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Part 3 of 19COURAGE TO COMMIT VOL. 2
Courage to Commit Volume 2
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Connected by scripture or shared themes.
Part 3 of 19COURAGE TO COMMIT VOL. 2
Courage to Commit Volume 2
Continue exploring
Connected by scripture or shared themes.
Proverbs 11:24-25 tells us, "A generous person will prosper, and whoever refreshes others will be refreshed." I particularly love verse 25, which emphasizes that the generous person will prosper, and whoever refreshes others will themselves be refreshed.
I constantly pray blessings over our praise team and choir because I don't think they realize how many times they've come into this room and you've left refreshed. They don't understand that giving isn't just about putting something in an offering plate—they're giving their talents. That alone is cause for celebration. Every week, I can honestly say I love this team so much that they sing and worship at such a high level that when I go home and listen to regular music, it doesn't sound the same anymore.
I want to read this from Proverbs 11:22 using the Message translation. Look at it on the screen: "A gold ring in a pig's snout—that's a beautiful face on an empty head." Many of us are living according to this translation. We've fixed our faces, but we haven't fixed our mentality. We look good on the outside, but our minds are empty.
Let me stay here for a moment. Write this down: An empty head always leads to an empty hand. An empty head always leads to an empty hand.
Pastor friends from across the country were teasing me about this. They said, "Brother, are you really asking people to bring tissues?" They said I'd reached another level—I've received big awards, big buildings, big churches—and yet I'm asking people for tissues. It doesn't fit. I told them, "I want to show you a principle." They asked, "What principle?" I said, "If my church can't give tissue, they'll never give money."
You see, giving isn't about what you give. It's about the attitude behind how you give. I want us to understand something: when we talk about generosity, we don't just talk about it because the only time the church discusses money or giving is when the church needs something. I want to take you to a place where you wouldn't want to miss rehearsal because that's your opportunity to give.
A team came here yesterday, and they inspired me in many ways. The whole trip was for one of their sisters, and they said, "Come to Birmingham, we've got your back." They let her decide what she wanted to eat, what she wanted to do—the whole weekend was about her, her healing, and her opportunity. This was their first time seeing her. They met during the pandemic through watching an online service. Then they formed their own small group in their hometown to pray on weekends. But here's what I want you to understand: you're worried about filling your bank balance. I want a full life. Do you understand what I'm saying?
Proverbs 11:23 says, "Good people's desires lead straight to the good; wicked ambitions end in angry frustration." I want you to look at scripture. The desires of good people lead straight to good. I'm saying this, and I know it's not something to shout about, but I just want you to declare this over your life all week: "Nothing but the best."
I know it sounds funny, but it's an inside joke between me and Mr. Gotti, one of our head security officers. We literally tell each other, "Nothing but the best." I'm not saying this because you're arrogant or haughty. I'm declaring "nothing but the best" according to Proverbs 11:23 because my desires are right. Good people's desires lead forward. This alone is enough to shake up the church atmosphere, and by the 10:30 prayer meeting, everyone will be shouting.
As you grow older, you celebrate different things. Some of you are shouting for the best of something. Some of us are just shouting for one word: "straight." This is for the three of you whose lives have taken many detours and many turns. I want to prophesy and speak in 2023. Lord, give me a straight path. Give me promotion straight up. Lead me directly to healing. Lead me straight to holy marriage. Lead me straight to finances. There are three of you for whom I want to speak in faith. My wandering season is about to end.
Look at Proverbs 11:24: "Generous people's lives get larger and larger." Notice the text doesn't just say "generous." It's not just about giving in the way Luke describes—give and it will come back to you. Proverbs says the generous person's world grows bigger and bigger day by day, but the stingy person's world grows smaller and smaller.
Write this down in your notes: You live in two worlds. Just as when you're in trouble, you think everyone is talking about you, but then you meet someone who doesn't even know what you're going through—you quickly realize there's a difference between worlds. Let me put it this way: so everyone can hear, there's your world and this world. Some of you are afraid to become what God called you to be because of your small world. There are 40 people who will criticize you, but there are 40,000 who will say, "Wow, you're doing great!"
It's like you're trapped in a small room, but when you leave that room and bless people, one wall breaks down. Then another wall breaks down. All my contractors here will understand this: half the box or limit you live in are dummy walls—fake walls. Dummy walls are walls that don't bear weight. They're not load-bearing. Literally, they're hollow. I can knock through that wall and go straight into the next room.
What the enemy does is create walls in your life—walls of insecurity, walls of depression, walls of worry. And sometimes he doesn't realize that I can get out of some problems through prayer, but other problems I have to get out of through giving. Did you catch that?
Verse 25 says, "Whoever blesses others receives plenty of blessing." Those who help others—what do they get? Help. This is critical. Write this down and pray it blesses your life: God can be everything in your life, but He won't be your next step.
We're in a series called "Courage to Commit Volume 2"—"I Got the Keys." We're pursuing a life based on principles, not pressure. Today I want to give you a key that will unlock the stingy mentality according to Proverbs 11:24-25.
Write this down: Stinginess is a deep attachment to yourself. I'm removing this stinginess from everything attached to me.
Yesterday my little son Miles had some Gummy candy, and Mackenley asked, "Can I have one?" He used that word you adults use. He said, "It's mine." You've all probably seen your kids do this—"No, these are mine. Dad, tell him not to touch them. These are mine."
So what I've been doing all week is teaching them: share. You'd be amazed at how my kids make faces when asked to share. But you know what I discovered? Zander doesn't mind sharing with others. Michael doesn't mind sharing with others. Mason doesn't worry about sharing with the little ones. Mackenley doesn't worry about sharing with the little ones. The problem always comes with sharing with the big kids.
Here's what I've noticed: most of us don't hesitate to give to those below us because it keeps us in a position of authority. But when we give upward, it puts us in a position of submission. Many of you find giving difficult because you have this idea that God doesn't need anything. But let me help you understand: you don't give to God because He needs it. You give to God because you need it.
I love football. I love college football. When I was a high school football player and got a scholarship offer and committed, I'll never forget the day my brother committed to Auburn. It was the best day for our whole family. He was on the phone in my mom's room. We were listening from the other room, then they got on a call with Coach Price, and he said, "Hey big brother, big fellow. What's up with you? Nothing much. You ready? I'm getting Jalen Chubb on the phone." Then Gene Chizik got on. "Hey, Darius McClure, you alright?" "Yes sir." "We want to give you a full scholarship. We want you to be part of the Auburn Tigers." And then he said, "Yes sir. Yes sir. Yes sir." It felt really good.
But here's what I saw: on Signing Day, he came out and took his shirt off and put on a Florida State jersey. My phone was going crazy the day before. People were texting me. I was telling people, "Don't let him do this. We'll take good care of him." But here's what I learned quick: commitment matters until you sign. And I discovered that many of you have made oral commitments. "God, I love You as long as You're not testing me. God, I'll be faithful as long as You're not testing me."
This is why the devil doesn't hurt many of us—because you're only giving oral commitments. The devil is thinking from hell, "Trust me, they signed last year; they're going to sign again this year." I'm trying to create a generation of believers who will shout victory no matter what the devil does. I have the courage to stay committed because my commitment isn't just oral. I'm following through to the end.
Be careful when you're surrounded by stingy people, in a stingy relationship, stuck in stinginess—and worse, religious yet stingy. You see, I'm trying to change your mentality. Some of your relationships didn't work, not because of how you or they were, but fundamentally, one of you was stingy. You wanted something they refused to give you. They were stingy with affection, stingy with time, stingy with love.
Married couples are stingy too. Why are you stingy? Give and it will come back to you. Measured out. Pressed down. Shaken together. Overflowing. Look at your friends. You haven't celebrated in six years. Yes, keep looking. But what's worse is you're righteous yet stingy. You ask heaven for everything but give nothing. You pray for everything but plant nothing.
Someone say mindset. Mindset is our thinking about the world, ourselves, and God. Our mindset influences how we think, feel, and act in any situation.
Last week we unveiled the principle of generosity—a willing heart that builds a life of open-handed giving. This week I need to move quickly. For those who weren't here: what was the principle of generosity? It's a heart willing to give and that builds a life of open-handed giving.
Listen to me carefully. I want to unveil the mindset principle for you to write down. The Principle of Mindset states: what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God. Let me say it again. The Principle of Mindset states: what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God.
If I think I'm inconsistent, I start thinking God is inconsistent. If I'm stingy, I don't pray properly because I think God is stingy. If I don't keep my word, I project that onto God and think He won't keep His word either.
This is why I'm working on the mentality of my church people. If I can't change how you see yourself, you'll never change how you see God.
What if your greatest limitation is that you see God correctly, but you see yourself wrongly? In other words, just because we see the same thing doesn't mean we see it the same way.
Let me ask you a question. What is this? (pointing to an object) It's a podium. Is it really a podium? What is it really? It's not a table. I'm working on this very thing with my staff now. They're seeing the same thing, but they're not interpreting it the same way.
Okay, let me ask you again. What is this? You missed a descriptor. It's a high table. Because if I tell you to go get a table from the room, I don't know what you'll bring. But if I say get me a black high round table, now my request is specific. Do you understand?
So my young friends, wherever you want to go to school, and my older friends, whatever job you want to have, the principle is the same. Lord, I'm speaking in faith. You will offer. I'm speaking in faith that Alabama will offer. I'm speaking in faith that Georgia will do it. I'm speaking in faith the next job will have this salary, this much time off, and these benefits.
Here's what I discovered: we can see the same thing, but we don't see it the same way. Someone might see this as a nice table for their living room. When I see it, the first thing I say is, "I'm going to preach from here." It doesn't scare me; it looks beautiful. I'm going to change the rules of the game. Everyone else has big podiums. I'm just going to get myself a little table.
We see the same thing, but we don't see it the same way. This happens in every area of your life, so stop trying to force people to see things through your perspective. When I start to dream, I shrink the room. When I get a glimpse of something, I shrink the room. Like, no, I don't need this many people. Why don't I need them? Let me ask you a question: What are these? Eyes. What do we use eyes for? Sight. So whenever—notice this—when someone looks at something, you describe the perspective you see. This is why we call what we watch at home "television"—far vision. The box you watch, if you see something toxic, it gives you a toxic perspective, and because your eye receives it, you become it.
Let me move forward. Just because we hear the same thing doesn't mean we hear it the same way.
Do you know what I'm trying to do? I'm trying to help us with a Principle of Mindset. The principle says what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God. What am I trying to help you understand?
Write this down: The key to changing your life is to change your mind first.
It's that simple. The key to changing your life is changing your thinking. We can never change our lives by just changing our behavior. We change our lives when we change our minds. You're trying to fix your actions. You need to fix your own mind. Because if you only do what you think others want from you, you'll eventually stop—because it hasn't become your mentality.
If I had time, I would go deeper into that part. I'm telling you, we can never change our lives by just changing our behavior. This isn't about having a good versus bad mindset. I want to be very clear. I'm not saying you have a good or bad mindset. What I'm saying is this is about a limited versus unlimited mindset.
You don't have a bad mindset. You have a limited mindset.
Poverty isn't the lack of money; it's a state of limited mindset. Limited mindset. This is what real prosperity looks like. Okay, everyone say it: unlimited mindset.
I didn't want to be a pastor who just preaches in front of you. I wanted to be a pastor who leads by example. Even if God forbid I make a mistake or I fall, I want to stand before you and repent. I'd rather show you how to get back up. Do you understand? That's why last week I apologized to my online members. Hey, I need to give you all some shirts. We ordered 2,000 shirts. The online members are crazy. One woman wrote asking for 25 shirts. I said no, you're getting two. You're getting two.
Listen, we ordered 2,000 shirts. We're going to send them worldwide to everyone who watches us. But I want to show you something important. I want to show you through example. So all my business owners, learn from your pastor. Learn from him. You want to open a clothing brand but don't have money to buy shirts?
If God gave you the opportunity to heal people instead of hurting them, what would that look like? Open your mind. I want to be a liberator of minds. Open your mind to unlimited thinking.
Poverty is not the lack of money—it is a limited mindset. Real prosperity is an unlimited mindset. Say it with me: unlimited mindset.
I did not want to be a pastor who just preaches in front of you. I wanted to be a pastor who leads by example. Even if God forbid I make a mistake or I fall, I want to stand before you and repent. I'd rather show you how to get back up.
This is why I apologized to my online members last week. We ordered 2,000 shirts to send worldwide to everyone who watches us. But I want to show you something important through example. All my business owners, learn from your pastor. You want to open a clothing brand but don't have money to buy shirts? Tell your whole family to go to Walmart and get you one pack of white shirts. When those white shirts arrive, that's one shirt. That's two shirts.
Poverty is not merely the lack of money—it is the state of a limited mindset.
The issue is not about money. It was about a key. Many of my entrepreneur friends will now look at me and say, "Oh, that was amazing." But let me tell you something. When summer comes and it's time to cook, I'm going to send my whole family to Walmart to get me a pack of chicken tenders. Think about it. Imagine ten of your friends went to Sam's Club with their membership cards, got all the chicken tenders, and brought them to you. Then you took four pieces of chicken, fried them, added barbecue sauce you poured from a jar into a small container, sealed the lid, and sold it for twelve dollars.
I am not trying to open your pockets. I am trying to open your mind. Because your greatest wealth is your creativity. Let me say it again: your greatest asset is your creativity.
Jesus had no money to set stars in space. God had no money. God said, "Let us create"—Genesis chapter 1 is an entrepreneur class on creating something from nothing. He didn't buy it or acquire it. He said, "Let there be." And "let there be" is a command. It means what does not exist should come into existence. Yet you're busy crying about what you don't have, when you have the power to speak things into being that you don't have.
Let me ask you a question. Daniel was in the lion's den. Where in scripture did he pray about the lions? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego—where in scripture did they pray about the fire? We are the only Christians who pray about problems instead of talking to the Problem-Solver.
God knows I was broke. He sees it. God knows I am under pressure. He sees it. He is Alpha and Omega. God knows I want to go to school. God knows I want to start a business. He is waiting for you to get out of a limited mindset. He is waiting for you to step into an unlimited one.
Poverty is not a condition of circumstance, but a condition of limited mindset. Prosperity is not a condition of money, but a condition of unlimited mindset.
If you want to prosper, open your mind.
If we are to use the keys of the kingdom properly, we must prioritize not just our standard of living, but our standard of giving. I believe if we fully shift our mentality on how we live, we must first prioritize a shift in our mentality on how we give.
Let me unveil four mindsets of giving in the next fifteen minutes, and then I will release you.
The Bag Mentality focuses only on "me, myself, and I." With each mindset, I will give you a key issue.
The problem with the Bag Mentality is revealed in Haggai 1:6:
You have planted much, but brought in little. You eat, but are not satisfied. You drink, but your thirst is not quenched. You clothe yourself, but no one is warm. And whoever earns wages puts them into a bag with holes.
The Bag Mentality is one that is never satisfied. No matter what God gives you, it will never be enough. No matter what people give you, it will never be enough. It is a mentality that can never be satisfied.
Let me ask you a question. Of Jesus's twelve disciples, who had the bag? Judas.
Do you not believe me? Let's go to John 13:29. They were at the Last Supper. Jesus looked at them and said, "One of you will betray me." When Jesus told Judas, "What you are about to do, do quickly," the disciples at the table thought that since Judas had the bag, Jesus was telling him to buy things for the feast or to give something to the poor.
They didn't understand that the bag had gripped him.
Why did Judas betray Jesus? Not because he hated him—he loved him. Not because he didn't believe in him—he followed him. He betrayed him for thirty pieces of silver, what we call the bag. Do not let the bag stand in the way of your blessing. There is a difference between the bag and a blessing. You can count money. You cannot count blessings.
I speak this to seven of you here. Let me write this in your notes: The Bag Mentality made Judas choose himself over Jesus.
The love of money will make you pray for a new car, then spend all Sunday washing it. The love of money will make you pray for a job at church every Sunday, but once you get the job and the money, you say you need time for yourself and a vacation. The love of money does this. I want to make this clear early: I believe you should take time for yourself, but not at the expense of God.
Many of you have been faithful. Now it may be time for a rest. But this love of money is deep. It is what made Judas choose that wealth over Jesus.
Let me ask you something—and you don't need to answer loudly. How many times have you prioritized money over Jesus? Money. Money.
I am so blessed. Pastor James and I—it seems God is blessing all our works. I just got word that Monika's new single with [another artist] hit number two on the Billboard chart. That's her achievement. Please listen to me. I cannot express how proud I am, and she didn't even do any promotion. She woke up Monday morning and said, "Hey, this is coming out." She did it like Beyoncé. Monday release. By the next Monday—boom—number two. Her song streams are through the roof. Everyone wants to interview her. She was in Houston doing a concert last night, or very early this morning?
Very late last night. She told everyone, "Where are we going next?" We have to get back to church, because when you love money, money comes before Jesus. Do you understand what I'm saying? So listen carefully.
The first mentality is the love of money, where I am all. The second mentality is the Barrel Mentality.
With the Bag Mentality, it never feels like enough. With the Barrel Mentality, it feels like this is enough. This is enough.
The Barrel Mentality means whatever you have is sufficient. Let me explain what I'm saying at the start. I believe that at certain times you need all four. Wisdom will help you understand which one to choose.
You may have missed my point. The Barrel Mentality prioritizes God and my family.
Go to 1 Kings 17:12:
She said, "As surely as the Lord your God lives, I don't have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die."
The prophet and widow are in a severe drought and famine. The drought is so severe that this woman is literally making her last meal so she can die. She is waiting for death. She is counting the hours until she starves. She has only one jar, but it is sufficient for her. Because what the prophet tells her in verse 13 will shake the whole church.
Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Listen to me. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son."
This is very important. This is very important. He told the prophet, "I only have a little flour left." We will eat it. My son and I—meaning her husband is gone. My son and I will eat this and die.
The prophet did not change her mind. The prophet did not regard her mental state at all.
This is helping me in my counseling, because when counseling people, I won't waste all day trying to change what you think. Here's what we're going to do. Since you think you're going home to die, I have one request. Go do what you said. But I'm going to tell you something. But first—if I could show this on screen. But first, from what you have, make me a small loaf of bread. Then make something for yourself and your son.
I wonder if you heard me, Mr. Preacher. She couldn't have been from the projects. She couldn't have been from the projects. Can any of you imagine coming to me with this? "Pastor Mike, pray for me. I only have seven dollars left, and I'm going to use these seven dollars to buy food for me and my child, then go home and die in despair." "Okay, that's fine. Do me a favor. Give me five of those dollars first." "What? Did you not hear me? I said I have seven dollars and you have the nerve to ask me for five?" "Baby, I'm supposed to be crazy. Now that I think about it, I should have stood by you long ago. You know very well your husband died four years ago, and I come to this lousy church of yours and you have the nerve to ask me?"
He says, "No, do what you're going to do, but do me a favor. First, if you understand this meaning, you would have to be in that spiritual power." First, I want you to do this. Continue. I don't want to waste time. Look here. If I want to change your mentality, I don't discuss with you. I direct you. And this is why many of us are still stuck. You just want to argue. No, I'm telling you what to do. I'm giving you a key. Whether you use it or not is not my responsibility. I don't know who I'm preaching to, but first listen to the scripture. I want to see if you see what I see.
If you see it, you will shake this whole place. Okay? I'm preparing for death. That's fine. Do me a favor. But first, make me something. Then make something for you and your son. You missed the real moment of joy. If all she has is this—for herself and her child—that means hidden in his instruction is great prosperity, Michael. Hidden in his instruction, Michael, is expansion. In other words, he is saying, "If you put God first, you will never lack."
I don't know who I'm preaching to, but those of you who are blessing people, loving God and honoring Him, you should shout, "I will never lack. I will never lack."
Now listen to me. I have to go. Look at what it says. The jar of flour will not be used up, and the jug of oil will not run dry.
Her flour jar will not be emptied, and her oil jug will not run dry.
I will rejoice. I will rejoice. I will run, Michael. I will run. I will celebrate. If this were a football game, I would celebrate right here. If Miles were here, we would do our wrestling celebration, because when I get excited, I want to shout and make a joyful noise.
She went to cook. What did she have? Flour and oil. Michael, she had flour. Oil. Excellent. She had flour. She had oil. God help me. She had something tangible from the real world. And she had something with spiritual significance. She received employment and anointing. She received promotion and prayer. I want to speak this in faith. After this year, you will be multitalented. You will be anointed and appointed. You will have these things. You should high-five someone and say, "I have oil." You're sitting next to the wrong person. Tell them, I have oil. Tell them, I am no longer running out of anything. Lack is not my due. Struggle is not my due. Look here. It says this staff of mine was pleasing. It says the flour will not be used up. We can preach about this. And look at the oil—it will not dry up.
The miracle in this text is extraordinary because in this text, the land is dry. The miracle is that during famine and drought, the oil will not dry up.
You didn't catch this. The miracle in this text is that there is famine or drought. Drought means everything is dry. Can you go back one scripture? But because she put God first, the scripture says the oil will not dry up.
I want to speak this to ten of you. When Silicon Valley's banks closed and they fixed it, I don't care. What your coworkers are saying doesn't matter to me. I serve a higher kingdom. There may be drought in the land, but there will be no drought in my house.
I challenge you—hold your position and shout, "I will have a flow of oil in my house." Actually, your neighbor should be happy they're sitting next to you. You should look at your row and shout, "There is oil in this row. Everything connected to me will move forward. Everything connected to me will go toward success."
Oil. Oil. Oil. Oil.
I have to stop. I will stop right here. She left. Listen to what he's telling her. She left. Leslie, don't let me forget to stop here. 10:30. The rest will not be found. We will stop right here today. Okay.
So he tells her, "I heard what you said, mother." Okay. Bring this to me. Bring this to me. "Boom. Now look at verse 15. She went away and did as Elijah had told her. Look here. So Elijah had food every day. And you all missed this. That woman and her family.
Okay, please don't fight anyone in the street, and promise that you will control your behavior. Okay, promise that you will control your behavior. I'm not playing with you. Promise that you will control your behavior.
Listen to what I'm saying. This is very important: everything around her is struggling. But her house is Jesus.
This is why I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about those young women who came to church, and I was smiling inside. I want you to understand this. When you are connected to committed people, even if your house has lack, the oil that flows in their house will begin to overflow.
This is why scripture says, "Those who bless you I will bless, and those who curse you I will curse."
I don't know who I'm preaching to, but because of a generous spirit, I'm giving you sixty seconds. I won't run. You should shout in such a way that abundance has come into your house. My supply will not end. I don't know who I'm preaching to. I declare my supply will not end.
My supply will not end. My supply will not end. My supply will not end. My supply will not end.
This is lack. This is lack. This is lack.
Listen. This is commitment. This is commitment. This is commitment. Yesterday, I wanted to build the best children's church in the world. Right. I was standing on the porch of the children's church. Okay, I have to get this out. They designed it. When I say it's beautiful, they made the walls beautiful. They're telling me about the costs, but there's one problem. The bills they're giving me don't match my priority list. Because when you get something like this, the priority is HVAC, roof, plumbing—these kinds of things. I thought, "Oh God, before other things I really wanted to do this."
I got a FaceTime on my phone from someone I don't know. I did exactly what you would do. No, I don't know you. They called a second time. FaceTime. I thought, no. Then I got a voice message. "Hey, Pastor Mike. This is Pastor Robert Mu from Dallas. I see all of God's work on social media, and right now the Holy Spirit told me to send you fifteen thousand dollars. So I literally want you to understand this. I want you to understand this. I'm trying to upgrade your mentality.
The invoice was like twenty-seven. Look here. But the deposit was twenty. So many of you might not be able to rejoice because you're thinking, "Okay, it's fifteen, but I still have more work to do." No, no. My mentality is now unlimited, so now I say, "Uh-huh." I called him. Yes. Give me that order. Because if God answered that fast, He will do it again. And you're thinking how you will do it. You need to understand I am like a tiger, and I will never lack.
1 Kings 17:15 says because of her obedience, brother, she and her son ate every day because she put God first. Look here. Look here. Because I want to be a balanced preacher. Even if you find another church, one thing I want you to understand...
Proverbs 11:24-25 tells us, "A generous person will prosper, and whoever refreshes others will be refreshed." I particularly love verse 25, which emphasizes that the generous person will prosper, and whoever refreshes others will themselves be refreshed.
I constantly pray blessings over our praise team and choir because I don't think they realize how many times they've come into this room and you've left refreshed. They don't understand that giving isn't just about putting something in an offering plate—they're giving their talents. That alone is cause for celebration. Every week, I can honestly say I love this team so much that they sing and worship at such a high level that when I go home and listen to regular music, it doesn't sound the same anymore.
I want to read this from Proverbs 11:22 using the Message translation. Look at it on the screen: "A gold ring in a pig's snout—that's a beautiful face on an empty head." Many of us are living according to this translation. We've fixed our faces, but we haven't fixed our mentality. We look good on the outside, but our minds are empty.
Let me stay here for a moment. Write this down: An empty head always leads to an empty hand. An empty head always leads to an empty hand.
Pastor friends from across the country were teasing me about this. They said, "Brother, are you really asking people to bring tissues?" They said I'd reached another level—I've received big awards, big buildings, big churches—and yet I'm asking people for tissues. It doesn't fit. I told them, "I want to show you a principle." They asked, "What principle?" I said, "If my church can't give tissue, they'll never give money."
You see, giving isn't about what you give. It's about the attitude behind how you give. I want us to understand something: when we talk about generosity, we don't just talk about it because the only time the church discusses money or giving is when the church needs something. I want to take you to a place where you wouldn't want to miss rehearsal because that's your opportunity to give.
A team came here yesterday, and they inspired me in many ways. The whole trip was for one of their sisters, and they said, "Come to Birmingham, we've got your back." They let her decide what she wanted to eat, what she wanted to do—the whole weekend was about her, her healing, and her opportunity. This was their first time seeing her. They met during the pandemic through watching an online service. Then they formed their own small group in their hometown to pray on weekends. But here's what I want you to understand: you're worried about filling your bank balance. I want a full life. Do you understand what I'm saying?
Proverbs 11:23 says, "Good people's desires lead straight to the good; wicked ambitions end in angry frustration." I want you to look at scripture. The desires of good people lead straight to good. I'm saying this, and I know it's not something to shout about, but I just want you to declare this over your life all week: "Nothing but the best."
I know it sounds funny, but it's an inside joke between me and Mr. Gotti, one of our head security officers. We literally tell each other, "Nothing but the best." I'm not saying this because you're arrogant or haughty. I'm declaring "nothing but the best" according to Proverbs 11:23 because my desires are right. Good people's desires lead forward. This alone is enough to shake up the church atmosphere, and by the 10:30 prayer meeting, everyone will be shouting.
As you grow older, you celebrate different things. Some of you are shouting for the best of something. Some of us are just shouting for one word: "straight." This is for the three of you whose lives have taken many detours and many turns. I want to prophesy and speak in 2023. Lord, give me a straight path. Give me promotion straight up. Lead me directly to healing. Lead me straight to holy marriage. Lead me straight to finances. There are three of you for whom I want to speak in faith. My wandering season is about to end.
Look at Proverbs 11:24: "Generous people's lives get larger and larger." Notice the text doesn't just say "generous." It's not just about giving in the way Luke describes—give and it will come back to you. Proverbs says the generous person's world grows bigger and bigger day by day, but the stingy person's world grows smaller and smaller.
Write this down in your notes: You live in two worlds. Just as when you're in trouble, you think everyone is talking about you, but then you meet someone who doesn't even know what you're going through—you quickly realize there's a difference between worlds. Let me put it this way: so everyone can hear, there's your world and this world. Some of you are afraid to become what God called you to be because of your small world. There are 40 people who will criticize you, but there are 40,000 who will say, "Wow, you're doing great!"
It's like you're trapped in a small room, but when you leave that room and bless people, one wall breaks down. Then another wall breaks down. All my contractors here will understand this: half the box or limit you live in are dummy walls—fake walls. Dummy walls are walls that don't bear weight. They're not load-bearing. Literally, they're hollow. I can knock through that wall and go straight into the next room.
What the enemy does is create walls in your life—walls of insecurity, walls of depression, walls of worry. And sometimes he doesn't realize that I can get out of some problems through prayer, but other problems I have to get out of through giving. Did you catch that?
Verse 25 says, "Whoever blesses others receives plenty of blessing." Those who help others—what do they get? Help. This is critical. Write this down and pray it blesses your life: God can be everything in your life, but He won't be your next step.
We're in a series called "Courage to Commit Volume 2"—"I Got the Keys." We're pursuing a life based on principles, not pressure. Today I want to give you a key that will unlock the stingy mentality according to Proverbs 11:24-25.
Write this down: Stinginess is a deep attachment to yourself. I'm removing this stinginess from everything attached to me.
Yesterday my little son Miles had some Gummy candy, and Mackenley asked, "Can I have one?" He used that word you adults use. He said, "It's mine." You've all probably seen your kids do this—"No, these are mine. Dad, tell him not to touch them. These are mine."
So what I've been doing all week is teaching them: share. You'd be amazed at how my kids make faces when asked to share. But you know what I discovered? Zander doesn't mind sharing with others. Michael doesn't mind sharing with others. Mason doesn't worry about sharing with the little ones. Mackenley doesn't worry about sharing with the little ones. The problem always comes with sharing with the big kids.
Here's what I've noticed: most of us don't hesitate to give to those below us because it keeps us in a position of authority. But when we give upward, it puts us in a position of submission. Many of you find giving difficult because you have this idea that God doesn't need anything. But let me help you understand: you don't give to God because He needs it. You give to God because you need it.
I love football. I love college football. When I was a high school football player and got a scholarship offer and committed, I'll never forget the day my brother committed to Auburn. It was the best day for our whole family. He was on the phone in my mom's room. We were listening from the other room, then they got on a call with Coach Price, and he said, "Hey big brother, big fellow. What's up with you? Nothing much. You ready? I'm getting Jalen Chubb on the phone." Then Gene Chizik got on. "Hey, Darius McClure, you alright?" "Yes sir." "We want to give you a full scholarship. We want you to be part of the Auburn Tigers." And then he said, "Yes sir. Yes sir. Yes sir." It felt really good.
But here's what I saw: on Signing Day, he came out and took his shirt off and put on a Florida State jersey. My phone was going crazy the day before. People were texting me. I was telling people, "Don't let him do this. We'll take good care of him." But here's what I learned quick: commitment matters until you sign. And I discovered that many of you have made oral commitments. "God, I love You as long as You're not testing me. God, I'll be faithful as long as You're not testing me."
This is why the devil doesn't hurt many of us—because you're only giving oral commitments. The devil is thinking from hell, "Trust me, they signed last year; they're going to sign again this year." I'm trying to create a generation of believers who will shout victory no matter what the devil does. I have the courage to stay committed because my commitment isn't just oral. I'm following through to the end.
Be careful when you're surrounded by stingy people, in a stingy relationship, stuck in stinginess—and worse, religious yet stingy. You see, I'm trying to change your mentality. Some of your relationships didn't work, not because of how you or they were, but fundamentally, one of you was stingy. You wanted something they refused to give you. They were stingy with affection, stingy with time, stingy with love.
Married couples are stingy too. Why are you stingy? Give and it will come back to you. Measured out. Pressed down. Shaken together. Overflowing. Look at your friends. You haven't celebrated in six years. Yes, keep looking. But what's worse is you're righteous yet stingy. You ask heaven for everything but give nothing. You pray for everything but plant nothing.
Someone say mindset. Mindset is our thinking about the world, ourselves, and God. Our mindset influences how we think, feel, and act in any situation.
Last week we unveiled the principle of generosity—a willing heart that builds a life of open-handed giving. This week I need to move quickly. For those who weren't here: what was the principle of generosity? It's a heart willing to give and that builds a life of open-handed giving.
Listen to me carefully. I want to unveil the mindset principle for you to write down. The Principle of Mindset states: what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God. Let me say it again. The Principle of Mindset states: what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God.
If I think I'm inconsistent, I start thinking God is inconsistent. If I'm stingy, I don't pray properly because I think God is stingy. If I don't keep my word, I project that onto God and think He won't keep His word either.
This is why I'm working on the mentality of my church people. If I can't change how you see yourself, you'll never change how you see God.
What if your greatest limitation is that you see God correctly, but you see yourself wrongly? In other words, just because we see the same thing doesn't mean we see it the same way.
Let me ask you a question. What is this? (pointing to an object) It's a podium. Is it really a podium? What is it really? It's not a table. I'm working on this very thing with my staff now. They're seeing the same thing, but they're not interpreting it the same way.
Okay, let me ask you again. What is this? You missed a descriptor. It's a high table. Because if I tell you to go get a table from the room, I don't know what you'll bring. But if I say get me a black high round table, now my request is specific. Do you understand?
So my young friends, wherever you want to go to school, and my older friends, whatever job you want to have, the principle is the same. Lord, I'm speaking in faith. You will offer. I'm speaking in faith that Alabama will offer. I'm speaking in faith that Georgia will do it. I'm speaking in faith the next job will have this salary, this much time off, and these benefits.
Here's what I discovered: we can see the same thing, but we don't see it the same way. Someone might see this as a nice table for their living room. When I see it, the first thing I say is, "I'm going to preach from here." It doesn't scare me; it looks beautiful. I'm going to change the rules of the game. Everyone else has big podiums. I'm just going to get myself a little table.
We see the same thing, but we don't see it the same way. This happens in every area of your life, so stop trying to force people to see things through your perspective. When I start to dream, I shrink the room. When I get a glimpse of something, I shrink the room. Like, no, I don't need this many people. Why don't I need them? Let me ask you a question: What are these? Eyes. What do we use eyes for? Sight. So whenever—notice this—when someone looks at something, you describe the perspective you see. This is why we call what we watch at home "television"—far vision. The box you watch, if you see something toxic, it gives you a toxic perspective, and because your eye receives it, you become it.
Let me move forward. Just because we hear the same thing doesn't mean we hear it the same way.
Do you know what I'm trying to do? I'm trying to help us with a Principle of Mindset. The principle says what I believe about myself often determines what I believe about God. What am I trying to help you understand?
Write this down: The key to changing your life is to change your mind first.
It's that simple. The key to changing your life is changing your thinking. We can never change our lives by just changing our behavior. We change our lives when we change our minds. You're trying to fix your actions. You need to fix your own mind. Because if you only do what you think others want from you, you'll eventually stop—because it hasn't become your mentality.
If I had time, I would go deeper into that part. I'm telling you, we can never change our lives by just changing our behavior. This isn't about having a good versus bad mindset. I want to be very clear. I'm not saying you have a good or bad mindset. What I'm saying is this is about a limited versus unlimited mindset.
You don't have a bad mindset. You have a limited mindset.
Poverty isn't the lack of money; it's a state of limited mindset. Limited mindset. This is what real prosperity looks like. Okay, everyone say it: unlimited mindset.
I didn't want to be a pastor who just preaches in front of you. I wanted to be a pastor who leads by example. Even if God forbid I make a mistake or I fall, I want to stand before you and repent. I'd rather show you how to get back up. Do you understand? That's why last week I apologized to my online members. Hey, I need to give you all some shirts. We ordered 2,000 shirts. The online members are crazy. One woman wrote asking for 25 shirts. I said no, you're getting two. You're getting two.
Listen, we ordered 2,000 shirts. We're going to send them worldwide to everyone who watches us. But I want to show you something important. I want to show you through example. So all my business owners, learn from your pastor. Learn from him. You want to open a clothing brand but don't have money to buy shirts?
If God gave you the opportunity to heal people instead of hurting them, what would that look like? Open your mind. I want to be a liberator of minds. Open your mind to unlimited thinking.
Poverty is not the lack of money—it is a limited mindset. Real prosperity is an unlimited mindset. Say it with me: unlimited mindset.
I did not want to be a pastor who just preaches in front of you. I wanted to be a pastor who leads by example. Even if God forbid I make a mistake or I fall, I want to stand before you and repent. I'd rather show you how to get back up.
This is why I apologized to my online members last week. We ordered 2,000 shirts to send worldwide to everyone who watches us. But I want to show you something important through example. All my business owners, learn from your pastor. You want to open a clothing brand but don't have money to buy shirts? Tell your whole family to go to Walmart and get you one pack of white shirts. When those white shirts arrive, that's one shirt. That's two shirts.
Poverty is not merely the lack of money—it is the state of a limited mindset.
The issue is not about money. It was about a key. Many of my entrepreneur friends will now look at me and say, "Oh, that was amazing." But let me tell you something. When summer comes and it's time to cook, I'm going to send my whole family to Walmart to get me a pack of chicken tenders. Think about it. Imagine ten of your friends went to Sam's Club with their membership cards, got all the chicken tenders, and brought them to you. Then you took four pieces of chicken, fried them, added barbecue sauce you poured from a jar into a small container, sealed the lid, and sold it for twelve dollars.
I am not trying to open your pockets. I am trying to open your mind. Because your greatest wealth is your creativity. Let me say it again: your greatest asset is your creativity.
Jesus had no money to set stars in space. God had no money. God said, "Let us create"—Genesis chapter 1 is an entrepreneur class on creating something from nothing. He didn't buy it or acquire it. He said, "Let there be." And "let there be" is a command. It means what does not exist should come into existence. Yet you're busy crying about what you don't have, when you have the power to speak things into being that you don't have.
Let me ask you a question. Daniel was in the lion's den. Where in scripture did he pray about the lions? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego—where in scripture did they pray about the fire? We are the only Christians who pray about problems instead of talking to the Problem-Solver.
God knows I was broke. He sees it. God knows I am under pressure. He sees it. He is Alpha and Omega. God knows I want to go to school. God knows I want to start a business. He is waiting for you to get out of a limited mindset. He is waiting for you to step into an unlimited one.
Poverty is not a condition of circumstance, but a condition of limited mindset. Prosperity is not a condition of money, but a condition of unlimited mindset.
If you want to prosper, open your mind.
If we are to use the keys of the kingdom properly, we must prioritize not just our standard of living, but our standard of giving. I believe if we fully shift our mentality on how we live, we must first prioritize a shift in our mentality on how we give.
Let me unveil four mindsets of giving in the next fifteen minutes, and then I will release you.
The Bag Mentality focuses only on "me, myself, and I." With each mindset, I will give you a key issue.
The problem with the Bag Mentality is revealed in Haggai 1:6:
You have planted much, but brought in little. You eat, but are not satisfied. You drink, but your thirst is not quenched. You clothe yourself, but no one is warm. And whoever earns wages puts them into a bag with holes.
The Bag Mentality is one that is never satisfied. No matter what God gives you, it will never be enough. No matter what people give you, it will never be enough. It is a mentality that can never be satisfied.
Let me ask you a question. Of Jesus's twelve disciples, who had the bag? Judas.
Do you not believe me? Let's go to John 13:29. They were at the Last Supper. Jesus looked at them and said, "One of you will betray me." When Jesus told Judas, "What you are about to do, do quickly," the disciples at the table thought that since Judas had the bag, Jesus was telling him to buy things for the feast or to give something to the poor.
They didn't understand that the bag had gripped him.
Why did Judas betray Jesus? Not because he hated him—he loved him. Not because he didn't believe in him—he followed him. He betrayed him for thirty pieces of silver, what we call the bag. Do not let the bag stand in the way of your blessing. There is a difference between the bag and a blessing. You can count money. You cannot count blessings.
I speak this to seven of you here. Let me write this in your notes: The Bag Mentality made Judas choose himself over Jesus.
The love of money will make you pray for a new car, then spend all Sunday washing it. The love of money will make you pray for a job at church every Sunday, but once you get the job and the money, you say you need time for yourself and a vacation. The love of money does this. I want to make this clear early: I believe you should take time for yourself, but not at the expense of God.
Many of you have been faithful. Now it may be time for a rest. But this love of money is deep. It is what made Judas choose that wealth over Jesus.
Let me ask you something—and you don't need to answer loudly. How many times have you prioritized money over Jesus? Money. Money.
I am so blessed. Pastor James and I—it seems God is blessing all our works. I just got word that Monika's new single with [another artist] hit number two on the Billboard chart. That's her achievement. Please listen to me. I cannot express how proud I am, and she didn't even do any promotion. She woke up Monday morning and said, "Hey, this is coming out." She did it like Beyoncé. Monday release. By the next Monday—boom—number two. Her song streams are through the roof. Everyone wants to interview her. She was in Houston doing a concert last night, or very early this morning?
Very late last night. She told everyone, "Where are we going next?" We have to get back to church, because when you love money, money comes before Jesus. Do you understand what I'm saying? So listen carefully.
The first mentality is the love of money, where I am all. The second mentality is the Barrel Mentality.
With the Bag Mentality, it never feels like enough. With the Barrel Mentality, it feels like this is enough. This is enough.
The Barrel Mentality means whatever you have is sufficient. Let me explain what I'm saying at the start. I believe that at certain times you need all four. Wisdom will help you understand which one to choose.
You may have missed my point. The Barrel Mentality prioritizes God and my family.
Go to 1 Kings 17:12:
She said, "As surely as the Lord your God lives, I don't have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die."
The prophet and widow are in a severe drought and famine. The drought is so severe that this woman is literally making her last meal so she can die. She is waiting for death. She is counting the hours until she starves. She has only one jar, but it is sufficient for her. Because what the prophet tells her in verse 13 will shake the whole church.
Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Listen to me. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son."
This is very important. This is very important. He told the prophet, "I only have a little flour left." We will eat it. My son and I—meaning her husband is gone. My son and I will eat this and die.
The prophet did not change her mind. The prophet did not regard her mental state at all.
This is helping me in my counseling, because when counseling people, I won't waste all day trying to change what you think. Here's what we're going to do. Since you think you're going home to die, I have one request. Go do what you said. But I'm going to tell you something. But first—if I could show this on screen. But first, from what you have, make me a small loaf of bread. Then make something for yourself and your son.
I wonder if you heard me, Mr. Preacher. She couldn't have been from the projects. She couldn't have been from the projects. Can any of you imagine coming to me with this? "Pastor Mike, pray for me. I only have seven dollars left, and I'm going to use these seven dollars to buy food for me and my child, then go home and die in despair." "Okay, that's fine. Do me a favor. Give me five of those dollars first." "What? Did you not hear me? I said I have seven dollars and you have the nerve to ask me for five?" "Baby, I'm supposed to be crazy. Now that I think about it, I should have stood by you long ago. You know very well your husband died four years ago, and I come to this lousy church of yours and you have the nerve to ask me?"
He says, "No, do what you're going to do, but do me a favor. First, if you understand this meaning, you would have to be in that spiritual power." First, I want you to do this. Continue. I don't want to waste time. Look here. If I want to change your mentality, I don't discuss with you. I direct you. And this is why many of us are still stuck. You just want to argue. No, I'm telling you what to do. I'm giving you a key. Whether you use it or not is not my responsibility. I don't know who I'm preaching to, but first listen to the scripture. I want to see if you see what I see.
If you see it, you will shake this whole place. Okay? I'm preparing for death. That's fine. Do me a favor. But first, make me something. Then make something for you and your son. You missed the real moment of joy. If all she has is this—for herself and her child—that means hidden in his instruction is great prosperity, Michael. Hidden in his instruction, Michael, is expansion. In other words, he is saying, "If you put God first, you will never lack."
I don't know who I'm preaching to, but those of you who are blessing people, loving God and honoring Him, you should shout, "I will never lack. I will never lack."
Now listen to me. I have to go. Look at what it says. The jar of flour will not be used up, and the jug of oil will not run dry.
Her flour jar will not be emptied, and her oil jug will not run dry.
I will rejoice. I will rejoice. I will run, Michael. I will run. I will celebrate. If this were a football game, I would celebrate right here. If Miles were here, we would do our wrestling celebration, because when I get excited, I want to shout and make a joyful noise.
She went to cook. What did she have? Flour and oil. Michael, she had flour. Oil. Excellent. She had flour. She had oil. God help me. She had something tangible from the real world. And she had something with spiritual significance. She received employment and anointing. She received promotion and prayer. I want to speak this in faith. After this year, you will be multitalented. You will be anointed and appointed. You will have these things. You should high-five someone and say, "I have oil." You're sitting next to the wrong person. Tell them, I have oil. Tell them, I am no longer running out of anything. Lack is not my due. Struggle is not my due. Look here. It says this staff of mine was pleasing. It says the flour will not be used up. We can preach about this. And look at the oil—it will not dry up.
The miracle in this text is extraordinary because in this text, the land is dry. The miracle is that during famine and drought, the oil will not dry up.
You didn't catch this. The miracle in this text is that there is famine or drought. Drought means everything is dry. Can you go back one scripture? But because she put God first, the scripture says the oil will not dry up.
I want to speak this to ten of you. When Silicon Valley's banks closed and they fixed it, I don't care. What your coworkers are saying doesn't matter to me. I serve a higher kingdom. There may be drought in the land, but there will be no drought in my house.
I challenge you—hold your position and shout, "I will have a flow of oil in my house." Actually, your neighbor should be happy they're sitting next to you. You should look at your row and shout, "There is oil in this row. Everything connected to me will move forward. Everything connected to me will go toward success."
Oil. Oil. Oil. Oil.
I have to stop. I will stop right here. She left. Listen to what he's telling her. She left. Leslie, don't let me forget to stop here. 10:30. The rest will not be found. We will stop right here today. Okay.
So he tells her, "I heard what you said, mother." Okay. Bring this to me. Bring this to me. "Boom. Now look at verse 15. She went away and did as Elijah had told her. Look here. So Elijah had food every day. And you all missed this. That woman and her family.
Okay, please don't fight anyone in the street, and promise that you will control your behavior. Okay, promise that you will control your behavior. I'm not playing with you. Promise that you will control your behavior.
Listen to what I'm saying. This is very important: everything around her is struggling. But her house is Jesus.
This is why I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about those young women who came to church, and I was smiling inside. I want you to understand this. When you are connected to committed people, even if your house has lack, the oil that flows in their house will begin to overflow.
This is why scripture says, "Those who bless you I will bless, and those who curse you I will curse."
I don't know who I'm preaching to, but because of a generous spirit, I'm giving you sixty seconds. I won't run. You should shout in such a way that abundance has come into your house. My supply will not end. I don't know who I'm preaching to. I declare my supply will not end.
My supply will not end. My supply will not end. My supply will not end. My supply will not end.
This is lack. This is lack. This is lack.
Listen. This is commitment. This is commitment. This is commitment. Yesterday, I wanted to build the best children's church in the world. Right. I was standing on the porch of the children's church. Okay, I have to get this out. They designed it. When I say it's beautiful, they made the walls beautiful. They're telling me about the costs, but there's one problem. The bills they're giving me don't match my priority list. Because when you get something like this, the priority is HVAC, roof, plumbing—these kinds of things. I thought, "Oh God, before other things I really wanted to do this."
I got a FaceTime on my phone from someone I don't know. I did exactly what you would do. No, I don't know you. They called a second time. FaceTime. I thought, no. Then I got a voice message. "Hey, Pastor Mike. This is Pastor Robert Mu from Dallas. I see all of God's work on social media, and right now the Holy Spirit told me to send you fifteen thousand dollars. So I literally want you to understand this. I want you to understand this. I'm trying to upgrade your mentality.
The invoice was like twenty-seven. Look here. But the deposit was twenty. So many of you might not be able to rejoice because you're thinking, "Okay, it's fifteen, but I still have more work to do." No, no. My mentality is now unlimited, so now I say, "Uh-huh." I called him. Yes. Give me that order. Because if God answered that fast, He will do it again. And you're thinking how you will do it. You need to understand I am like a tiger, and I will never lack.
1 Kings 17:15 says because of her obedience, brother, she and her son ate every day because she put God first. Look here. Look here. Because I want to be a balanced preacher. Even if you find another church, one thing I want you to understand...
