TEACHING NOTES

How many of you are really, really, really rich?

What would you do for $5 million?
• 55% of people say they could quit the internet for 15 years!
• 50% say they would take the money and let one random person die
• 42% would have all their teeth removed!
• 25% of people said they would eat a cockroach every day for the rest of their lives
• 24% of people said they would live in solitude for the next 20 years
• 7% of people said they would give up showering and bathing for the rest of their lives.

Being rich is a line that continually moves

The GOOD news is…you ARE rich…the BAD new is…you ARE rich…

Of the 7.9 billion people in the world, 46% live on less than $5.50/day…that is approximately
3.6 billion people

Culture shouts at us. What you don’t have is what you need.

What really matters doesn’t consist in the abundance of money and stuff

What we don’t need is more of what’s temporary. What we do need is more of what is eternal.

Do not feel guilty, but do feel responsible

God has blessed me with more than I need…I am rich!
I will not place my trust in riches, but in Him who richly provides.
Because I have more, I will give more, and I will do more,
All for the Glory of God.

TALK IT OVER

INTRODUCTION
All of us are constantly chasing something. Whether we are in the precarious pursuit of perfectionism, chasing money and possessions, the approval of other people, or a life of comfort, we all are chasing a carrot. Maybe it is time we stop chasing things out of our reach and settle into what God has for each of us.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What’s the craziest thing you would you do for a million dollars?
2. If you became extravagantly wealthy overnight, what’s the first thing you would do?
3. Why does wealth seem like a moving target? Why do we always want just a little bit more?
4. Read Luke 12:16-21. What reasons would God have for caring what we do with our money?
5. How can we focus less on what we don’t have and more on what God has given us?
6. How can you share the blessings God has given you with others in need this week?

MOVING FORWARD
Think of a way to use the things God has given you to help someone this week or build a stronger relationship with God and others. Then make it happen!

CHANGING YOUR MIND

Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” —Luke 12:15 (NLT)