I like what famed author and motivational speaker, Jim Rohn said, he said, “Giving is better than receiving because giving kicks off the receiving process”.  

Luke 6:38 says, “Give and it shall be given.”  

We're continuing in our series Living a Generous Life, and the title of my message today is Transaction of Trust.  I want to share with you four of the greatest gifts I believe God has planted inside each of us, but in reality we each also have to be able to receive it. All of the gifts are very important, but each one of these gifts takes a transaction of trust.  

I. The gift of Salvation.

The first greatest gift that God gives to us that came from Jesus, it starts with the letter S, and it's the gift of Salvation. Salvation is a free gift.  You can't do anything to earn it.  But though it may be a free gift, it doesn't come without a cost.  

There's an exchange from heaven to earth that must take place in order for us to receive it.  Jesus doesn't leave the gift of salvation at our feet and say take it or leave it if you want.  No.  What does he say?  He says “if you believe in your heart and you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, you shall be saved”. Did you catch the transaction?  It may be free, but there's an exchange that has to happen.  It's a transaction of trust. You have to first believe in Him. You have to first take Him at His word.

Without faith, is it impossible to please God.  Without trust, it is impossible to please God.  We know this is true in our relationship with our friends and our spouses.  The foundation of all relationships is trust.  Without it, there is no relationship.  At some point I think as adults we have to make the decision.  We're either going to take Him at His word or not.  There's really no in between.

II. The gift of Talent

The second of the greatest gifts God gives to us is the gift of talent.  In scripture it says in Proverbs 11:25.

“The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters another will himself be watered.” (Prov. 11:25)
 

Let me word it another way he who encourages another will be encouraged. He who mentors another, God will send someone in their path to mentor them.  When you lift another up and come along side of someone when they're struggling, God will in your day of adversity, send someone to walk alongside of you. 

Here's what the word that comes from God says.  Ephesians says this. 

“The good that you do for another God will do for you”. (Ephesians 6:8)

God has sent many mentors into my life and stood by me and encouraged me in my walk so mentoring others have been a very vital part of my life, so I hope that God will send Godly mentors also in my boys lives.

Everything that you're going through, things you don't even know you're about to go through, someone has gone through it before you, and God has an answer through them. Or God has a message for someone else through your struggles and successes.

1. A Mentor brings Perspective

God gives me insight to what I’m going through from the perspective of a mentor. For example life groups. Meeting with Godly people who have Godly wisdom and who may have gone through the same things I am going through.

2. Mentors give us Vision.

What is a vision?  A vision is hope.  Without vision, the people perish. A vision is a movie that's playing in your heart. It's a picture in your heart when God wants to do something great in your life, when he wants to bring you into another level of your destiny.

3. Mentors give us Wisdom.  

Mentors help us avoid disaster.  If my eyes were blind right now and I kept walking, I would fall off this stage, but a mentor who's traveled this road before would be able to tell me where the drop off is.  My favorite Chinese proverb says this.  If you want to know the way, ask somebody on the way back

4. Mentors Believe in us. 

How do you know who you belong with?  Who makes you feel strong when you're together?  Who makes you feel courageous?  Those who strengthen you, those who speak to the greatness inside of you, those are the people who you belong with. 

Those are our mentors.  

When we speak to the greatness inside of someone, when you speak to their gifts, when you speak to their strengths, that's what comes out.  The people who speak to your strengths, those are the people that you're assigned to.  Spend more time with them.  Spend less time with those who talk about your weaknesses.

III. The third greatest gift is Treasure

One of the other great gifts that God gives to us is the gift of treasure. Deuteronomy 8:18 says, “But remember the Lord your God for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth and so confirms his covenant”.  (Deuteronomy 8:18)
 

God said to give and it shall be given.  The good that you do for another, God will do for you.  Am I taking God at His word? God is an investment.  Vegas is a donation.  

There's two questions that I've asked the Lord.  The first question is:  Lord, where should I invest?  And the Lord brought me to the story of the sowing of the seed in the Bible.

Some of the ground that the sower sows only produces a 30 fold, other ground 60 fold, other ground100 fold, which makes me wonder, Lord, why does some ground produce more than others?  Why do some employees that I invest in listen more than others?  Why do some return more than others?  Why do some investment produce more than others?  The ground is different.  The sower and the seed are the same, but the ground is different. 

So this is answer to the first question that I asked the Lord: People. 

Now, I waited eight months for this answer, and when He said. “People”, I thought, “really, that's it?”  I mean, I was kind of hoping for a stock tip or something.  But it made sense to me then because that's the same place that God invests.  Pastor Wayne says it this way, the only thing we get to take to heaven are our relationships. 

My second question was: What ground should I invest in? 

A field that God is working in, moving in, and multiplying.

How many of you know that the ground here in New Hope Oahu is good ground?  Thousands of pastors have come out of Pastor Wayne and New Hope's ministry over the last three decades, hundreds of churches around the world.  It's not just good ground.  It's Holy Ground.  

The final gift I want to share with you is:

IV. The gift of Time.  

James 2:18 says, “Show me the faith without the works and I’ll show you my faith by my works.”

It’s easy to believe in something until it begins to cost us something. It’s easy to believe in “it’s in the giving that it will be given.” Until someone asks for a donation. This is what I found to be true in my life. The thing that I have the shortest supply of is the thing I hold onto the tightest. Jesus talks about being aware of covetousness. Well, the thing that I have a very short supply of is time. So I tend to covet my time, but God is working with me on this. The gift of time is precious and I think David remembered this when he said, “Lord, teach me to number my days that we may gain wisdom.” (Psalm 90)

I think David had come to a point in his life where he started to realize that there may be more time behind him than there are ahead of him. The clock is ticking.  “Help me number my days”.  Help me to live for the right purposes and pursue the right passions, to invest in the right people.

What have you left undone in your life this year?  The clock will strike midnight in a couple weeks, it will be the end of 2014.  Is there forgiveness that you've been denying?  Is there a phone call you've been meaning to make that you haven't made?  Is there somebody that you're supposed to be a friend to?  Is there a donation into a person or a place that God's been speaking to you about?  I think we get the idea that with God, time is endless. But what hasn’t been done in 2014 will have to be done in 2015.

We hear the scripture that God is long suffering, we should all come to repentance.  He is long suffering, yes but there is a time in all eternity when He has a limits too. For there is a time and a season when doors are open and seasons when they are closed.

Tim McGraw wrote a song that talked about time as well, it's titled “Live Like You are Dying”.  I want to read you the lyrics.  It might sound familiar.

 “He said ‘I was in my early 40’s with a lot of life before me

When a moment came that stopped me on a dime. 

I spent most of the next day looking at the x-rays

Talking about the options and talking about sweet time. 

And I asked him when it sank in

That this might really be the real end,

How does it hit ya when you get that kind of news? 

Man, what do you do?  

And he said, I went skydiving, I went rocky mountain climbing,

I went2.7 seconds on a bull named Fu Man Chu, 

And I loved deeper and I spoke sweeter

And I gave forgiveness I'd been denyin'. 

And he said, Someday I hope you get your chance to live like you were dyin'.’”  

One day my doctor said, “Scott, you have cancer in your left shoulder.”  I was almost in denial.  And then I said, What do people usually say to you when you tell them that?  He said, Well, they usually have great fear.  I said, I don't have great fear.  I have great faith that God will take care of me.  

I wish this story stopped there.  I wish I could tell you for the next month I stood strong and firm and I only walked in faith, that I never experienced fear, but, it just simply wasn't true.  Later that month the market moved against me, and I also lost my wealth.  So in one month I lost my health and my wealth.   I felt like I was losing the battle of my faith.  I had gone from faith to fear.  

Driving home that night I found myself at about 10:00 o'clock at night sitting in the dark at Manoa School just talking to God asking Him questions. I said, Lord, what do you want from me?  He answered, “I want you to trust Me.”  

When God had audited my life and my account, He saw a deficiency of trust.  And I didn't understand it at the time, but what I realized over the next few days is that what the Lord was saying to me is, Scott, you're very talented and resourceful.  Your gifting has gotten you this far, but to go further, only I can take you there.  

 When God tests our trust level in Him, our reaction to what he touches, our talent, time, or treasure reveals a few things. 

1. It reveals blind spots in our walk.

Is God speaking to you about a blind spot in your walk right now?  You don't have endless time, by the way.  If He's speaking to you, deal with it today.  Make the decision today.  Take Him at his word today.  Don't wait until tomorrow.  Nobody here is promised tomorrow.  

2. It reveals motives in our heart. 

The reasons that we actually do things, is it for selfish motives or for Godly

motives?  

And then finally

3. It reveals our priorities

In our check book register of talent, treasure, and time. Do you trust Him? That’s what God asked of me. I don't know why you came today.  I don't know what you hoped to receive.  But most importantly is what has He said to you today?  It's not what I said that you need to leave here with.  It's what He said to you while you were listening.  What has He deposited in you today?  That's the seed of faith that will grow. Trust Him.

The writer of Hebrew says this: “ Do not refuse Him that speaketh”

Peter gives us an amazing scripture in the 13th chapter of Acts where he says this,

“The son of Jesse, David, is a man after my own heart because he does whatever I ask him” (Acts 13:22)

1. What is God asking you to do right now?

2.  What is God asking you to trust Him on today? 

3. What trade does God want to make in your life? 

4. Who has God called you to mentor?  

5. Who is mentoring you right now?