For Our City Fund

Talk Notes

A BETTER STORY
The Stewardship Principle
10.2.22

 

Money can buy a house…………but not a home
Money can buy a bed…………..but not sleep
Money can buy a clock…………but not time
Money can buy you a book………but not knowledge
Money can buy you medicine…….but not health
Money can buy you sex…………but not love
Money can buy a vacation…..but not rest

 

Money gives us the illusion that more is better

 

Generosity: When you are fully aware of what you have been freely given so you choose to freely give

 

Extravagant Generosity: When you become so overcome by the grace and undeserved love of the Father that you lavishly reorient your life around giving and Kingdom impact

 

Stewardship: An understanding that God is the owner, we are the managers, and we are accountable to the owner. 

 

Luke 16:1-7

Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.

“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’

7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’

“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.

“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’’

 

Luke 16:8-15

8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.

 

Jesus uses this parable to teach several truths:

  • Jesus encourages believers to act as prudently with divine things as unbelievers do with earthly things
  • Jesus directs believers to conduct their lives in light of the coming of Christ and the future judgment 
  • You are responsible for stewarding what you have been given 
  • You cannot claim the lordship of Jesus and yet choose to make mammon your god

 

Matthew 19:23-24

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

  • Does Mammon have a foothold or stronghold in my life? 
  • What are the practices I need to implement so that Mammon will not become my god? 
  • What does a step of obedience look like regarding generosity? 

First Time Guests

Thanks for joining us today! Please fill out the form below and visit us in the Welcome Room located in the lobby after service for a free gift.

Giving

3 WAYS TO GIVE

ONLINE

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ON SUNDAY

We have giving envelopes, located with the giving boxes at each exit, available for you every Sunday morning to give by cash, check, or credit card.

RESOURCES

Generosity Pathway

• Contact us for financial consulting and we can recommend a financial advisor – justin@citychurchtulsa.com

• Budgeting tools – Download Here

Pray Tulsa

Join us as we pray.

Join us as we continue to pray through scripture, intercede for areas of influence in our city, and lift up our world to the God who listens to our prayers.

Visit praytulsa.com for more info.

Serve

Serve with City Church

 

Followers of Jesus are called to become servants. We want to actively demonstrate self-sacrificial love by serving the people around us. It takes over 80 volunteers to sustain the weekly routines of City Church. We are a family, and like a family, we all pitch in.

Guest Services

To welcome, serve, inform, and spiritually encourage.

Set-up / Tear-down

Help set and reset the building after the gathering.

City Kids

Help care for children during the gatherings (requires background check)

City Youth

Help with Wednesday night youth gatherings.

Worship

Musicians and singers to play with the band. Vocals, Instrumentalists, Sound techs.

Production Crew

Help the audio and visual team set up, tear down, and run the gathering.

Growth Track

CONNECT | DINNER WITH THE STAFF

If you’re interested in learning more about City Church and partnering with us as we reach people for Jesus, we would like to personally invite you to join us for Dinner with the Staff. It’s a time to connect with our staff and hear the vision and heart behind our church. It’s only one hour long, it’s completely free, and we even provide childcare!

To RSVP for our next Dinner with the Staff event, visit our website.

DISCOVER | PATHWAY CLASS

Live out the gospel in community with others as we commit ourselves to becoming disciples and making disciples. Pathway is a 4-week class designed to help you discover and live out God’s unique mission for your life.

A new Pathway Class starts almost every month. The class is free, however there is a suggested donation of $25, which covers all your materials and helps provide grants to our Love Tulsa partners. Register here. 

GROW | MICRO CHURCH

Live out the gospel in community with others as we commit ourselves to becoming disciples and making disciples.

For more information on Micro Churches, including how to get connected, visit our website.

MULTIPLY | CITY LEADERSHIP ACADEMY

CLA is a 5-month journey learning how to lead yourself and others to fulfill the Great Commission. CLA is offered twice per year for those who have already committed to serving, giving, & leading at City Church.

For inquiries on CLA, contact Pastor Jim Moss at info@citychurchtulsa.com

Connect

GET CONNECTED

Ask about volunteer opportunities, share your story, submit prayer requests, or let us know about your experience with us!

Micro-Church

What is a Micro-Church? It is a community of people gathered around a common mission to make disciples and to bring the Kingdom of God to all areas of the city. Interested in learning more? Fill out the form below and one of our Micro-Church Coaches will contact you soon!

Upcoming Events

UPCOMING EVENTS

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Lent + Podcast

Lent/Fasting Information & Resources

What is Lent?
The 40 days leading up to Easter (not including Sundays), where a follower of Jesus gives themselves to prayer, fasting, self-examination, and repentance. It is a time where we focus on the cross and journey with Jesus to Jerusalem.
When is Lent?
It officially begins Wednesday, March 2nd (Ash Wednesday) and ends Thursday, April 14th (the day before Good Friday).
Why Lent? Why do we follow the Christian calendar?
As early as the mid 2nd century the early church begin reorienting their calendar around the saving events of the life of Jesus instead of the culture around them. Lent is a part of this Christian calendar along with Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Holy Week, Easter, and Pentecost. Lent follows a biblical pattern throughout the Bible (Moses, Elijah, Jesus) of fasting for 40 days. Lent is a time to prepare our hearts and build anticipation for Holy Week and the resurrection of Easter. The goal is to let go of the things in our lives in order to give our attention to Christ in a special way. During this time we develop a deeper hunger for God, experience breakthroughs in certain areas of our lives, and establish new patterns and rhythms as we break old patterns and rhythms.
Can I break my fast on Sundays?
That is completely up to you. According to historical church tradition, Sundays are not counted during Lent because it is a day when the fast is broken (celebrated as mini-Easters or mini-celebrations along the Lent journey).
What do we do during Lent?
  • Fast – Fasting is a biblical and ancient spiritual practice that reveals our excessive attachment to things
  • Repent – Repentance is a regular returning to God with a humble and contrite heart
  • Pray – make time for intentional prayer, solitude, and space for God
  • Receive God’s forgiveness and extravagant love
What should you fast during Lent?
  • Anything that is out of balance, you may not have control over, or feel enslaved to
  • Something that represents a sacrifice for you
  • Eliminating something that would free up space for more focused attention on God and spiritual formation
  • Examples: Food (full, partial, or Daniel fast), social media, alcohol/caffeine/sugar, overwork, tv/movies, cell phone use, spending, anything you may be excessively attached to.
What are some examples of food fasts?
  • Full Fast: Drink only liquids (if you’ve never attempted a full fast don’t start here and be sure to consult a professional/physician before trying it)
  • Daniel Fast: Eat no meat, no sweets and no bread. Drink water and juice. Eat fruits and vegetables. (check out http://daniel-fast.com for more information)
  • 3-Day Intervals Fast: Full fast, Daniel fast, or give up at least one item of food in 3 day intervals
  • Sunrise to Sundown Fast: Fast during the day from sunup to sundown
  • Partial Fast: Examples include fasting for lunch or from 6am-3pm daily, or sunup to sundown, etc.
List of recommended Lent devotionals to:
Important Dates on the Lenten Journey:
  • March 2 – Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent)
    • Online services at 9am, noon, and 7pm
  • April 10 – Palm Sunday
  • April 14 – The official end of the Lent season
  • April 15 – Good Friday
    • Evening outdoor service at Camp Loughridge at 7pm (weather permitting)
  • April 17 – Easter Sunday
    • Three morning services at City Church – 8:30am – 10am – 11:30am

Love Tulsa Sunday

Love Tulsa Sunday
May 1st, 9am

Twice a year we cancel Sunday services to strategically BE THE GOSPEL all over our city. In the midst of uncertain times, this will be a an amazing weekend to serve our neighbors and show them the hope and love of Jesus Christ.

2022 Project List

River Parks Clean Up
We will be cleaning up trash along the east riverbank of the arkansas river between 11th and 31st street. If we happen to see any houseless Tulsans living in the area, we will do our best to provide them with resources, food, and offer to clean up their encampents of litter and debris. The riverbank is one of the most important parts of our rivers ecosystem and it is very neglected.

Hope Valley Houseless Neighbor Outreach
We’re serving a hot lunch and care packages to our unhoused neighbors in the Hope Valley (61st and Peoria) area. We’ll meet at the City Church parking lot and make handwritten cards and assemble care packages with essential items (toiletries, bandages, socks, bibles, etc). Then we’ll carpool to the Hope Valley, set up some tables with lunch options, and serve meals while we talk, pray, and make connections with folks.

Jenks East Elementary Outdoor Beautification
General outdoor work at this South Tulsa Title I school. We will be planting flowers, cleaning up trash, trimming hedges, power washing, and helping clean up/create a courtyard that houses a turtle habitat.

Phoenix District Block Party
We are throwing a neighborhood block party to promote unity and new connections in a historic north Tulsa district. We will partner with our sister church, Church of Eternal Love, to love on this neighborhood with free food, bounce houses, prizes, and more!   

Hoover Neighborhood Clean Up
City Church Volunteers & Hoover Neighbors are coming together to meet needs in the neighborhood. Neighbors have signed up requesting help with yard work & house work and garage work! Volunteers will have a picnic at Darlington Park afterwards.

Widow Home Clean Up and Meal
We are helping clean up the yard, rip up carpet, and make some freezer meals for a local widow.

Tulsa Hills Youth Ranch Horse Therapy Clean Up
THYR exists to bring healing to traumatized children and their caregivers through equine therapy. We will be helping with gardening, sprucing up the horse barn, and some fence repair if possible.

Safe Haven Group Home Visit
We are bringing lunch to a group home that houses at-risk teen girls in DHS. We will be having lunch with the girls and the staff, offering words of encouragement, and praying over them.

Cooper Elementary Garden Clean Up
We will be cleaning up a overgrown and neglected garden at a Title 1 East Tulsa school. We will clean up trash, power wash brick walk way and trim small trees in a courtyard that is home to two LARGE bunnies. Creating garden beds that can be kept free of bunnies and used to grow plants by students in the after school program.

North Tulsa Mowing Extravaganza
We will be doing some surprise neighborhood beautification through mowing and light tree trimming. The more lawnmowers we can get together, the better!

Hope Valley Block Party
Hope Valley is the neighborhood in which our new building is located; we want to throw a summer kick off ‘block party’ in our parking lot! Fun for all ages, with games, food, inflatables, and more for the whole family.

Letters of Encouragement to Jail Staff
We will be writing letters of encouragment and kindness to the Jail Staff at David L. Moss to let them know how much they are appreciated.

Spanish Encouragement Notes to Kids
We will be writing letters of encouragement in Spanish inside covers of children’s books for Spanish-speaking kids/families in East Tulsa to give to developmentally delayed Spanish speaking kids at their therapy appointments.

Love Lies Resources

 

Counseling Services:
Books
Developing a Christian Worldview – Class taught by Pastor Matt Nelson
Mentoring
  • Email us at info@citychurchtulsa.com and we can work with you to find a mentor (person or couple) to walk alongside you

 

Meet with a City Church pastor

Baptism Bash

Sunday, July 10th
5:30pm Camp Loughridge (map)
Pizza & pool party

Why be baptized?

Baptism symbolizes conversion to Jesus and should follow a confession of faith in Christ. It is your public and unashamed confession that you are leaving your old way of life to follow Him. Throughout the New Testament, we see Jesus, the apostles, and the early church practicing baptism. When someone would repent of their sins and turn to Jesus they would then immediately be baptized as an outward sign of the inward change that Jesus had done in their hearts. When you step out of the water, you are letting the world know that you have walked into a new life of faith in Jesus Christ and that you are committing to follow Jesus down a new path.