what God made them to do and didn't make so much money and went to work every day and loved it instead of 60 to 70% of all Americans who hate their job and were well content and learn to live on what they had and did live with over whelming dad and just had great peace and great contentment and a great relationship would most of us as parents be okay with that but you need understand there is a battle for the soul of your kids in the money talk and them for your kids getting it's not my money. It's not my time. These are my talents on can be held accountable.

God's goal is he wants me to experience joy with have you had this, talk with are those the kind of values they have, that's what sets them up for success.

Six.

There's Old Testament roots here Genesis chapter 1 verses 26 to 28 and Job chapter 120 and 21 and I give those just as reference. Although what you see is God says in Genesis 1 lot snake man or mankind in our image, and then he says in working to make them the stewards over all the earth to get to be co-regents and co-creators and work it in trust, the entire planet to them.

Joe will say make it. I came into the earth, and they cannot believe this is after he's lost everything. Everything that we would say would fulfill your life family is gone.

Money is gone is real estate. Everything's going, but Job had an interesting perspective is that I came into the world naked I'm you leave the world naked. If God owns everything. Everything he gave me was his right to give me and if he owns it he can take whatever away since it's his whenever he wants to. Here's the deal. Blessed be the name of the Lord. The only thing this is a little window called time and all eternity. My heart's going to be aligned with him now.

Did Job like it no was he mostly ticked off yesterday shared, honestly with God. Yes, and as he grew and went to the process.

Got actually multiplied many times over what he originally had but but you need to understand what we have some of our kids were walking away from God and just talk with a guy last week and has a late teenager kind early college-age son became too many said dad do not just undone being a Christian. The dance of life will hail you know Bible suggest us to pray and I pray really hard about this and this and you have been praying about for months. God has given it to me. If he's not getting what I want. Why should I follow him. You understand his theology. God owes me the God that created all that there is and sent his son to die in my place. His primary job is to make me self fulfilled.

Give me what I want on the consumer. If God doesn't show up on time with giving me what I want now I want he's got you understand how opposite that is calm work that is that's not a theology of stewardship. That's a theology of narcissism.

That's a theology of consumerism and that's a theology of materialism and if you don't start young and teach your kids a theology of stewardship. They will grow up thinking more and more and more will satisfy God owes them as well as everyone else and when they don't get what they want when they want their devastated place over more than just money. When the marriage isn't what they want, how they want to find someone theology stewardship the money talks so very important that you will be right back just going to guess your listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and ships message today. Teach them to manage their money is from his series of priceless Christmas in this series chip unpacks five key life skills that tend to make or break us and gives us biblical insight and practical steps for passing all of these key skills to our kids or grandkids.

Or maybe someone or mentoring in these five messages you learn what God's word says about handling money making wise choices suffering well. Working unto the Lord, and that failure is never final. As a parent or grandparent you want to give your child every advantage in life. This series of priceless Christmas gives you the tools you need to help your child develop godly character in all of these areas so I not order a set of CDs or download the free MP3s as a gift to yourself and your family for an amazing new year of growth in the Lord were discount details just visit us online at http://livingontheedge.org or give us a call at 1-888-333-6003, a priceless Christmas. Get it today will we have just begun our year-end match, and in case you didn't know what that means thanks to a small group of friends of the ministry. Every gift we received during this month will be doubled. So we come to our listeners and we ask you to prayerfully consider what the Lord might have you give during this match chip. Can you tell us more. In light of the theology of stewardship you were talking about in your message yeah Dave literally for you know 12 years in a row every December. The number changes and yet the response is amazing. Here's my question. What's your role in this. The Bible teaches is that if you are spiritually ministered to regularly. In other words, you listen regularly or you do are small groups where you pass this on to others and maybe it's once twice a week may be more. You're one of those people that you are benefiting the Bible says that you have a moral responsibility to financially partner with where you're spiritually being fed. Now I will tell you first and foremost that begins at your local church. But second, I would ask you, especially during this time. As a matter of obedience. If we minister to you. Would you say Lord, what would you have me to do and what he shows you just do it and if you do exactly what he wants you to do.

We will have all that we need to do all that he wants us to do.

Thanks so much. Thanks chip so if God has been ministering to you through Living on the Edge and you want to get in on supporting the ministry now would be the perfect time to join the team. Every gift will be doubled thanks to the generosity of a group of ministry partners to send a gift. You can either call us at 1-888-333-6003 or go online to LivingontheEdge.org. Thanks in advance for asking God what he would have you do and then partnering with us. However, he leads will now here's chip with his application for today as we wrap up today's message. I just want to say that you really can't teach your kids about money or finances.

If yours are out of control right another words we cannot impart what we don't possess. And here's what I know and just lean back and rather than start to feel overwhelmed or guilty or this or that. What I know is probably 7/10 people listening to my voice right now are thinking oh man, you have no idea got credit card problems or you know my house or my car of got unbelievable that you know I and I know I know I'm supposed to do. I heard about giving the first portion to God and I hear you teaching but you just don't understand. I mean give the first portion I got.

I can't even pay my bills right now my money is a mess and what I want to say is is it's not that your money is a mess.

It's that your heart and your life is a mess and please please I mean if that's things I don't mean that to be hurtful or to give you some level of false guilt. I mean it to wake you up so that you can address the thing that can change your life are money always reflects our values, our priorities and what we worship it, and I know many of you have not been taught maybe well about money and for others it's it really is a lack of faith. You don't think God will provide an and so you're kinda doing it on your own and so here's here's this the moment I've seen hundreds literally thousands of people who are right where you are, who felt overwhelmed with debt problems and struggles and when they feel bad that you know by things they really can afford and go out to eat and take vacations in and they get in this downward spiral. Here's the moment today's the day stop and just tell God Lord I'm desperate. I need your help. I mean if if my life is a reflection of my money that please. First and foremost, forgive me, I repent and Lord, show me what do I need to do it and in most of you will need to get some help. A financial counselor or a crown ministry or you know we have a series called the genius of generosity that can walk you through you know God's view of money but but more importantly that any resource it it's you saying got. I am sorry and today it's going to change it. And as simple as finding out where your money's going multiple times Tresa and I have stopped and said for 30 days were to track our money every penny where it goes. You will be shocked where your money's going and then you look at that and say that's not where my values are.

The second thing is ask God to show you just what's the next step.

Find out where it's going and then obey him in the most basic thing give the first portion of your money back to God. To say I need your power and as you do that, I encourage you the first place to start is your local church. God bless you, he'll meet you. Your desperation is actually a good thing God wants to supply and work in your life, not just your money. The resource trip just mentioned is his series called the genius of generosity using a life-changing experience in his own life. Chip shares how we learn that generous living is joyful living. Better check it out. Just go to LivingontheEdge.org and search genius.

Well, I hope you'll join us again tomorrow when we continue our current series chip and the entire team. Saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge