Happiness Habit: Your Faith Grows With Your Generosity

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES The Habits of Happiness

Happiness Habit: Your Faith Grows With Your Generosity By Rick Warren — Feb 26, 2016 “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” (Philippians 4:6 NLT) Every time you show generosity, you strengthen your faith. Why is that? Because when you take something and, instead of using it on yourself, you use it to help others, then you’re going to have to depend on God to help you. When you choose to help a friend who’s having a tough time paying his bills, you’re going to have to learn to trust God to provide for you. If you only have a certain amount of time to get stuff done, but you stop and instead use the time to help your neighbor, you have to trust God to expand the time and make it work so you can get your stuff done, too. Your faith is strengthened when you depend on God in those situations and trust him. You choose to pray, instead of worry and expect God to take care of your needs. Philippians 4:6 says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done” (NLT). Over 33 years at Saddleback, we’ve had six different times where we asked people to give above their normal offerings. In every one of those times, God stretched my own faith. In fact, during one campaigns, God led Kay and me to give away our salary over a three-year period. Do you think that was a test of faith? How in the world were we going to live if we gave my entire salary to this offering (this was before I’d written any books)? It meant that for those three years, we had to trust God to somehow provide income. That was a test of my faith. And each time God has tested me, my faith has only become stronger and stronger as God provided faithfully. God will do the same for you when you give generously. PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over Talk about a time in your life when you had to trust God to provide for you as a result of your generosity. What do you need God to provide for you today? Have you shown him that you’re willing to be generous with your time and money? How might God be providing for you in your current situation in ways or means that are unexpected? Our Gift: The Habits of Happiness Study Kit Now—more than ever—people are yearning for true happiness. In this brand new 6-session DVD study kit study called The Habits Of Happiness Pastor Rick Warren will teach you “exercises for a happy heart”, and offer biblically based ways to develop a perspective of contentment. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes all complete sermons from the Rick Warren The Habits of Happiness teaching series. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: Grow Healthy Relationships Message 2: ​​​​​How ​to Be Happy No Matter What Message 3: ​The Humble Path to Happiness Message 4: ​How to Keep Your Heart Happy Message 5: ​Happiness Can Be Learned Message 6: ​Five Daily Habits for Happiness Message 7: ​How to Keep From Stressing Out Message 8: ​God's Promises to the Generous PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at rickwarren.org. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2016 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe