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WEB SITES CROWN FINANCIAL MINISTRIES An unparralleled ministry as well as a packed web site for teaching God’s people sound financial principles. GENEROUS GIVING Generous Giving is a privately funded ministry that seeks to encourage givers of all income levels—as well as pastors, church lay leaders and others—to experience the joy of giving and embrace a lifestyle of generosity, according to God’s word and Christ’s example. It was launched in 2000 by the Maclellan Foundation to stir a renewed, Spirit-led commitment to generosity among Christians. MAXIMUM GENEROSITY Brian Kluth’s website is loaded with a huge amount of information and inspiration regarding financial stewardship. Endorsed by many well known Christian leaders. ARTICLES GLOBALLY SIGNIFICANT LIFESTYLE: LIVING FAITHFULLY AS GLOBAL CHRISTIANS IN LIGHT OF I JOHN 3: 7 by Christie Borthwick We must consider a larger biblical worldview. The combination of our relative affluence (on a global scale) with the awareness of world needs calls for some sort of action, and the Scriptures guides our efforts. The Scriptures call us to a radically transformed worldview with respect to our resources. While a few are called to the complete abandonment of riches, all of us are called to stewardship, sacrifice, and solidarity. Let's look at these one at a time. (Read more) MEASURING MATURITY by Robertson McQuilken Lest we take a jaundiced view of anyone talking about money, remember that Jesus made it a major theme of his teaching. John MacArthur notes that 16 of Christ’s 38 parables deal with money; that the New Testament talks more about money than about heaven and hell combined, and five times more about money than prayer. While 500+ verses mention prayer and faith, over 2,000 deal with money and possessions. So the Lord must think our relationship to money is an important indicator of our level of maturity. (Read more) A COMMON YET SUBTLE SIN by S. L. Brengle Though the sin of covetousness is addressed in the Ten Commandments, I don’t believe I have ever heard it mentioned in one sermon, and only rarely discussed among any group of Christians as a problem in the Church today. Dictionaries give these definitions for covetousness: "avaricious," "grasping," "greedy of gain," "greed of wealth with a view of hoarding it." Basically, it is desiring what you don’t have, wanting more and not being satisfied. (Read more) WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS … by Russel G. Shubin A fresh look at our life and our resources in light of the Kingdom. GIVING TO MISSIONS WORK by Crown Financial Ministries For the majority of Christians in America, serving God will never lead to worldwide fame, writing best sellers, or ministering to hundreds in foreign lands. Regardless of the work to which we are called, there is hardly a Christian who cannot give; and when that giving is done in love, it exemplifies the greatest sacrifice ever made for mankind: the death of Jesus on the cross. (Read more) WHY WE BUY THINGS WE DON’T NEED by Bob Putnam Ever read a book that made you mad? I was intrigued by the title of Pamela N. Danziger’s Why People Buy Things They Don’t Need. But after browsing through pages 1-96, I found myself grousing. Why? Because Danziger knows precisely what she’s talk-ing about, and her job is to sell marketers the goods on you and me. (Read more) ARE WE TRIFLING WITH MISSIONS? by A.T. Pierson (Click here and then scroll to the second page to access this article) Arthur T. Pierson challenges the Church of the 1890s — and today — to lay down its materialism in an effort to make the Gospel “speed its way around the globe.” WHO GIVES TWO CENTS FOR MISSIONS? by Gene Edward Veith Of every dollar given to a Protestant church (Ed. - Taken from a select set of American denominations), the average amount that goes to overseas missions is two cents. In contrast, of every dollar Antioch Presbyterian Church in Chonju, Korea, takes in, 70 cents goes to missions. (Read more) LIVINGSTONE'S PRAYER: Will affluent America fulfill the great missionary’s vision? by Marvin Olasky Three weeks ago I reported on the career of missionary David Livingstone through 1857, when he received massive acclaim as a hero. His next 16 years were more up and down. His constant attacks on the slave trade, and the failure of an expedition he led, gave an opening to critics who said he rushed ahead instead of following regulations—and Livingstone talked back, knocking "the so-called Missionaries to the heathen, who never march into heathen territory." (Read more) GOD'S GIFT OF WEALTH by Woodrow Kroll Everything you have is God's gift to you. What you do with everything God gives you is your gift to Him. Is your life all about getting or all about giving? BOOKS THE TREASURE PRINCIPLE by Randy Alcorn (Click here to order e-book version)(Click here for pull quotes) The Story Behind the Book: After years of writing and teaching on the theme “God owns everything,” in 1990 Randy Alcorn was sued by an abortion clinic (for peaceful, nonviolent intervention for the unborn). Suddenly he had to resign as a pastor and was restricted to making minimum wage. Legally unable to own anything, Randy gave all his book royalties to missions work and need-meeting ministries. He and his family have experienced the reality of The Treasure Principle—that God really does own everything, takes care of us, and graciously puts assets into our hands that we might have the joy and privilege of investing in what will last for eternity. FORTY DAY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY TO A MORE GENEROUS LIFE by Brian Kluth This is an excellent downloadable and hard-copy booklet for churches, small groups, couples and individuals to use for a sustained "soaking" in the biblical foundations of stewardship. To learn more about it's author, pastor Brian Kluth, click here. MONEY, POSSESSIONS AND ETERNITY by Randy Alcorn This completely revised and updated version of the classic best-seller provides a Christian perspective about money and material possessions based on the author's painstaking study of the Bible. Randy Alcorn uses the Scriptures to approach this often touchy subject head-on. Thought-provoking arguments challenge readers to rethink their attitudes and use their God-given resources in ways that will have an eternal impact. (520 pages) MANAGAING GOD'S MONEY: A BIBLICAL GUIDE by Randy Alcorn (Feb/2011) God cares a great deal more about our money than most of us imagine. The sheer enormity of Scripture’s teaching on this subject screams for our attention. In fact, Jesus says more about how we are to view and handle money and possessions than about any other topic—including both heaven and hell. In Managing God's Money, Randy Alcorn breaks down exactly what the Bible has to say about how we are to handle our money and posessions in a simple, easy-to-follow format. (272 pages) THE GRACE OF GIVING by Edwin L. Frizen Jr. & Steven Olford A straightforward, encouraging, and practical discussion of the biblical imperatives for -- and the immeasurable blessings of -- generous stewardship. Must reading for every church member. THE KINGDOM ASSIGNMENT by Denny & Leesa Bellesi Following a sermon on stewardship, Denny Bellesi stunned his congregation by distributing $10,000 among one hundred volunteers and sending them on a "Kingdom Assignment" that has lit a spiritual blaze in their church, won the attention of the national media, and influenced hundreds of thousands of lives across their community and around the world. (See also Seeds of Kindness web site ... though this site appears to be unattended, it still offers a good read.) THE OVERSPENT AMERICAN, Why We Want What We Don’t Need , by Juliet B. Schor From David Mays’ Book Notes FREE AND CLEAR: GOD'S ROADMAP TO DEBT-FREE LIVING by Howard Dayton Free and Clear offers biblical money-management practices that will restore your financial health and refresh your spirit. The step-by-step approach and compassionate writing will give you hope and encouragement as you begin your journey to financial freedom.
RICH CHRISTIANS IN AN AGE OF HUNGER by Ron Sider Finding that Conservatives blame morally reprehensible individual choices, and Liberals blame constrictive social and economic policy, Dr. Sider finds himself agreeing with both sides. In this new look at an age-old problem, he offers not only a detailed explanation of the causes, but also a comprehensive series of practical solutions, in the hopes that Christians like him will choose to make a difference. ONLINE STUDIES A TWENTY DAY STUDY ON BIBLICAL STEWARDSHIP by Redeemer Presbyterian Church of New York City (To order printed copies, click here) ENRICH YOUR LIFE: TWELVE STUDIES ON GIVING by Yvonne Vinkemulder FORTY DAY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY TO A MORE GENEROUS LIFE by Brian Kluth This is an excellent downloadable and hard-copy booklet for churches, small groups, couples and individuals to use for a sustained "soaking" in the biblical foundations of stewardship. To learn more about it's author, pastor Brian Kluth, click here. STEWARDSHIP OF SELF (SERIES) DVD STUDIES BIBLICAL STEWARDSHIP Five Star Rating… A stellar panoply of pastors, scholars and financial consultants, including Bruce Waltke, Rick Warren, Andy Stanley, and Randy Alcorn take you through a thorough study of biblical stewardship. 14.5 hours long ~ 19 lessons MISCELLANEOUS GIVING CHART The giving chart shows dollar amounts for annual and weekly giving goals. 100 BIBLE PASSAGES THAT ENCOURAGE GENEROSITY by Brian Kluth This handout is divided into 2 sections. Section 1 lists specific verse references and a "summary statement" concerning what is taking place in the verse. Section 2 lists the specific verse that can be used in bulletins, testimonies, prayers, etc. |