Think River, Not Pie

Psalms 46:4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy dwelling places of the Most High.

 

Isaiah 43:19-20 Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert. The beasts of the field will glorify me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I have given waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people. 

 

1. River thinking is an outlook on all of life

  • Proverbs 22:9 “He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.”
  • A heart full of the life of God is a prosperous, generous, river-thinking heart
  • Acts 20:35 “In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
  • It is more blessed to be a giver than a taker but we need both giving and receiving
  • Be a channel that moves things rather than a pool that collects things 

 

2. River thinking increases your world

  • Proverbs 11:24-25 “There is one who scatters, yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, but it results only in want. The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered.
  • Scattering (releasing) brings an increase while withholding brings want or decrease
  • Giving doesn’t decrease you, it’s an investment in your future
  • Sowing and reaping is one of the great governing laws of life
  • Giving out first starts a harvest

 

3. River thinking creates a new standard of living

  • Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
  • Don’t wait until you get to start giving; start giving what you want to be getting
  • The world says take from what you want; the Kingdom of God says give what you want
  • You set the standard of your life, not by what you get but by what you give
  • By YOUR standard of measure it will be measured in return to you
  • You can count the seeds in an orange but you can never count the oranges in a seed
  • Seeds always produce an incredible, out-of-proportion to the seed harvest
  • Whatever I want my future to look like, here are the seeds to my future
  • The seeds we sow in private, bear their fruit in public
  • Galatians 6:7 “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, he will also reap.”

 

Discussion Questions

  1. Why is “river-thinking” such an influential outlook on all areas of our lives?
  2. How does this message challenge you to sow seeds with the faith to believe they will produce a harvest?
  3. How can you improve your thinking and actions to reflect the attitude of generosity?