Money or Trust

I (Kathryn) teach my church's 8th-12th grade youth group with a few InterVarsity students helping out. This last week the topic was money after watching some of Linsanity and discussing NBA contracts.  It seemed like we all needed to check where we put money on our list of priorities: where we serving it or God?  I used this lesson plan and cut out a few of the verses due to time.

The top of the lesson says to get a bill, the more valuable the better.  My original thought was to get a $50 bill and use that to see how students would spend that money.  Then I finished reading the lesson... which at the end says to rip up the bill.  I decided that a $10 bill would accomplish the purpose without putting too much money at risk (as I'm still not fully funded).  As I went through the lesson, asking the students what they would use the money for and realizing that we held money strongly, I debated internally if I would actually be able to rip up that bill.  But I figured if I did not, then I held money in too high of a regard and that I should know by now that God would provide for me trusting Him.  It was hard for me to rip it and the students flipped out as I tore the bill not just once, but into eighths.
One student tried to tape it back together then took the bill home.  I said and really wanted to continue to trust that God would bless me for ripping it.

The next night in Walmart I ran into his mom who said that he had taken the bill to the bank and they actually gave him a new $10 bill in exchange for all of the pieces.  So he gained $10 from the lesson.  Now it was up to me to really decide if God would bless me for following Him and doing this dramatic lesson.

One more day later, I was at a pot-luck dinner and as the basket went around for people to contribute cash towards the general cost, I realized I only had $1 left in cash in my pocket.  I put that in then the person next to me turned and handed me a $10 bill.  I asked her why and if she wanted me to put that in the basket for her.  She stated that it was for me to keep and that God had told her to give it to me.  After a few times, she's learned to not question God's promptings.  I then explained how $10 was exactly how much I had used of my own money to help try to teach the proper place of money in our lives as Christians.

God wants to be the person that we rely on to take care of our needs.  He uses money to provide for things, but He wants us to listen to Him about when to share the money/possessions He's given us and when we should keep them.  In the end, all things we have are His and we are only responsible for the money for as long as He wants us to have it.  Where is money in your heart?

Remember Matthew 6:24.  “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.