Giving!

Summary

In this episode of Ministry Moment, Salifou Ministries delves into the biblical principles of generosity, wealth, and financial blessings. They unpack various scriptures to emphasize that God desires His people to be prosperous, not merely for personal gain, but to be a blessing to others. With humor and personal stories, the speakers challenge the misconception that Christians should embrace poverty, arguing instead for a balanced understanding of wealth, rooted in the Bible. The discussion encourages believers to embrace generosity as a spiritual practice that aligns with God's purpose for financial abundance, highlighting the importance of giving cheerfully and trusting in God's provisions. The episode concludes with an invitation for listeners to join in ministry efforts, emphasizing the spiritual and communal benefits of supporting one another.

Highlights

• Understanding that God does not despise wealth but cautions on trusting it over Him. 🙏
• Encouraging believers to become 'distribution centers,' spreading blessings to those in need. 🚚
• Reviving the often-misunderstood prosperity gospel by highlighting its basis in scriptures. 📚
• Promoting a fresh perspective on giving as a way to unlock spiritual and personal growth. 🌱
• Identifying the role of financial prosperity in enhancing one's ability to evangelize and support charitable works. 💒

Key Takeaways

• Generosity opens the door to divine blessings and prosperity as outlined in scripture. 📖
• God blesses individuals not for self-gain but to enable them to bless others. 🙌
• The misconception that Christians should be poor contradicts biblical teachings on stewardship and abundance. 💰
• Trust in God, not wealth, is crucial to experiencing true financial freedom. 🔑
• Partnering with ministries can amplify one's impact, contributing to global missions and local community support. 🌍

Overview

In this lively and engaging talk, Salifou Ministries dives deep into the complex relationship between faith, wealth, and generosity. They remind us that Christianity isn’t synonymous with poverty and instead encourage believers to embrace financial blessings as conduits for God's work. Through biblical examples and personal anecdotes, they illustrate how God’s idea of prosperity aligns with the purpose of sharing wealth and doing good works.

They humorously recount personal stories to underscore the importance of maintaining trust in God while navigating the journey of financial abundance. As they debunk myths around money being evil, they stress how funds, when used correctly, can aid in evangelizing and supporting the needy, fulfilling God's commandments and spreading joy.

Closing on an inspirational note, the ministry invites listeners to partner with their initiatives, highlighting the collective power of contributors in transforming communities. This call to action not only supports ministry work but serves as a testament to the spiritual principle that when we give freely and with joy, we sow seeds that yield more than just material returns.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 02:00: Welcome to Ministry Moment The chapter 'Welcome to Ministry Moment' starts with a warm welcome to the audience. It sets a casual and engaging tone by expressing excitement over something the speaker wishes to share. There is a humorous element introduced when a question of truthfulness is raised about the story to be shared. The chapter then touches on a personal anecdote related to the regular use of space heaters by the speaker's husband, emphasizing a quirky family habit regardless of room temperature or season.
• 02:00 - 05:30: Discussion on Space Heaters The chapter titled 'Discussion on Space Heaters' revolves around the narrator's desire for a personal space heater, specifically to use underfoot during work. While in the office, the narrator enjoys the warmth from the space heater, but notes a contrast in perception as her husband finds it hot. It's highlighted how her husband chooses to mow the yard during the hottest part of the day, adding irony to his comment about the heater's warmth.
• 05:30 - 09:00: Biblical Teachings on Finances and Wealth The chapter discusses biblical teachings related to finances and wealth.
• 09:00 - 16:00: Misconceptions about Wealth in Christianity The speaker reflects on the enduring influence of prayer in their life, feeling a metaphorical 'fire' within them. They express pride in sharing a story, emphasizing the Bible's comprehensive coverage of various life topics. The chapter sets up a discussion focused on the misconceptions about wealth in Christianity, indicating an exploration of biblical teachings and how these teachings serve as guidelines for life as created by God.
• 16:00 - 22:30: Generosity and Its Purpose in the Bible The chapter explores the theme of generosity and its significance within the Bible, focusing particularly on personal experiences related to financial doctrines in Christianity. The author recounts their early experiences as a new Christian grappling with mixed teachings about wealth and poverty in relation to Jesus. They describe an encounter with the Holy Spirit, who directed them to the biblical parable of the loaves and fishes, prompting a reflection on the notion of Jesus' wealth and the broader implications of generosity.
• 22:30 - 29:00: Call for Partnership and Giving The chapter titled 'Call for Partnership and Giving' discusses a reflection on a biblical parable where the disciples consider buying bread for 5,000 men, plus women and children, highlighting the idea of having sufficient resources. This reflection may underline a message about the power of partnership and the importance of giving, inspired by understanding how the disciples addressed a large gathering with limited resources, yet finding a means to feed everyone.
• 29:00 - 39:00: The Spiritual and Financial Impact of Giving The chapter explores the topic of giving and its spiritual and financial implications. It challenges the notion that Jesus was poor by noting that he had enough resources to support a staff and buy food, suggesting a reevaluation of financial status in biblical terms. It emphasizes the importance of understanding money in a balanced way according to biblical teachings, citing the common misconception that money itself is evil, when in fact, the Bible states that it is the love of money that is the root of all evil.
• 39:00 - 44:30: Conclusion and Prayer of Blessing The chapter emphasizes the teachings of the Bible regarding blessings and generosity. It underscores two main points: if you are generous, you will receive blessings, and that people experience blessings and wealth at varying levels. The chapter reflects on the word of God as a guiding principle for understanding these concepts and serves as a conclusion with a prayer of blessing.

Giving! Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 welcome to ministry moment We are so glad that you have joined us today So I have to share something that happened Wow Okay So just so everybody know Are you sure what you're going to say is true or or is you make up she's she maybe she's making up a story But I Well I need to share this So there is no time during the year Yeah When space heaters aren't utilized by my husband at some point in some room Doesn't matter what the temperature is So I you know before
• 00:30 - 01:00 you continue I think I would love to have a personal space heater or I can put on my feet when I when I with you So anyway we were in the office and I turned the heater on the space heater on and I thought it felt great and my husband was like "It's hot." And I was like "Wait a second." My husband who by the way ms the yard intentionally at the hottest point of the day um hey you know said it was hot Yeah I I like to get a
• 01:00 - 01:30 natural vitamin D Yeah So So anyway I was I couldn't believe that he said it was hot and I said I was surprised I mean we've been married 15 years and I don't know That's I think the first Yeah you know Yeah I know when he's very very hot It doesn't mean I like you know So but he didn't want me to turn the space heater off He was happy with it being hot So we left it on Baby I was on fire I think I think we fasted that day So we did and we came
• 01:30 - 02:00 out of prayer You know I was just under the you know the fire is still burning in my my body Yeah Well I wanted to share a story today um because I think you know we love talking about everything that the Bible has to say and it talks it covers you know most most topics that have um concern with our life right god created us and he gives us an outline on things
• 02:00 - 02:30 So I remember when I was a baby Christian and I was hearing all these conflicting doctrines about finances and wealth and Jesus was poor wasn't he poor all this kind of stuff And so you know being a smart a smart person I said "Holy Spirit cuz God knows the answer right?" He said "Was Jesus poor?" And you know what the Holy Spirit told me to do he told me to go read the parable of the loaves and fishes And I was like "What does that have to do with Jesus being rich or
• 02:30 - 03:00 poor?" And so I was obedient I went and read the parable And I noticed in the parable in the the chapter that I went to or the book that I went to it said the disciples said "Hey like should we go buy bread for 5,000 people?" You know they they had enough money in their treasury to buy bread for 5,000 men plus women and children And I was like "Oh wow." you know they couldn't Jesus couldn't have been
• 03:00 - 03:30 poor and had that many people that um he was able to buy food for and he had a staff of 12 that traveled with him that he was providing for So Jesus was not poor and and that really got me to studying what does the word say about finances and wealth Um you hear people saying money is evil but the Bible actually says the love of money is the root of all evil So we want to just teach a balanced approach to what the
• 03:30 - 04:00 word of God says And I just want to lay say this as we get started is the Bible very much teaches if you study and again not just pulling one scripture out here there but you study from beginning to end You study the word of God What does the word of God teach number one the word of God teaches that God will bless you That if you are a generous person that you will be blessed Number two the Bible teaches that people are blessed at different levels given a different levels of wealth and responsibility
• 04:00 - 04:30 based on what God has called them to do what he's equipped them for in the earth Um so I think it's important to share those two things that nobody is disqualified from be from walking in the blessing of God but it doesn't mean that everybody's going to drive a BMW and have 20 houses if you read what the Bible says In fact I just really quickly want to go let's go to 1 Timothy um just real quick because I think this is important to teach um and then we'll get
• 04:30 - 05:00 into some more details about but 1 Timothy 6 Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money which is so unreliable Their trust should be in God who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment So right there we see God is okay with you being rich It's not a sin But your trust has to remain in God Amen And that's why Jesus said it's hard for
• 05:00 - 05:30 a rich person to enter in right because your trust has to stay in God not in your own wealth All right and God gives us now I didn't write this This is in the Bible says God gives richly to us all we need for our enjoyment All right Then it goes on in verse 18 and it's going to tell us what the purpose of the wealth is Tell them to use their money to do good They
• 05:30 - 06:00 should be rich in good works and generous to those in need always being ready to share with others By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life So I just want to say that second point there because the purpose of God blessing you or causing you to step into financial blessing isn't so
• 06:00 - 06:30 you can live in 10 houses and drive fancy cars and have fancy watches Not that God minds if you have a nice house but the purpose is to use your money to do good to be rich in good works and to be generous to those in need So in other words God will bless you so that you can be a blessing to other people And if you we can go through so many scriptures that lay this out God's idea of prosperity is that you have enough to
• 06:30 - 07:00 meet your needs and you are able to be a blessing to others Right that that's kind of the bottom line of what the Bible says And I just want to hit on this really quickly because you hear people say "Oh well those health and wealth people they just teach that you can believe God for you know a Corvette and a fancy watch and all this stuff." Okay Well the Bible teaches that if you give you'll be blessed But James tells us that you have not because you ask not Amen And when you ask you ask a miss
• 07:00 - 07:30 You're asking from God I want to say something about this You know uh I I I first first let's be honest There's nobody there's no pastor no prophet no nobody can preach Jesus the creator or the savior and preach Jesus to anyone without making people rich
• 07:30 - 08:00 Because the gospel uh riches is part of the is is included Yeah In the gospel God doesn't like God hate poverty Yeah God wants we his people to be so successful You know if let's let's be honest The Bible said God told Abraham let's say let's talk about Abraham All right The Bible said to Abra God said to Abraham I'm going to bless you Listen to
• 08:00 - 08:30 this God says I'm going to bless you so you can be a blessing to other people It is God Jehovah Jehovah Rafa Jehovah Nissi Jehovah Remember this is this is very this is awesome teaching right now because some things that we have we need to debunk You know there's so many lies Yeah You know people are speaking again The devil has has raised up people to speak again
• 08:30 - 09:00 finances or financial prosperity And we we some people the devil has wash or people has washed people's bread You're right And we need to speak the truth and the truth that you know will set you free Who propels you into that place of increase Can I can I just say just a scripture to what you were saying in Proverbs it says "The blessing of the Lord is the blessing the rich." Oh my
• 09:00 - 09:30 goodness That's Can we have that scripture on there it's not my notes It's I got to ask Dr Google see if I didn't have a Proverbs 10:22 What is it proverbs 10 Proverb Book of Proverbs I just want to read it Let's read it We didn't write this It's in the Bible It's in the Bible And you know Wow I'm I'm get excited I am Yeah Yeah Okay I'm I'm taking note myself because these are the things I you know you need to get a pen get a piece of paper and take a note
• 09:30 - 10:00 Yeah Yeah And you go back you know sometimes when we when people teach the word of God it's always good for you to go back and study it out the subject and ask the Holy Spirit So I don't know what we have to some people like to argue or debate you know wasting their time always see nobody fights against God wins That's right When you fight against God you always going to lose That's the
• 10:00 - 10:30 bottom line So what we need to do when when when when you never heard about something and it's something new for to you or maybe somebody have you've been deceived it's always good to you know what just let's put our our pride aside and go back to our our father and ask a question if this is true I want you to teach me or speak to me and that's what the holy spirit was given to us for so
• 10:30 - 11:00 he can teach us the words so we know what God is is saying to us what God have said so we can take advantage on it That's what the Bible says Listen to this my people He's not talking about outsiders or people from outside He's talking about his own kids You know that you know you can only you know have jurution your own household is God is telling you all of us say my own kids are destroy they suffer not because
• 11:00 - 11:30 of they don't have the money god doesn't mind for you to have money when money have you know you are possessed with you are greedy you become a greedy person god doesn't like that right because that's why he create everything he everything was created for you to enjoy so you can have an amazing life what what a good father god he is I love that So so don't don't let anybody deceive you that you know uh you know God
• 11:30 - 12:00 doesn't want anybody to prosper or God doesn't want you to do well financially If somebody said that to you what something I have noticed people who always there's two kind of people in this earth I like to joke about this some people were born into this life to be against everything and some people were born again It changes heart You know what I'm saying so God you know he's a good
• 12:00 - 12:30 father Even book of Genesis let's let's talk about book of Genesis I chapter one The everything that God created created he said he said it is good Yeah And he remember the first day of man was a day of prosperity because everything was created for the man for him to enjoy Yeah his first day was when everything was prepared for for men That's a good father God doesn't
• 12:30 - 13:00 take pleasure when we you see when we we the children of God we suffer financially And remember I always say you know this is very this is a this is a an amazing teaching I don't think one program is going to be enough for us to really you know dive into it give you more scriptures so we can help This message is to help So I'm going to ask you let let me let me tell you this I don't want to I feel like I need to say
• 13:00 - 13:30 this You know maybe if you are listening to this message you you've been enjoying our program I'm going to ask you we need a lot of partners to be able to continue what we do And I'm going to challenge you You know the Bible Jesus says go into the whole go to everywhere your workplace other countries every continent under the heaven and to preach the gospel Yeah But you know and the gospel you know I love how pastor pastor always said this
• 13:30 - 14:00 says the gospel is free but the preaching cost a lot of money It does because you got to have the resources to preach the gospel Mhm Which is why Satan wants to convince people Christians should be poor because if they're poor then they can't do as much to preach the gospel to take care of um people that were in need and they can't even even enjoy life Mhm You know a lot there's a lot of Christians so stress stressed out Yeah You know because of the pre
• 14:00 - 14:30 financial pressure Yeah Well and instead of being able to be focused on because no matter what you do what your occupation is you're called to ministry And if people are so worried about finances is if the devil can keep them in a place where they're constantly trying to figure out how to pay their bills then they're not focused on ministering and sharing the gospel He wants to keep people in poverty And again when we're talking about this we're saying God's desire is for you to have enough to meet your needs and be able to share with others I like you
• 14:30 - 15:00 said to become a distribution center Distribution center I love that picture That's why he told Abraham I'm going to bless you so you can be a blessing to other people Yeah Do you know that you are blessed today because God has blessed Abraham and we are the seed We are the seed the children Okay The seed of Abraham through Jesus Christ So do you know yeah
• 15:00 - 15:30 I know this I know how many times do we have but that's okay Just well can I just I just want to say this because you were talking about Genesis We need to we need to do part two part three even part seven So you but I just want to ask people I know I don't know if I said that but I want people to go to okay if somebody if someone is excited about this program he want to they want to invest you know into be a blessing to other people how can they what are the platform people can give into this so if
• 15:30 - 16:00 you go to solof ministries.org Yeah you can become a partner with us and I encourage you become a monthly partner because your monthly partnership helps us to um do crusades We do crusades in West Africa Um we just paid for a huge crusade where people are getting saved for giving out food and it also helps fund um a orphanage in Togo where kids are getting a Christc centered education and then they're learning a trade so that as they graduate out of the
• 16:00 - 16:30 orphanage they're able to earn a living and they can start helping support the and we do have some of them already are giving back to the orphanage which is I love that thank you Jesus so yeah so we folks God does not need our money right all of that it is a way for him to release the blessing God doesn't perform magic Every time God is ready getting ready to bless a nation or a individual or a
• 16:30 - 17:00 person he's always create a need because a law there's a principles in the realm of the spirit that God have to comply to Yeah He's always there's a need when the knees when the knee is presented when people step in that's when he releases the blessed because your obedience or you know or your response to the need creates a supernatural anointing or
• 17:00 - 17:30 special grace on you to be blessed financially You know do you know that your giving is connected to your health to be healthy yes Yeah Book of Psalm 41 I'm not going to read that scripture but we're going to get to that scripture later on You know and everything that you do in life is connected to giving God move You know God you know our heavenly father does not need your gift We don't give gift to God We give him what an offering Mhm
• 17:30 - 18:00 sacrifice There's a big difference God does not need man's gift But we he he require an offering from us There's a something there's a reason why he put that in place Now before God made a covenant for Abraham he asked him to offer sacrifice before he can bless him and he did So there's so many so many
• 18:00 - 18:30 story from the old testament to the new he offer his what his son Isaac to God and God said if a man that I have created was willing to give me his only son I got to do something So Abraham compare or challenge he had challenged God That's what God promised That's when the Messiah was promised Wow What a way I love Abraham I like to cheat I said papa AB So you know this is awesome
• 18:30 - 19:00 teaching So I want to encourage you I want just take a note some of the scripture that we are giving you Just take a note Go back read the read the scriptures Study the scriptures and let God let the Holy Spirit teach you the importance of giving in the kingdom of God Well and I and I think one of the principles that we've been talking about and I just want to point out in 2 Corinthians 9 um 7-8 and you always hear this in people talking about cheerful
• 19:00 - 19:30 giving which is important your heart and giving is important but what I I'm going to read it but there's a different part I want to point out here it says and don't give reluctantly in response to pressure for God loves a person who gives cheerfully All right Now listen to this verse eight And God now who god will generously provide all you need So when you give number one God's going to provide everything you need But you're
• 19:30 - 20:00 not giving to get You're giving out of a cheerful heart because you want to be a blessing Who wouldn't want to give back to God who wouldn't want to bless the people of God right and then number two it says "Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others." Okay now listen to that What have we been talking about being a distribution center the blessing of God is that you have everything you
• 20:00 - 20:30 need to meet your needs and you have leftover abundance so that you can give to help others Let's that read that again because this is this is what we've been talking about and this is exactly what this scripture says 2 Corinthians 9 verse 8 And God will generously Can we make that we have that in a big letter so people can can really see it yeah Then you will always always not sometimes not when God feels like it Not
• 20:30 - 21:00 if it's not a poverty moment you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others Now keep in mind Paul wrote this Paul is the one who wrote this right and he think about everything that Paul went through And you know sometimes people will quote quote some things that he said which we'll we'll go back and go over in those in detail But Paul is the one who wrote this And he's saying "Look I know I have firsthand experience of
• 21:00 - 21:30 this and I'm confident that if you give God will generously supply everything you need and put you in a place where you have leftovers so you can be a blessing to others." As the scriptures say they share freely and give generously to the poor Their good deeds will be remembered forever For for God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat In the same
• 21:30 - 22:00 way he will provide and increase your resources So God will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you So again going back to this why does he want to pro produce this harvest for you so that you're generous Yeah he wants you to be generous That's why God gets excited to bless you so that you can be generous Amen And uh see uh giving uh giving uh
• 22:00 - 22:30 your finances in in the kingdom of God amplifies you in the presence of God You know it m money or money multiplies you know your character Yeah you're right It reveal who you are That's what it is because your treasure and your heart go together So Jesus said it many many times Folks I think I want you to to be a giver and and be excited about the things of the spirit the things of God
• 22:30 - 23:00 because giving is it is a spirit You know even giving in the house of God or in the kingdom of God it is a special grace You know God says he can never pass you by If he has a need he will talk to you first because you know because of you you you you want to give to him So can I can I share something though okay You said this and you started talking about this and I got excited and then we we went somewhere What was it okay You were talking about Genesis how everything God created is
• 23:00 - 23:30 good But I just want to share this because God started off making Adam and Eve complete really wealthy Like listen to this All right This is Genesis 2 very beginning of creation And this verse um 211 It says "The first branch called the Pishon flowed around the entire land of Heala where gold is found The gold of that land is exceptional pure aromatic resin and oxen stone are also found
• 23:30 - 24:00 there." Okay So now listen to this God put gold there in creation He intentionally put gold there and oxen So he created a place full of wealth Like he just was like "Okay Abraham or Abraham I said Abraham cuz here you go Adam I'm giving you everything you need There's the garden There's food." Adam had everything that he needed Adam and Eve
• 24:00 - 24:30 But yet in addition God gave them tons of gold access to this great gold Um and it and it says the gold of that land was exceptionally pure So he gave them wealth beyond what they even needed right they didn't have to buy anything in the Garden of Eden but God still blessed them with an abundance Anyway I just thought it was interesting that God created in the beginning It talks about Genesis 2 God putting gold right there
• 24:30 - 25:00 So Amen Amen Wow You know I think we need to do part two Yeah Uh maybe for sake of time I think what we ask we are telling every one of us including oursel because we practice what we preach That's the bottom line You know I'm not we are not asking you we are not saying anything to you that we don't practice oursel I got so many testimony even last week God did a a power God did an awesome answer an amazing miracle I'm
• 25:00 - 25:30 talking about God's grace or God's favor upon your life you will never lack for anything and uh so and this this is the things that we want to you know we want to make sure because God want us to be successful Amen Now to prosper in life that you know is is is that simple is nothing missing and nothing broken You you are so established in your own life
• 25:30 - 26:00 that you God can use you to be a blessing to other people around you That what a that's that's a fulfilled life is a life of fulfillment when you are blessed in your health in your relationship in your finances so you can be a blessing to other people around you What a way to live your our life Jesus said it All right he said you stay here so you can make the difference So I'm we
• 26:00 - 26:30 want to encourage you to uh to go to the website We want you to partner with our Saliv Ministry We need every one of you to to to to give into this this ministry because the things that we do and we want God to bless you and that's what we are asking you prayer boy any amount will help $2,000 5,000$10,000 $25 maybe $10 maybe somebody say I have $5 yes your giving
• 26:30 - 27:00 will make a difference so we're going to pray for you in the name of Jesus we commend and the blessings of Abraham to rest upon your life You will never lack for bread You will never lack for anything I pray that everything that you touch with your hands prosper mightily May God multiply your sacrifices in the name of Jesus We decree the blessings of Abraham will rest upon your life so you
• 27:00 - 27:30 can be a blessing to everyone that come in contact with you in the name of Jesus I break the spirit of poverty the spirit of life the spirit of uh not having enough I curse it in the name of Jesus We bless you