Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:00:00]:
Hey, you know, this evening that we are starting a new series called Money Matters. Now, I understand that this has been a tremendously difficult time for many of us financially, right? Because two thirds of the US are working paycheck to paycheck, and that's before the government shut down, right? And so if that's the case, you know, it's just made stuff exponentially difficult. Some of us are working, some of us are not working. And some of us are working and still not getting paid. I know that there's this kinds of things that are happening, and some of us, we're struggling to see that when you go to the supermarket and you see hamburgers, like $6 a pound, you go like, oh, my gosh, that's the budget item, right? And some of us, when we take a look at our balance, there's just a little less than it used to be. And so there's different things that are going on in our community. And so when I see these things, in some ways there's this sense in which some, you know, you might be tending to think it's like, why do we talk about finances when it's such a difficult time? Because now more than ever is the time to get God's perspective on it. Because if you're in this place that you're facing overwhelming needs, if there's things that are difficult, or even if things are not, I think we need to get God's perspective on these things.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:01:24]:
Because the truth is, we all need money in the world, right? Everybody needs money. You guys agreed? Men. Yeah, everybody needs money, right? Without money, we can't pay our bills, our rent, our mortgage, our food, Right? We can't do all these things. We can't live in the way that we're accustomed. But the question becomes, what kind of money, what kind of relationship are we supposed to have with money, right? And so, because if you have ever heard people say how money talks, you got everybody heard that, right? Money talks. Some people say this. Mine just says, see later. Right? So if you're in that kind of a place or if you checked your bank lately and they said, are you sure you want to see this? This might be obviously speaking directly to you, but sometimes the reason why we need to have a message like this is because in difficult times, I think the misconceptions about money really raised their.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:02:15]:
Really raise their heads in our minds, in our hearts, in our community, you know, like, and there's a number of them, you know, sometimes we think that money equals security, that if I have enough I'll be okay, right? That that money for some of us is the sense that's like, man, I'll be protected, I'll have enough. And. But you know, the thing is the scripture says those who love money never have enough, right. That how meaningless to think that wealth can bring true happiness. For some of us, we have the thought that maybe money kind of validates my sense of security, right? It's like not security, but of success, right. That if I have enough, that if I've made enough, then I'm somebody, then I'm successful. It's the measure of achievement. It's one of the easier measurable things that we have, right? It's that sometimes my net worth equals my self worth.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:03:10]:
And when that happens, to be honest, and when things go through a downturn, what happens to people's self worth? Right. When things become uncertain, what happens in those moments? Right? So we are in this kind of a place or that if. And those things happen, what happens to people's sense of security and their sense of peace? Things get shaken. Sometimes people think that money will make me happy. Why? Because it tends to fund the trip that I wanted to have or the party that I wanted to have or that thing that I wanted to buy. And we start thinking that way. And so it fosters those kinds of things. But what happens then when money gets tight? Is our sense to be happy, to have joy, to have an enjoyment in life? Is that threatened? Well, it's not supposed to, right.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:03:57]:
And sometimes for, for some of us who maybe if you've kind of been in the faith, you see the scripture, sometimes we can see money as maybe something to be avoided or that topic to not talk about because, you know, money we see as corrupting or maybe have the potential for evil. And you know, sometimes that it says, because the scripture does say it's better, or maybe the thinking is that if we avoid this whole conversation, then we won't be tainted by it or we, we won't be ruined by it. But the reality is we all need money and we all need to get God stops. I think on money. And those misconceptions, to be honest, they're not all wrong, right? Because we all know that. Yes, if you have a saving, you have a buffer. When something unexpected comes, there's a reserve. Right.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:04:44]:
There's something along those lines. Right. We all know that. Yes, obviously that if there are some special occasions that you're planning for some thing that you have and you have the resource to do it. Yeah. Maybe you had the. Maybe you had the trip of a lifetime. Maybe you made some wonderful memories.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:05:00]:
But without the bigger picture. Without the bigger picture, sometimes we can get lost in these little things that may not be completely wrong, but we need perspective. It's sort of like this. If somebody said this, I asked, say, how do I get to your house? Right? And you kind of drew me a map. And what would be entailed in that is I probably have to turn. You know, turn right out of the parking lot. I'll go left. I need to accelerate here.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:05:30]:
I need to brake here. I need to turn right here. I need to go straight here. Right? Those kinds of little things that. It's not because going straight is wrong. It's not because going left is wrong. It's not going. But where does it lead me? I need a bigger picture than just saying that I ought to save or I ought to have money because it's a hedge against difficulty.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:05:55]:
I need a bigger picture than just saying that. Yes, that if you have the capacity to purchase or fund a certain thing, that, hey, then you'll have the memories that you have as a family. I need a bigger picture than that. Right now. If you were to take out a dollar bill, which I plan to do, which I forgot to do in my rush today, but here's the thing is I don't have a thing in my wallet. But let's take a look at what a dollar bill looks like on the back, right? So it obviously says the United States of America. Right? We obviously see the one. But what is that that is written on this bill that might have any kind of relevance for us, right? In God we trust.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:06:47]:
And isn't it interesting that the very thing that many of us trust in reminds us who to really trust in, right? That it's almost like a warning label. It's almost like on the pack of cigarettes, there's a warning label that, hey, that this. When you handle money, whether you're earning it or spending it or giving it or investing it, we ought to say this in God I trust, right? It ought to say that on any. Anytime that you open up your cash app or your. What's the one that I use, everyone? Venmo. Yeah, that's the one I use. Thank you for maybe. I saw you guys on Venmo.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:07:27]:
So, right. Every time that we handle money, anytime I pull out my charge card, anytime I pull out my bank card, maybe it ought to say that anytime when your financial statements or your portfolio, every time you access that website, maybe you ought to say, in God we Trust? Why? Because it's not that these things are bad or wrong. It's just that you're not worthy of our trust. God calls us in the midst of money matters to put our trust in him. One out of six verses in the New Testament talk about material possessions. Jesus talked more about money that he did. Heaven and hell. 42% of Jesus parables talk about money or material possessions.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:08:17]:
Why? Because we spend so much of our lives dealing with the things that money can buy that we can use it for that. We save about that. We worry about that. Right? God knows about your life and my life, and he doesn't want us to go through it, just figuring it out from the next guru who's going to tell us, you know, how to do this or how to do that. You know, when I was talking about this series with my son, he said this. He says, so are you going to talk about, like, whether you should use a Roth IRA or, you know, that kind of a thing as financial instruments? I said, yeah, we're going to have the New Hope Kapolei Fund, and we're going to be offering no skin. That's not really the point, right? That there are these vehicles that are out there. But if 2,300 verses in the entire Bible mention money, wealth, possessions, that maybe we ought to understand what God's saying first, right? Before we get into some of those details, maybe that.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:09:19]:
The fact that roughly five or six hundred verses in the New Testament directly address about money or material things. So before we go any further, I think we ought to start with some good news. How many of you could use some good news? Right? Hey, the Dodgers won. Oh, yeah. Like I said, good news, right? No, no, no, no. But I'm required to. I'm required to cheer because Ohtani used to be the pitcher for my wife's hometown baseball team before he came to the state. So I'm required to be a Dodgers fan today.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:09:50]:
No, but, you know, but the real good news is this. The real good news is that when we trust in God, that we want to trust in God as our source, as our supplier, as our provider, and we're not trusting in money for that, right? God uses money, right? That God uses money, but our trust is in him. And it says it like this. We're going to stand and read this together, right? Regardless where you're at today, whether you're. Whether you're on easy street right now or it's been a bumpy road, we all need to be reminded of this. Let's read what it says, ready, begin. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus, to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:10:49]:
So what is it saying? Where is your supply come from? Is it your job? My job? My supplier? Is it the government? The government's my supplier? Is it because it's my talent and good looks that's my. No, it doesn't say any of that, Right? It says, God, our maker, our savior, our source is really our provider. He's really the source for the things that we need. Now, before you're seated, do me a favor. Just turn to your neighbor and just say, God wants us to remember he's our source. And then you can have a seat. And what is he the source of? He says that one who will meet every need of yours, he's going to supply every need of yours. And I love that it says every need.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:11:41]:
So let's say every need. And glaringly. What does it not say? Yes. Doesn't say every one. Now why doesn't it say every want? Right. Because I think. Well, one is. I don't know about you, but my wants are changing all the time, right? And then they come and go.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:11:58]:
My wants come and go. You ever wanted something so bad, you researched it, you watch videos about it, you obsessed about it, you bought it. And then after you bought it, you go, like, I didn't need this. Right. And worse than that, you ever buy anything and then regret that you bought anything? Timeshare? Anybody? No. But you know, that kind of a thing, right? So I've been there, done that. Right? I think we've all been there, done that. And so God doesn't say, I'm going to supply every want, because not every want is good.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:12:29]:
But he knows every one of your needs, every one of your needs. And he says this, I'm a supplier. I'm the source. Every good and perfect gift, it says, that comes down into your life comes from the Father of Heaven. Right? And that who there is no, it says shrinking or shadow. And so we need to be reminded God is our source. And there are some things then we need to understand. Because if we're trusting in God as our source, then we're not looking and worrying about everything.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:13:06]:
Does that mean that we don't have any concerns about money? Or that we can't learn stuff about money? No, absolutely not. Right. But we start with distinguishing sometimes between our needs and our wants. Sometimes we need to distinguish that. But we're trusting God to be a provider that he's the one that knows where you need to work, he knows where you need to live, he knows that you have some concerns, right? He knows everything about you. But because of that, right, that we trust in God as provider. Why is that? Because he actually owns everything, right? Because he actually owns everything. Something may have a name on it that's owned by a certain company, right? So to be honest, I'm not sure what the stadiums and sometimes the arenas are every day because they get changed out, right, every once or you get a different sponsor in there, but those things kind of come and go.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:14:05]:
You guys notice that, right? Sometimes it's your company that you like, sometimes that thing is like, hey, somebody else bought them. And all of a sudden now it's a different name. And you know, sometimes ownership change. But this is one of the things, God says that, that when you look around the world, it doesn't matter whose name is on it. It doesn't matter what country you call it, it doesn't matter what street, neighborhood, it doesn't matter what kind of car you drive, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. This is what God's word says. The earth is the Lord's, the earth is the Lord's.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:14:40]:
And by virtue of that, what else? Everything in it. You know, at one point God is going to say, I didn't just make the world, it all belongs to me. Not just the world, everything in it. That's you, that's me, right? That's, that's where I live. That's the car I drive. That's the, that's the person I go home to, right? That's what I did. The thing that I dream about, the place that I want to go, the place that I don't want to go, he says, I all of that actually belongs to the Lord. And if so, the Lord owns everything, including you and me.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:15:21]:
What does that really actually mean? What it actually means that everything that you have, right? That ultimately it's on loan to you, right? That as a result then that we wanted to learn how to manage money in a God honoring way. And this is a thing that we call stewardship, right? Stewardship is a steward is a manager or somebody who manages something that doesn't belong to him, right? That we see this played out in the scriptures in Matthew 25, there's this passage in there where Jesus said, hey, you know, the kingdom of heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. So what is he talking about, the kingdom of heaven? It's not just what happens in heaven, but did you know this, that heaven is going to meet earth and that everything that God has made is going to be covered by this illustration. He says he called together his servants and he entrusted, let's say, entrusted whose money? His money to them while he was gone. And he gave five bags of silver to one and two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last and dividing it in proportion to their abilities. And then he left on his trip. And he says after a long time, the master returned from his trip and called them all to call them to give an account of how they had used the money. Now, everything that we have is unknown from God, right? We know when we were born we didn't own anything, right? I know some people having a baby in a little bit of time, right? And when baby comes in a month and a half or so, is that baby going to have a credit card or a debit card on them or a wallet on them? No, Right.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:17:21]:
No jewelry. You might have a little bit Filipino, but not going to have gold earrings yet, right? So the thing is that we know none of us come into the world with anything and none of us takes anything we have with us. In other words, everything that you have, everything that you've done, to be honest, it's unload from God. And after this, what's he going to do? He's going to get it to somebody else to use, right? He's going to loan it to someone else because none of us can take what we have in this life with us to the next life. So the hardest part about that is that sometimes that when we've had something for so long, we feel like we own it, right? Anybody here ever borrow a tool or a book, right? Or a video from somebody? And in the beginning you remembered, I need to return this to so and so. But then after a while, what happens? It's part of the library, right? It's just part of the tools in there, right? That we forget that that thing that sometimes that we borrowed doesn't really belong to us, right? But, but what, what happens? He never asked for it back, right? He never, he never came knocking. And sometimes maybe you could even be in that kind of a place that say, hey, well, you know what? Possessions, 9/10 of the law, right? Like, we can mistake that. And the reality is sometimes we do that with life, sometimes we do that with the things in our life.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:19:02]:
But it says this one day, you and I, we're all going to stand account before God for the things that he's given us and for our very lives, Right? It says in Romans 14:12. Let's read what it says. Ready? Let's read. So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. When you give an account of yourself, what are we going to give an account for? We're going to give an account for your time, how you used your time. Right? It says that, to be honest, when we look at the world that we live in and the times that we live in, it says, you'll see that it's a broken, evil kind of a season. You'll see that the world is frail and faulty. So he says this.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:19:45]:
The time that you have, you need to redeem the time. You need to live it in a purposeful way. You need to live it in a way that really matters. Right? Don't squander your time. He's going to talk about the relationships. I'm going to be held accountable for the relationships God has put in my life. One day God is going to ask me, why did you treat my daughter the way that you did? I hope he means is because I did so good. And there may be times that that's true, and there may be times that it's not true, right? What did I do in the raising of my children? How did I do, like, what did I do in some of the closest friendships that I've had, that how did I steward those relationships? I'm going to stand accountable.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:20:32]:
You and I, we're going to stand accountable. It says for our life. And what's another thing, that one day he's going to say, not only what did you do with my son Jesus, but what did you do with what I gave you? Right? Because I think all of us are going to answer those two questions, at least. And so if that's really the case, that if we. That life is on loan and the things in our life are on loan, and because even those things that we talked about, family, to be honest, you can't take them with you. We pray they make the right choices. Right? We pray they love the same Jesus. We pray they come and follow the same God, that we together will be in heaven together.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:21:16]:
Right? That's God's plan. Do me a favor, turn to your neighbor, says, I really want to see you in heaven. Right? Right. I want to see all you guys in heaven. I want to see you guys in heaven. Right? And so I want to invest my life in that way. Right? So that can happen. Right? Because it doesn't Just happen automatically.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:21:36]:
But hey, when it comes to finances, when it comes to money matters, God wants us to learn how to manage money, steward money his way, right? That we not to learn how to steward money, manage money God's way. Because if not, if we just let money become our security, if we just let money be our sense of enjoyment, if we just let money dictate what, how we think about our lives, whether we're climb the ladder of success or we haven't, right? I'm somebody, or I can do what I dream about. To be honest, what will happen is that money will master you and you're not mastering money. And the one thing I know about money is that money is never made to be mastered because it's a good tool, but it's a horrible master. It's a cruel master. And one of the things that I found is that if you're loving money, it becomes much easier to use people versus doing what Jesus said is to love people and use money. God wants you to learn how to use money. Turn to your neighbor, says, God wants you to learn how to use money.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:22:51]:
He said that. He says, and use money in a sense that expands the kingdom. He talks about those things. But when we learn how to master money, it's so that it doesn't master us, right? It doesn't beat us, it doesn't drive us, it doesn't bind us. Because he says this in Matthew 6:24, it says, no one, let's say no one, can serve two masters. For he will either hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. Because you cannot serve God and money. So you can have money and not serve money.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:23:36]:
Right? Now, this is not a thing that God is saying so that rich people, whoever rich people are, can kind of be kept in their place. Because to be honest, you could feel like, I'm not rich, I'm struggling. But you need to be reminded as well. Because if not, we're still serving money, right? We're still serving the dream, we're still serving that thing till I get to that place of recognition that God says this. No master money. Because there is a spirit behind money that if we're not careful, that comes kind of bewitches us, right? That kind of enchants us, that kind of runs our life. Because money is supposed to be a tool, not a master. And so why is that? Because when he becomes a master, it makes me trust him and not God, right? It turns me in different directions.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:24:33]:
It Steals my peace. It makes me worried, you know, those kinds of things. I understand that. I. I remember that before my kids went into college that just as they're getting to that place and we saved a little bit, we put money in an account for each of the kids and did all that stuff and, you know, kind of the automatic deduction and all that. And then when we looked at the price of college, oh, my gosh, I was just thinking, like, I don't know how in the world I'm going to do this thing, right? To be honest, we prayed, and to be honest, I thought about, like, man, I need to get another job, right? I need to do something that's like, commission, where it's not going to take me a lot. I went back to the things that I knew how to do and that paid well, right? And you know, the thing is, I just said, you know, God, I'm not giving up my calling. God, I'm not giving up my calling.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:25:29]:
I don't know how we're going to do it yet. But, you know, amazingly, we got two kids through college, right, without, like, second mortgage in the house, right? And one more on the way. And it helps that he went leeward for a little while, too. But. Yeah, but, you know, the thing is that we have to. And it's like, to be honest, I can't say I did it. I'm not saying this. We're not doing this series because I am the great money manager and you guys ought to all come to me for financial advice.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:26:03]:
There's a Financial Peace University thing that's going to happen. We're going to do it in December. I think it should be. Was it in the Bulletin? Yeah, it's already in the Bulletin. And so somebody who's very skilled on that side, right? That. That will kind of help us on some of those things. But the thing is that. But this is what I say.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:26:20]:
I saw the faithfulness of God. I saw the fact that God honors his word because money is not evil, right? It's just the love of money, right? The love of money is. That actually doesn't even say the love of money is evil. It says, the love of money is a root, like, let's say, root of all kinds of evil. In other words, what is a root? A root kind of sprouts evil, right? The root sprouts evil. What does it sprout? It sprouts get rich quick schemes, right? It sprouts cutting corners. It sprouts kind of maybe lying and stealing a little bit, right? It Counts, it sprouts. Maybe at times, sometimes taking advantage of others and justifying it right to get what we want.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:27:08]:
But it does these things. Why? Because when the love of money takes root, money masters us. And all of a sudden we find ourselves kind of in a worse place than we were before. But God wants us to love him and use money, because when we don't, the opposite ends up happening. So how do we do that? We have to learn how to use money as a tool. Right? When we were kids at home, we found, you know, we were just kids going through the garage and looking at stuff. And we found this kind of metal, heavy metal thing that you could tell it was meant to be gripped like this. And it was rounded and it was real heavy.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:27:53]:
And we thought, what in the world is this thing for? And because it's like a hammer of some kind. And, you know, we didn't know what to do with it, but we just kind of put it away. And then one day we read the thing called the encyclopedia. That's before Wikipedia and Internet and all that stuff. Kids. That's what that is. This thing that was a book, actually, that you pulled off the shelf. And it had pages in it and paper and all that, right? With pictures and words, right? But we looked up, somehow, we just looked up how to make.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:28:24]:
What is gunpowder, right? I just looked up what is gunpowder. Apparently it's made from 75% charcoal, 20% or 18% salt. Peter. And like 7% sulfur. And so in those days, you could go to the pharmacy, at least you could in Wahiawa, and we would buy a bottle of saltpeter, and we already had sulfur from a little chemistry set. And we just wanted to do science in the backyard, right? And you know what? I found that metal thing that I had discovered, it was perfect to crush the charcoal to make the gunpowder. And my mom's nylon, the one that she didn't want anymore, it was perfect to sift it, to make it all perfect. And we just did the calculations and the thing and we made it.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:29:18]:
And we made our own gunpowder so we could do stuff. But, you know, the thing is that that thing that I had found, you know what it was for? It's actually an auto repair thing. You know, like to take out the dental, kind of round out and smooth out the dents in your car. The problem wasn't the tool. It was the way the tool was being used. Amen. Money is not the problem or the lack of money. Sometimes we feel like the lack of money is the problem.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:29:55]:
But it's the way that it's used. Often it's the way that. That it's used. So, you know, when. When we're in that kind of a situation, we need to know how to use it, right? Because how many of us have found out that sometimes, you know, God never told us to. To make the purchase that we made, right? Sometimes we. We were just on our own. We got in over our head.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:30:19]:
Sometimes it's because we really wanted it, right? How many of us? That was really the thing, because we just really wanted it. And we never bothered to ask God. We never bothered to see if it fit in our kind of financial resources. Now, God's still a provider. God's still a provider. But sometimes we can mess up our lives and if we're not careful, we blame somebody else, right? It was the realtor who oversold me, right? It was the government who did this thing. Well, in this case, if you haven't got a paycheck, that's actually true. But you know, the thing is that we say these things and we can take.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:30:57]:
We can blame other people. And this is what it says even in Proverbs 19:3. We need to learn how to use it. So, one, we take responsibility for our lives. But it says this because people can ruin their lives by their own foolishness. And then what? Get angry at the Lord, right? And it's like, oh, man, Lord, this relationship blew up. Well, maybe sometimes because God was warning us, this is not the right person. This is not the right relationship.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:31:26]:
It's not being done the right way. And so we need to be mindful of that. God didn't tell me to order DoorDash five times this week. You know what I mean? Like that kind of a thing, right? God's still a provider, right? He can still work things out. But here's some things that. Let's get a little practical. And I'm just going to give one simple thing that I think that we can start doing that for some of you guys, to be honest. You guys do this all the time.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:31:52]:
And there's people in this room that I know that you could do a financial seminar, just a straight financial seminar, way better than I ever could. But I think one of those things we need to understand is that you need to get a clear picture of your income and your expenses, right? That wherever you're at, that if you don't know where your money is going or not, then I think that we need to get a clear picture. Because if we've ever heard that saying, right? Money talks, right? I understand that it influences things, right? Yes. It can open doors, but when it leaves, it never says a thing, right? It's quiet. But we need to be mindful because it says this in Proverbs 27, 23, 24. Riches can disappear fast. Anybody agree with that man? Have you ever got a check, deposit it, right? And then you go like, where did that money go? Right. I think we've all experienced it at some time.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:32:55]:
Riches can disappear fast and the king's crown doesn't stay in his family forever. So watch your business interests closely. Let's say watch our interests closely. Know the state of your flocks and your herds. So there's at least two things that we need to all understand, like how much I make and how much I owe, right? What do I own basically and what do I owe that it's income and expenses. Do you know how much you make every month? And it's not that easy for some of us, right? Because some of us, it's not like we get a regular salary. Some of us it's, it's paid off production. Some of us it's paid off how many hours you work.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:33:42]:
And it's not always the same. And so we need to kind of get a sense of that because if we don't that to be honest, sometimes we're running on the assumption that I make this much, but I don't even work that many hours on a regular basis. And so we need to kind of figure out sometimes how many hours I should work, right. Versus how many hours I do work. And for some of us that, you know, like today everybody's, they're saying this and this is especially they're saying, is Gen Z, is that even in the midst. I just saw the headline of the article, I didn't read it today, but I saw the headline of an article that says Gen Z, even in these stressful financial times, balances work life is striving for that work life balance. What does that actually mean? They're still not going to work even if they don't make enough money, right? There is that kind of a sense that sometimes there's some of us, to be honest, that you need to actually make more money and you can, you just don't. There's some of us that are like that.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:34:52]:
There's some of us that are not working and we want to. There's some of us who are working and not getting paid. Right? But the thing is that sometimes I come across people that they're not working or I See one person work in a family of four. We're talking adults, and one person's working, and they wonder why there's a struggle. And the reality is this, that you and I were meant to be productive. Do me a favor, turn to your neighbor and say, you were meant to be productive. That we were meant to be productive people. We're not meant to kind of just lie around the house all day, right? We're not made to be in that kind of a situation.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:35:40]:
That's actually what kind of erodes our sense of confidence, right? And it says this in Deuteronomy 18, 8, 18. He says, you shall remember the Lord your God, who. For it is he who gives you the. What Power to get wealth. The power to get wealth that you and I were made to be productive. Now, sometimes when people aren't working, it's because they're looking for the right job, right? And how many of us that when you're looking for the right job or you have people or friends that you know looking for the right job, how many of them are looking for work from home? Kind of a situations right now, I understand if you got a baby at home, I understand there's certain situations, but sometimes all it is is because I just don't want to go to work where they're calling me, right? And so sometimes we're looking for the thing that's my passion. Sometimes we're looking for that thing that I don't take that job because I don't know what I want to do for the rest of my life. But if you're in a position where you have multiple people and somebody's not working, and it's not because there's not work to be done.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:36:49]:
It's just because we're looking so hard and there's such a tight filter. The reality is this, what I found. There's no perfect job. Anybody found that, right? There's no perfect job that will meet your wildest financial desires and give you the best work that makes you filled with joy and. And that you always work with all the people that you like. I haven't found that job except in the church. No. Just kidding.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:37:18]:
But you know, it's the most rewarding job. But I do know that I could make a lot more doing something else sometimes. Right now, it doesn't dissuade me. I just. That that's just kind of the reality of that. So something cannot give you everything. But sometimes this is what you got to do. Just start somewhere.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:37:43]:
Start somewhere. And like when people look For I think the worst thing in the world for a young person today is to say, I'm not going to get a job till I figure out what I want to do for the rest of my life. Get a job somewhere, right? Get some income coming in. And then what if you don't like it, just look for another job then. But it's so often that that job will also train you for the next thing, that God has you for you. And when we talk to young people all the time, and you guys have heard me say this before, that when you get a first job, when you get a first job, it's supposed to teach you two things. One is what, how to work hard, right? How to show up, right? How to give the guy his your worth, right? Give him a good return for your labor. But the second thing is this.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:38:42]:
Your first job should tell you, that's not what I want to do for the rest of my life. It's supposed to tell you that, right? But that's why they have starter jobs, right? To be honest, fast food wasn't meant to be a career unless you own the fast food restaurant. And so sometimes we're in that kind of a situation. Any job is better than no job. And just getting that job will alter some of the dynamics in your life. Once we start getting out, being at home, I've seen, I've experienced being at home with nothing to do is devastating for everybody's sense of confidence, right? Being out of work for a year, being out of work for a year, they say technically makes many people unemployable, right? We just don't have the same, we don't have the same sharpness, we don't have the same sense about us. And so there's been people that, they've lost jobs. And one of the things that we said was just, you know what, hey, just come into the office, come into the ministry center, come in, come volunteer, come do something.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:39:58]:
Why? Is it because I'm just looking for free labor sometimes? No, I was kidding. But, but you know why? It's to give them a sense of confidence again. There's been people that have come in, they've been, you know, had some difficult things and even law things in their job. And, you know, they stayed home for a while, right? Because they were just kind of licking their wounds. And what do I say? You got to get out of your house, come in, get into the office, just say, what do you do? The answer phones or do whatever, just do all those things. And it's like being in that place, feeling productive allowed them to then move to the next job, right? And so we all kind of understand this. It's not just an economic principle, by the way. It's also a spiritual principle, right? It's a spiritual principle because in Colossians 3, 23 and 24 says this.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:40:53]:
Whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord and not for men, right? Knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward, you are serving the Lord Jesus Christ. So you know when you go to work that if you don't work in a job that you love, you don't work in a place that you like. Everybody that's there because maybe they. They don't treat you with respect or they rub you the wrong way or they say the wrong thing or. You know, the thing is, everybody has to go through that at times, right? Everybody has to do something that they're like. And if you don't like your boss, then work for somebody else. Work for Jesus, and you don't have to quit your job. But in your job, you don't do your best because you necessarily say, because you have to respect the manager.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:41:40]:
You know what? Because I respect the Lord, right? And that's why I do my best, right? That's where I can work for Jesus. When there's somebody that I don't like working for, I've said, lord, I'm gonna serve you the best that I can. I'm gonna serve this person the best that I can because I'm actually serving you. And so we need to be in that. It's not just an economic principle. It's really a spiritual principle. Can we be in environments? And that's how God shapes our character, right? That's how God shapes us sometimes for the next promotion. See, it's not just a spiritual principle.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:42:17]:
It's also an economic principle, Right? So it's both, Right? So is that good news? Right? That good? A reminder. And I think that when we come to it, that one of those things is that I just even kind of mentioned it in our just between songs this evening, was that God is attracted. And God goes to those places where he's invited. But when God is told at different things. No, thanks, I got it. You know, sometimes when what he does is he leaves us to our own devices. He says, come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, right? And so if you're in, if that person who's weary invites him in, you know what God does? He comes. But if he's rejected, what does he do.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:43:07]:
He doesn't force his way in, right? And so what we need to do, I think, is understand that sometimes we just gotta invite him all into. All, right? Dedicate it all to God. Right? Dedicate it all to God. Because this is what it says in First Corinthians 4, verses 1 and 2. Can we read what it says together? It says, this is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful, right? So when we're trusting God to be faithful, when we're trusting God to be our provider, when we're trusting God to be our Lord, that we invite him to be our Savior, often first. But the reality is that we're just saying at the same time that God. That you're God, right? That would you be my leader? That would you be my shepherd, right? That would you be my deliverer? Would you be my healer? Would you be my.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:44:19]:
Would you be my guide? Would you be the one who comforts me in the. In the pains in my life? Would you be the one who's my promoter, right? Because it says, promotion comes from the Lord doesn't come from east or west, but promotion comes from God. And it's because God is going to ask each of us those two questions, right? What did you do with my son Jesus? And the second is, what did you do with what I gave you? What did he give you? He gave you time. He gave you talents. He gave you relationships. Everybody has time, talents and relationships. You might not even know what your talents are, but you have some. Everybody has some kind of finances.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:45:04]:
Everybody has some kind of influence, right? Everybody has some kind of authority. Invite him in, dedicate it to him. Because when we do, Jesus comes and inhabits those things to where he's invited. Have you ever invited him to lead you in your finances? Have you ever invited him to lead you in your relationships? Have you ever invited him to lead you in how you use your time, not telling God how much time you have by giving your time to Him. So sometimes he rearranges how you use your time. Have you invited God into your influence and your authority, right? So that maybe that the position that you have in the family, that position that you have in your friendships, that position that you have in the workplace, that it wasn't just there for you, it's because God wanted to use that in some kind of way. That's why we do lighthouse. God gave us some kind of a place in the community.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:46:16]:
But are we using that influence to reach our community. Right? And so I think that that's what is God's calling all of us to do. And if you haven't, this is just a time to. And there'll be some time to do some homework. But first, sometimes we start with the heart work. Letting God into that parts of our heart where we, we have time, where we manage our influence, where we manage our relationships, where we manage our talents, when we manage our finances, because he's managing our life. And so this evening we're going to just bow our heads and we're going to take communion in a little bit after this. We're going to just ask you if you haven't, would you just invite him? Would you invite him? And would you see in your life all the various parts of your life, the people, the things that you dream about, the things that you're.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:47:36]:
You want to do, the things that you don't want to do. Would you see the skills that you have? And even if you don't feel like I can see the skill, would you just thank him? Lord, I know you've given me abilities. Would you help me to discover those abilities? Because sometimes, to be honest, we're blind. We don't see it. But God can show you. And when you see those things, are you willing to let Jesus be Lord, not of some, but would you let him be as he's called, Lord of all? Father, sometimes when it comes to money matters there are principles and there are things that we can learn. There's ratios or things like that that we can talk about. But Lord, before we really get lost in details and Lord, things that can involve homework, Father, we're inviting you to do heart work in us because I recognize all that I have is on loan from you and that Lord, you called me not to just not to be an owner, but to be a good steward or a good manager of the things that you've entrusted to me.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:49:19]:
Because one day, Lord, I'm going to stand account to you as my savior, to you as my Lord. But you're going to ask me what I did with everything else. And Lord, I want to hear, I want to hear you say, well done, my good and my faithful servant. And if that's you, you're just dedicating your dedicating all that's not just your life, but all those things that affect your life, all those things that, that come and go in your life. Would you just say, lord, I'm dedicating it all to you today. Would you lead Me, Would you guide me? Because, Father, we thank you. That it's to those that do that that you say that my God. My God shall supply all your needs, not according to your resources, but according to his.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:50:33]:
Thank you, Lord. That you will meet all of my needs according to your riches in Christ Jesus. And Father, I want to do better, Lord, at having you be my provider. Of you being my source, Lord. Not money, not my connections, Lord, not just simply my talents. But Father, would you use all those things? Because I'm looking to you as my source. And if you've never said yes to Jesus, maybe today that if you don't know he's the source of eternal life, he's the source of peace, he's the source of strength, he's the source of power. He's the source of grace and mercy in your life.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:51:26]:
If you've never experienced that. He wants to be your peace, he wants to be your savior. Simply saying to him, lord, this life that I have, I give it to you. This heart that I have, I give it to you. Would you forgive me? Because I realize I've sinned. Would you come in to me? Because I turn away from what I know is wrong. I want to know you, I want to follow you, Lord, Would you lead me? Would you guide me? Would you forgive me and show me your ways that I walk closely with you? If you say that in Jesus name, would you know that he hears you? Hey, we're going to prepare our hearts and we're going to take communion here. And there's elements that are in the front.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:52:26]:
And you know, Jesus came. He didn't come to to pay for 10% of your sin or 20% of your life. He came to redeem the whole you. With relationships, with influence, with time, with financial treasures. Your soul came to redeem the whole you. And we're going to celebrate that. And so the elements are in the front at your own pace. Come up, take the elements, and then we'll take the elements together.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:56:13]:
In Galatians 2:20, I think it's a familiar verse to some of us. The apostle Paul says that I have been crucified with Christ. And it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh. I live by faith in the Son of God, who lives, loved me and gave himself for me. When he saw us mastered by the various things of life, by our fears, by our weakness, sometimes from where we came from, sometimes it's habits, sometimes addictions, Jesus said this. I know you, and I love you, and I came for you. And when we couldn't help ourselves, when we couldn't save ourselves, he went to the cross.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:57:25]:
He was a provider of grace, of salvation. He's still the provider. There's still a grace, there's still a redemption. He says, would you meet him in that place of redemption today? To know wherever you're at. He's saying this. The most important things. The most important things. Your soul, your future, your salvation, your character, all those things.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:58:03]:
He says this. I've come, I've redeemed it. I paid the price for it. You're my child. And when the enemy wants to say it's because you've made a mistake, because you've done this or you didn't do that, the enemy comes in. But what we say. What we say, the devil comes to remind you of all the things that you've done. And the Spirit comes to remind you of who you are.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:58:39]:
You're still my daughter, you're still my son. You're still in me, in Christ. You still have a future and a hope. Thank you, Jesus. We find it all, Lord, at the cross. Thank you that you came in our place and that you'll never leave us. You'll never forsake us, Lord. Thank you.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:59:04]:
That uncertainty doesn't separate us from you, Father. Thank you. That need doesn't separate us from, Father. Thank you. That the places we have invited you in, Lord, we invite you in the all. Father, we confess our sin. But we thank you that, Jesus. You're greater still, Lord.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [00:59:25]:
We confess the body and the bread, the body and the blood is enough. Would you take the bread as a reminder? And Father, we're thankful for the blood that washes us, that clothes us, Lord, that when you see us, you don't see us from our sin. You don't see us as mistakes. We see us that Jesus is blood, Lord. You see his righteousness in us. You see who you redeemed. You see your son. You see your daughter thankful for the cup.

Pastor Glenn Yamaguchi [01:00:04]:
Would you take the cup? Thank you, Lord, that you're enough. Would you lead? Would you bless? Would you empower your people today in Jesus mighty name? God's people, say amen.