Participants:
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW018173S
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00:19 >>John Bradshaw: Thanks for joining me today.
00:20 This is It Is Written. I'm John Bradshaw. 00:24 If you were to rate some of the most curious texts in the Bible, 00:29 if you were to make a list of odd or challenging 00:32 or head-scratching texts, 00:34 this verse would likely be at the top of many lists. 00:38 It's because the Bible says a lot about money. 00:42 A lot. 00:43 And yet, writing to the young church leader Timothy, 00:47 Paul said in 1 Timothy chapter 6 and verse 10, 00:50 "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, 00:56 for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, 01:00 and [have] pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 01:03 Now, we pray for money. We talk about money. 01:06 We thank God for money. 01:07 We consider money to be a great blessing, 01:09 but here is a great warning concerning something 01:14 that we all need. 01:16 My guest today is international speaker and author, 01:18 Australian Julian Archer. 01:20 Julian, welcome to It Is Written. 01:22 >>Julian Archer: Thank you, John. 01:23 >>John: What do you make of this verse? 01:25 In some Bibles, it's written in even more plain language. 01:28 "The love of money," as one Bible says, 01:31 "is the root of all evil." 01:33 What do you think Paul was getting at there? 01:34 Why did he say that to Timothy? 01:36 >>Julian: Yeah, I think the, the, the facts of what Paul 01:41 is saying is that if you trace any evil back to its roots, 01:46 there's usually someone trying to make a dollar out of it. 01:48 >>John: Follow the money, right? 01:49 That's a phrase we use all the time. 01:50 >>Julian: Follow the money. Follow it back. 01:52 >>John: I was, I was in a, in another country 01:53 just a few days ago asking about a certain thing 01:55 that was taking place in their country. 01:57 The person smiled, and in answer to my question simply said, 02:00 "Follow the money." 02:01 Ah, so that's why. 02:03 That's right; 02:04 there's often a financial motive behind what's going on. 02:06 >>Julian: Mm, absolutely, yeah, and, look, in my personal life, 02:10 I have also seen the second half of the text come true 02:12 where it says that many "have strayed from the faith" 02:16 because of this love of money, this greediness, as well, 02:18 and "pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 02:20 >>John: In the past you've been very successful in business. 02:22 >>Julian: Yeah, we've been really blessed 02:24 in some businesses that we've run in Australia. 02:26 >>John: But...that silver lining 02:31 carried with it a pretty dark cloud. 02:32 How did that manifest itself in your experience? 02:35 >>Julian: Yeah, they, the blessings poured in. 02:38 The windows of heaven were opened up, 02:40 and more than we could receive, you know--very biblical. 02:44 But I then began to worship the blessings. 02:47 I began to worship the gifts instead of the Giver 02:49 of the gifts, and that's where I messed up, 02:52 and so those blessings actually became a curse in my life. 02:54 >>John: So tell me how you did that? 02:56 How did, how did-- give me just an example. 02:58 Don't give away too much. 02:59 Give me an example of how, how someone looking on, or how you, 03:03 from your vantage point, said, 03:05 "This is me. I'm worshiping the gifts rather than the Giver." 03:07 >>Julian: Yeah, I think, from someone looking on, 03:09 they probably wouldn't have seen it. 03:10 We're, we're pretty good at wearing masks. 03:12 And, uh, however, for me, I saw that as the blessings 03:17 started coming in and grew and grew and grew, 03:20 that they were taking my time and my attention. 03:22 If you had looked at my calendar and my bank statements, 03:28 you would have seen more and more of my time and energy 03:31 and focus being on my stuff than on God, 03:35 and that was subtle, very subtle. 03:37 It just came over time. 03:38 But in my heart, I could see it happening, 03:41 and that's where I said, 03:42 "Hey, I've gotta do something about this." 03:44 >>John: Now, I notice-- and it's been said many times 03:46 that money is the root of all evil. 03:48 That's an incorrect statement. Paul said "the love of money." 03:52 >>Julian: Absolutely. 03:53 >>John: Were you aware-- or how did you become aware 03:56 that you loved money, as it were? 03:58 >>Julian: Hm. Yeah, money is an interesting thing. 04:00 You know, some people will say it's like fire, 04:02 that it can be used to do good or it can be used to do evil. 04:04 You know, they say it's neutral. 04:07 And I agree from that point of view. 04:09 But having experienced money 04:12 and having had this bit of a relationship, 04:13 this bit of a, you know, uh, too close relationship 04:17 with money for a, for a while... 04:20 Money's got claws. 04:21 There's something about money that the more of it 04:24 that you have, the more of it that you want. 04:27 It's just, you know, we all think, 04:28 "Well, if I had double the income that I have now, 04:30 I'd be happy." 04:31 But, you just want more and more and more. 04:34 And I started to see this in my life. 04:36 I thought, "Julian, you fool, 04:39 three years ago you were earning 1/4 of what you're earning now, 04:44 and you still want more." 04:45 You know, if I had been told, 04:48 "Well, in three years' time 04:49 you're gonna have multiples of what you're currently earning," 04:51 I would have gone, "Well, I'll be happy then. 04:53 I'll be satisfied then." 04:55 But the reality is that, no, you want more. 04:57 You want more. 04:58 Money has claws, and it says, "Come, come. Get more of me." 05:01 And that's what I noticed in my life, 05:03 just this crazy dissatisfaction with no matter how much I had. 05:08 >>John: Now, you've written about this. 05:09 You wrote a book with an interesting title, 05:11 "Help! I've Been Blessed!" 05:14 Are you saying money is bad? 05:15 Are you saying that, uh, money is bad for a person? 05:17 >>Julian: No. No. 05:19 I'm saying it can have very bad impacts on a person, 05:22 if they're not careful. 05:23 >>John: Okay, so you're okay with wealth? 05:25 >>Julian: Yeah. 05:26 >>John: You're not pointing the finger at rich people? 05:27 >>Julian: No. 05:28 >>John: All right. 05:29 >>Julian: No. I'm, I'm just saying that it's a, 05:31 as a rich Christian who--if you, if you have a real passion 05:35 for maintaining a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, 05:38 then money is something that Satan will often use to try 05:42 and distract you and drag you off to one side. 05:44 >>John: It's a bit like food, isn't it? 05:46 You gotta have food to live, but it's easy to abuse food 05:49 so that it becomes bad for your body. 05:51 I don't know anyone who can get through life 05:53 without money altogether. 05:55 You've gotta have it. 05:57 >>Julian: Yeah. 05:58 >>John: How do we live in this world without taking onboard 06:02 the love of money? 06:03 We've gotta have it. 06:05 In fact, we've gotta have significant amounts of it, 06:08 particularly at certain times of our life. 06:10 So let's take this time to share with people 06:14 how they can safeguard themselves against developing 06:17 the love of money or the love of stuff. 06:19 We've gotta raise children in this world. 06:21 We gotta have successful families in this world. 06:24 And we wanna get out of this world and into heaven 06:27 without our possessions or our lust after more stuff 06:31 dragging us down. 06:33 Take us through this. 06:34 >>Julian: Yeah, I think it was the evangelist Billy Sunday 06:37 who said that many a man will "slip into hell 06:39 with his hand on the door-knob of heaven." 06:42 You know, it's so close, 06:43 so close, but not quite, and... it's a precarious place to be, 06:47 and, and one of the things that will hold that man down, 06:49 or could hold any of us down, 06:51 is this materialistic culture which we and our families, 06:54 our children are involved in. 06:59 It's a daily thing. It's daily. 07:01 It's daily for us as individual; it's daily for us as parents; 07:05 it's daily for our children; it's, it's daily for everybody. 07:08 We must choose every day to have Jesus as the number one 07:11 in our life. 07:13 Not the goal of our next pay raise, 07:16 not the big sale of, or contract that's just going through, 07:19 not doubling our, our net worth, 07:22 not trying to get onto the Forbes 500 list or, or whatever. 07:25 Our focus has to be Jesus Christ. 07:27 And we need to do everything that we can to maintain 07:31 that relationship. 07:33 >>John: I don't think I've ever meet a Christian 07:34 who's ever said, 07:35 "I just wanna be filthy rich," without having then said, 07:38 "because I wanna give money to God." 07:40 Many, many Christians who are wealthy do give money to God, 07:43 and we thank God for that, 07:44 and, and without that kind of generosity, 07:47 I think the work of the church in many ways around the world 07:49 simply wouldn't be where it is today. 07:51 But do you think that can be a bit of a, a self-deceiving thing 07:54 when people say, 07:55 "Well, if I was rich, I'd just do this and that and the other." 07:57 Can that be a trap? 07:59 >>Julian: It can, very much so, and if there's one thing 08:00 that I've learned, yeah, in this process, 08:03 um, it's that if you're not giving to God 08:06 when you're not earning much, 08:08 you won't be giving to God when you've got a lot. 08:10 All that--riches just magnify your character, 08:13 so if you're generous with next to nothing, 08:16 you'll be generous with billions. 08:18 But if you're tight with next to nothing, 08:20 you'll be tight with billions. 08:22 It's--it just magnifies our character. 08:23 >>John: So how does a person develop this habit 08:25 of generosity? 08:26 Where do you start with that? 08:27 >>Julian: Yeah. 08:29 It, it comes, uh-- Martin Luther, great guy, 08:32 he said there's three conversions. 08:34 So, so from a Christian perspective, 08:36 we have three conversions: 08:37 You're converted in your head, in your heart, 08:40 and in your wallet. 08:42 They can happen at all different times, 08:44 but the interesting thing is that if a person is converted 08:46 in their heart, their wallet comes with it. 08:49 So, you, you can't just say, 08:52 "Well, I think I'm going to become more generous, 08:54 uh, so next week I'm going to give $50 instead of $20, 08:58 like I did last week, and, and if I do that, 09:01 it'll help me to become more generous." 09:02 Well, you can, but it's sort of a, 09:04 it's a, it's a real battle, you know. 09:07 The Bible says that "God loves a cheerful giver." 09:10 To become a cheerful giver, 09:12 we have to have the heart conversion. 09:14 When we have that heart conversion, 09:15 we, we look at what Jesus has done for us. 09:17 He's done so much for us. 09:18 We just want to give. 09:19 We wanna give our time, our talents, our treasures. 09:22 We wanna, we wanna give because that's what Jesus did for us. 09:24 So, I would encourage people to look to, 09:28 look for that heart conversion, 09:29 look to that daily relationship with Christ, 09:32 and then the giving will come easy. 09:34 >>John: I've had people ask me many times about tithing-- 09:36 "Should I tithe? 09:38 And if I tithe, should I tithe on the gross and the net?" 09:40 and so forth. 09:41 How important is tithing, giving a tenth of your increase to God, 09:45 in this process? 09:46 >>Julian: Hm. Very important, very important. 09:49 And whether it's gross or net, I would just say, 09:51 "How do you want your blessings?" 09:52 >>John: That's right. 09:53 >>Julian: [laughs] So it's, uh-- 09:54 but yeah, like, for example, with young people, 09:56 they say to me--a young guy asked me the other day; 09:59 he said, "I've just graduated from university. 10:01 I'm going to get my first paycheck. 10:02 Tell me, what should I do with it?" 10:04 And so I shared with him the rule of tens, where I said, 10:08 "Your first 10 percent goes to God. 10:10 That's your tithe; you're returning 10 percent to God. 10:12 It's an acknowledgement of who He is and the fact 10:15 that He owns all of it. 10:16 The second 10 percent goes to offerings or to others. 10:20 It's helping people in need. 10:22 The third 10 percent goes into savings." 10:24 So that could be going towards his house deposit or, 10:26 or something for the future or just some savings. 10:29 And then the other 70 percent is cost of living. 10:32 Uh, so the rule of tens: 10, 10, 10-- 10:34 10 for God, 10 for others, 10 for your savings. 10:36 It's a Jewish principle. They're doing okay. 10:39 They've been doing it for about 3,000 years. 10:41 I teach it to my children. 10:42 We pass it on from generation to generation. 10:44 So, yes, tithing is an, as I read the Bible, 10:48 an essential thing. 10:49 >>John: Now, you said you've taught this to your, 10:51 to your kids? 10:51 >>Julian: Mm. 10:52 >>John: How did they take to it? 10:53 And now, as they look back over the way mom and dad 10:56 have taught them over the years, 10:57 are they convinced, or do they say, 10:59 "Boy, if I could have some of those 10 percents back, 11:02 I could have more stuff"? 11:04 >>Julian: Yeah. They'll go-- interesting timing. 11:07 About--my, my oldest son has just started university. 11:10 So he's sort of out there on his own somewhat, financially, 11:12 living away from home, and he's struggling, financially. 11:16 He's looking for a job. 11:17 He's not getting money from the government. 11:19 We're sort of feeding him a little bit just to, 11:21 to keep him afloat, you know. 11:22 But he doesn't have very much at all. 11:25 And the other day I was talking to him about this, 11:29 and I was saying, "Well, what are you spending your money on?" 11:31 And we were just going through a few--a little budgeting advice, 11:34 you know, going through things. 11:35 And I could see that he had just paid over 1/3 11:39 of his current net worth, his current bank account, to tithe. 11:44 He had just paid that into tithe. 11:46 And I was like, "Good on you, man." 11:48 You know, just, that's it. 11:49 Put, put it out there, you know. 11:51 And so those principles, I believe, are getting through. 11:55 They've still got a lifetime ahead of them. 11:56 I'm new in the game with parenting, 11:58 but, but, you know, it's, it's an important thing, 12:00 and I know that God will bless. 12:01 >>John: I've heard of people who give to God 12:04 so that God will bless-- 12:07 "If I give this, then God will give me more money." 12:12 Do you consider that an appropriate way 12:14 of looking at God's blessings? 12:16 >>Julian: Malachi chapter 3 has a, a, like a covenant, 12:21 like almost a legal contract from God's point of view to us, 12:24 and He says, "If you return the whole tithe 12:28 and bring all the offerings to me"--honestly-- 12:32 "then I will open up the windows of heaven 12:35 and, and pour out more blessings than you can hold." 12:38 So, yes, in principle, I agree with that. 12:41 However, God has ways of blessing us 12:44 that aren't dollars and cents. 12:46 So, we might pay our tithe or give our offerings 12:49 in dollars and cents, 12:50 but that doesn't mean that God is necessarily 12:52 gonna make us millionaires next year. 12:54 It means that He will bless us. 12:56 And so that could be with health. 12:58 It could be with happy family relationships. 13:00 It could be that old car just that keeps on going. 13:03 There's a whole lot of different ways that God can bless us 13:04 other than giving us a pay raise. 13:06 So, no, I don't think, if I put $100 in the offering this week, 13:11 then I can expect a pay raise by Tuesday. 13:14 But I can expect peace in my heart 13:17 that I am doing what God has asked me to do. 13:19 >>John: And if we do--right?-- if we give so that we'll get... 13:25 that's just a form of, of legalism. 13:28 We're just buying God off, 13:30 and we're surely breaking the tenth commandment, 13:33 which says, "Thou shalt not covet." 13:35 Shouldn't we just be giving out of a heart filled with love 13:38 and then leave it with God to bless us 13:40 however He wants to bless us? 13:41 >>Julian: Yeah. Absolutely, absolutely. 13:43 >>John: And He will bless us, won't He? 13:44 >>Julian: Yes. 13:45 >>John: Do you know of any people who've decided, 13:47 "Well, I'll be faithful, and I'll tithe, 13:48 and I'll give offerings," who have not been blessed? 13:50 I don't know anybody like that. 13:51 >>Julian: No. 13:52 >>John: You haven't come past-- 13:53 >>Julian: No, and even King David in the Bible, 13:54 he says, "I once was young, and now I am old, 13:56 and I've never seen the children of God begging for bread," 14:00 or, you know, he has a number of other things he says in there. 14:03 Um, and that's my experience, too. 14:05 God will care for His faithful people. 14:07 >>John: That's the promise of God. 14:08 We've got it right here, chapter and verse, in the Bible. 14:10 There's no doubt about it. 14:12 God has promised to bless those who are faithful to Him. 14:16 The love of money--we'll talk more about it in just a moment. 14:19 ♪[Music]♪ 14:27 >>John: Thank you for remembering 14:28 that It Is Written exists 14:30 because of the kindness of people just like you. 14:33 To support this international life-changing ministry, 14:36 please call us now at 800-253-3000. 14:40 You can send your tax-deductible gift 14:42 to the address on your screen, 14:43 or you can visit us online at itiswritten.com. 14:47 Thank you for your prayers and for your financial support. 14:50 Our number again is 800-253-3000. 14:54 Or you can visit us online at itiswritten.com. 14:58 >>John: Don't miss "The Dangers of Technology" 15:00 from It Is Written. 15:02 This electronic age presents our planet with opportunities 15:05 that were unimaginable just a few years ago. 15:08 But it also brings some real challenges-- 15:10 among them, spiritual challenges. 15:13 In "The Dangers of Technology," 15:14 you'll learn how you can protect yourself from trouble online, 15:17 how you can safeguard your children, 15:19 and simple steps you can take to avoid some common pitfalls. 15:22 You'll learn from people with real-world experience-- 15:25 >>Kyla Steinkraus: Those companies, 15:26 those child predators are hunting these kids. 15:28 >>John: ...and with expertise in online security. 15:31 >>Michael Dinkins: Once it's out there, it's out there, 15:33 and it's out there probably forever. 15:34 >>John: Email, texting, social media, the World Wide Web-- 15:38 it's hard to imagine a world without them, 15:40 but years ago it was impossible to imagine 15:42 the dangers they would present. 15:43 "The Dangers of Technology." 15:45 Simple solutions to safeguarding you and your family online. 15:48 Don't miss "The Dangers of Technology" 15:50 on It Is Written TV. 15:52 Watch online at www.itiswritten.tv. 15:58 >>John Bradshaw: Thanks for joining me today 16:00 on It Is Written. 16:01 My guest is Julian Archer, 16:03 an international speaker and an author, 16:05 and I don't know if you use the term, 16:07 but I'd say an expert now in the field of finance 16:10 and the battle that rages in many lives 16:13 between faith and finance, 16:15 between wealth and spirituality or relationship with God. 16:20 Now, word is that you are a member of a very elite club, 16:24 a member of the global "one percent" club. 16:27 Tell me more about this. 16:29 >>Julian Archer: Yeah, so the "one percent" club, 16:31 uh, identifies the wealthiest one percent of adults 16:34 in the world. 16:35 >>John: And you're one of them. 16:36 >>Julian: I am. 16:37 I am, and so I guess you could say that it's an elite club. 16:40 >>John: Sure. 16:41 >>Julian: Uh, if you look at the United Nations data 16:43 from the World Distribution of Household Wealth Report-- 16:46 they put this thing out every year, 16:48 and they look at how is money distributed around the world. 16:51 And, of course, you-- in the media, 16:53 we've had these things like Occupy Wall Street, you know, 16:55 where they've gone in there, 16:56 and they've, they've camped at Wall Street 16:59 saying there's too much inequality 17:00 between the rich and the poor and, you know, 17:02 all this sort of thing. 17:03 And so, it's a, it's a real, a real thing. 17:05 And as a member of the "one percent" club, 17:07 I'm like, "Well, how do I deal with this?" 17:09 You know, I'm richer than 99 percent of adults on earth. 17:13 But it's interesting, when you study the United Nations data, 17:17 that, if you have a net worth-- 17:21 that is, get the value of your assets, total assets, 17:24 minus the value of your total liabilities, 17:26 that, what's left is your net worth. 17:28 If your net worth is $3,000 or more, 17:33 you're richer than 50 percent of adults on the planet. 17:35 >>John: So I'm in the 50 percent club. 17:36 >>Julian: So you're in the 50 percent club? 17:37 Okay, you won't have to keep admitting as we go higher, 17:39 but anyway... [Laughs] 17:41 So the 50 percent club-- 17:43 if you have a net worth of $90,000, 17:48 then you're actually in the 10 percent club. 17:51 So you're richer than 90 percent of adults on earth. 17:54 >>John: What does it take to be in that "one percent" club? 17:57 >>Julian: Mmm. 17:58 My, my first, my, my gut reaction would have been, 18:01 oh, maybe 5 million, 10 million-- 18:02 >>John: Gotta be a lot of money. 18:03 >>Julian: Yeah, it's gotta be a lot of money; that's right. 18:05 Um, but it was quite interesting when I, when I did the research, 18:08 that all it takes to be a member of the elite, 18:12 as we call it, "one percent" club, 18:14 is a net worth of $750,000. 18:16 Not even $1 million. 18:17 You don't have to be a millionaire to be richer 18:19 than 99 percent of adults on the planet-- 18:21 that's not to mention all the children. 18:23 So, when we, when we come to God's Word, 18:26 and we see passages speaking to the rich, 18:29 or we see Jesus talking to the rich, 18:31 I used to always think that that was for the super-rich. 18:34 >>John: The really rich. 18:35 >>Julian: The really, really rich. 18:36 But then I thought, "You know what, 18:38 if I'm richer than 99 percent of adults on earth, 18:41 that's probably talking to me." 18:44 And it made me see God's Word through new eyes, 18:48 uh, and made me realize that, 18:50 "Hey, Julian, you've been really blessed. 18:51 What are you going to do about it?" 18:52 >>John: The statistics say it's true for people; 18:54 the numbers say it's true for countries: 18:56 As wealth increases, religion decreases. 18:59 Now, that's true for Christianity. 19:00 Is that true for other faith groups as well? 19:04 >>Julian: It is, absolutely. 19:05 Hinduism, Muslims, Buddhism, the whole lot. 19:07 I, I talk to leaders of these religions around the world, 19:11 and when I ask them this question, if I say, 19:13 "What is the greatest thing that is taking 19:15 your young people, your young families, away from their faith, 19:20 regardless of religion? 19:21 What is it that's taking them away? 19:24 Is it they're becoming Christians?" 19:26 "No." 19:27 "Is it they're converting to another religion?" 19:28 "No." 19:29 "What is it?" 19:30 "Materialism." 19:32 Our young people, our young families, 19:33 are being converted from Christianity, whatever it is, 19:38 to materialism, by the droves. 19:41 They're just--materialism is having an incredible impact 19:44 on the faith of many people today. 19:46 And it's not just the young people, 19:48 but that's an area that we see it a lot. 19:50 >>John: Okay, so we gotta raise kids in this world 19:52 where there's stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff everywhere. 19:54 You can go to stores now that have thousands and thousands 19:57 of products available, 19:59 and everything about society is telling you, 20:00 "You deserve it; you want it; you have it; you can get it. 20:03 No money down, use this credit card." 20:05 So it's easier and easier and easier to have stuff. 20:08 I, I like the cover, uh, illustration on your book, 20:10 "Help! I've Been Blessed!" 20:11 Here's somebody with money, uh, I mean, everything, 20:15 everything that a person could want. 20:17 How do we navigate this maze? 20:18 We gotta get our families to heaven, 20:20 we wanna get our children to heaven, 20:21 yet all of us are coming up in this morass of materialism. 20:24 What do we do? 20:25 >>Julian: The circumstances in which a child is raised 20:29 will often have a greater impact on them 20:31 than even the example of the parents. 20:33 So...we, we would like to just keep raising our children 20:39 in an affluent environment, but take them on mission trips-- 20:43 yeah, fly them in and out a few times a year 20:44 and help them to build a church or whatever, 20:46 and we think that that's going to do it. 20:48 It will help. No question, it will help. 20:51 But ultimately the environment in which they are raised 20:54 will have a greater impact on them even than your own example 20:56 as parents, so we need to get around this somehow. 21:00 And one of the things that I believe we need to do 21:02 is we need to simplify. 21:04 We need to simplify. 21:05 For our own spiritual lives, 21:08 we need to reduce our assets and responsibilities, 21:14 uh, so that we have more time, more energy, 21:16 and are able to more clearly focus 21:18 on our relationship with God. 21:20 That will also assist our children, 21:22 uh, by them seeing that, that happening, that, hey, 21:25 Mum and Dad really take this Christianity seriously; 21:30 like, they're actually trying to follow Jesus. 21:32 Wow! Really? 21:34 And that will have an incredible impact on them 21:36 and their choices that they make as they go through life. 21:40 If we go through just income increases, lifestyle increases, 21:44 income increases, lifestyle increases, 21:45 the kids will see that-- 21:46 they're not, they're not fools-- 21:48 and they'll wanna do the same thing. 21:50 My belief is that God blesses us beyond our needs 21:55 so that we can increase our standard of giving, 21:58 not our standard of living. 22:00 And if we can show that to the next generation, 22:03 that as our blessings went up, we actually gave more, 22:08 rather than just having fancier and fancier holidays, 22:10 nicer and nicer cars and homes, 22:12 then that will be an absolutely key, uh, transference 22:17 from our generation to theirs in the right direction. 22:19 >>John: Okay, what are you advocating? 22:21 Uh, what I mean is this: 22:23 There was a time you did very well, earned a lot of money; 22:27 businesses were very successful. 22:29 You did not take a vow of poverty. 22:32 You didn't sell everything, and you're now trying to live 22:34 on $10 a week-- that's not what you did. 22:37 So you dialed it back, right? 22:39 >>Julian: Mm. 22:40 >>John: You didn't walk away. You dialed it back-- 22:42 >>Julian: Yep. 22:43 >>John: ...to the level that you felt 22:44 like God was leading your family. 22:46 >>Julian: Mm. 22:47 >>John: How does a person do that? 22:48 Uh, they're saying, 22:50 "Now, well, how do we get to this spiritual place 22:52 so that we're not being owned by our stuff, 22:53 we're not being led around by the love of money?" 22:57 How does a person find that sweet spot? 23:00 You found it. 23:01 >>Julian: Yup. 23:02 >>John: How does someone find it? 23:03 It's gotta differ from person to person. 23:04 How does a person find it? 23:06 >>Julian: Because ultimately what you're looking for 23:07 is peace-- 23:08 in your relationship with God, you're looking for peace. 23:09 You're looking to-- for, for example, 23:11 we used to go on family skiing holidays. 23:13 We would spend $10,000 in a week on a, on a ski holiday 23:16 for the four of us. 23:17 We'd stay in the nice places, you know--we, we did it well. 23:20 Uh...but then we realized, you know what, 23:25 God's probably got better uses for His money than spending 23:27 10 grand on us to go skiing for a week. 23:30 And so we dialed it back. 23:33 Now, one word of advice here: 23:37 If you are married, dial it back together. 23:39 [Laughs] Okay? 23:41 Don't, don't just do as I did in this particular instance. 23:44 My wife, Melinda, she had never skied, 23:49 and then one winter she finally started skiing, 23:52 and she loved it. 23:53 Well, that happened to coincide with the winter, 23:55 the last winter, that I was prepared to spend $10,000 23:58 on a ski holiday. 23:59 So as winter was approaching the next year, 24:01 I announced to the family, as the spiritual head of the home, 24:05 "We're not skiing this year because it's not right. 24:08 It's not right to spend $10,000 a week." 24:10 >>John: And Melinda had been looking forward to this 24:11 for months? 24:12 >>Julian: Well, exactly, yeah, because she had been-- 24:13 this was her first experience skiing, and she just loved it. 24:16 And she's like, "No way! What?" 24:18 So, yeah, word of advice: Do it together. 24:20 If you're going to dial things back-- 24:21 >>John: Amen. 24:22 >>Julian: ...do it together. 24:22 >>John: All right. 24:23 >>Julian: And, uh, and then, yeah, 24:25 just start looking at things in your life. 24:27 Just saying, "God, would You really want me to do this 24:31 with Your, Your money?" 24:33 Uh, you know, the, the question, 24:36 "Is what I'm living for what Jesus died for? 24:40 Did Jesus die for the things that I'm living for?" 24:43 And identify a few of those things where your answer is, 24:46 "No, these are actually just things that I wanted to do, 24:49 and they've got nothing to do with what Jesus 24:50 came here to do." 24:52 Uh, and start to dial them back. 24:54 As a couple, as a family, 24:56 depending on the situation that you're in, 24:58 start simplifying, simplifying, 25:00 and, and just feel that peace coming in. 25:03 >>John: Thanks for joining me. This has been great. 25:06 I wanna give you an opportunity-- 25:10 just reduce it to a sound bite, a parting shot. 25:13 Someone who's saying, 25:15 "You know, I've been guilty of this, the love of money. 25:19 I don't want to be. I'm making a change." 25:21 Go ahead. 25:22 >>Julian: Yeah, look, in its simplest form, 25:25 as your blessings go up, your knees must go down on the floor. 25:30 We've gotta pray more. 25:31 We've gotta, we've gotta go to God and say, 25:33 "God, thank You for the blessings," 25:35 'cause the blessings should lead, 25:36 lead to prayer and thanksgiving. 25:39 But when we are there with prayer and thanksgiving, 25:41 we will start to understand more 25:43 about humble sacrificial generosity, 25:46 and God will then teach us how to give and how to live for Him, 25:51 not for us. 25:52 >>John: Julian Archer, thank you. 25:54 Greatly appreciate it. 25:55 >>Julian: It's been a blessing to be here, thank you. 25:59 ♪[Music]♪ 26:00 >>Announcer: The pursuit of wealth 26:01 has been the ruin of many people. 26:03 God promises to bless His people financially, 26:05 but often God's blessings can turn into a curse. 26:08 Get your free copy of "God Will Provide" 26:11 and learn the recipe to financial success. 26:14 Call 800-253-3000, 26:17 800-253-3000. 26:19 You can write to the address on your screen 26:21 or visit us online at iiwoffer.com. 26:25 Get "God Will Provide," iiwoffer.com. 26:29 >>John Bradshaw: Julian, thanks again. 26:30 I really appreciate you taking your time. Thanks. 26:32 >>Julian Archer: Thank you. 26:33 >>John: Let's pray together now. Let's pray. 26:35 Our Father in heaven, 26:37 O Lord, you've gotta keep us from the love of money. 26:40 Uh, we need money. 26:41 We are grateful for it. 26:42 We thank You for what You give us. 26:45 I suspect there are some people who are saying to themselves, 26:48 "If only I had money to love." 26:50 And I want to pray that You'll be especially close to people 26:53 who are struggling, battling, seeking their way forward. 26:56 Maybe they're not quite sure where the next meal 26:58 or the next rent payment is coming from. 27:00 The Bible says, "My God shall supply all your need 27:04 according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." 27:06 Lord, let that be so. 27:09 Then, Lord, there are so many people now caught up 27:12 in the blessings more than they are in the person of the Giver. 27:17 So let our focus be in the right place 27:19 so that Your financial blessings can do the work 27:22 You designed them to do. 27:24 We thank You and love You. 27:26 Let our priorities, our expenditures, our investments, 27:32 our possessions reflect that love more and more. 27:36 We pray in Jesus' name. 27:39 Amen. 27:40 Thank you so much for joining me. 27:42 I'm looking forward to seeing you again next time. 27:44 Until then, remember: 27:46 "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, 27:49 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" 27:54 ♪[Theme music]♪ 28:04 ♪[Theme music]♪ |
Revised 2022-12-01