Make It Count: Stewarding the 90% with Purpose

Devotional

Day 1: Recognizing God as the True Owner of All

Everything we possess is a gift from God, entrusted to us for a season. We are not the ultimate owners but stewards of His resources. This foundational truth liberates us from the burden of ownership and the fear of scarcity. When we understand that it all belongs to Him, we can manage it with open hands and a trusting heart. Our role is to faithfully care for what He has given us, knowing we will one day give an account for our stewardship. [54:14]

“For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.” (1 Timothy 6:7, NIV)

Reflection: What is one specific area of your finances where you find yourself acting like an owner instead of a steward? How might your approach to that area change if you truly saw it as God’s property that you are managing for Him?

Day 2: Living with Purposeful Allocation

God entrusts resources to each person according to their ability, knowing their capacity for stewardship. Every pound we receive can be allocated with intention to serve God’s purposes. This requires moving from a life of financial accident to one of purposeful planning. Creating a budget is a practical way to honor God with the 90% He leaves in our care. It is an act of worship that aligns our spending with His priorities for our lives. [01:01:16]

“To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability.” (Matthew 25:15, NIV)

Reflection: If you were to create a budget that reflected God’s purposes for your life, what is one category of spending that might need to increase or decrease? What would be the first step in making that adjustment?

Day 3: Embracing the Responsibility of Stewardship

We are called to regularly reconcile our accounts and know the condition of what God has given us. This diligent attention is not about miserliness but about responsible management. Ignoring our financial reality only allows problems to grow in the dark. Bringing our finances into the light through honest assessment is the first step toward freedom and faithful stewardship. God expects us to take ownership of this process as an act of obedience. [01:06:25]

“Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds.” (Proverbs 27:23, NIV)

Reflection: When was the last time you took a honest, prayerful look at your complete financial picture? What is one practical step you could take this week to “know the condition of your flocks”?

Day 4: Overcoming Fear Through Faithful Action

Fear often paralyzes us from facing our financial realities, just as the servant who buried his talent. Confronting the facts requires courage and faith, trusting that God is with us in the process. We must move from hiding our financial challenges in fear to bringing them into God’s light. Gratitude for what we have can be a powerful catalyst to break free from fear and shame. God’s promise is to strengthen our faith as we take steps of obedience. [01:10:20]

“I was afraid, so I went out and hid your gold in the ground.” (Matthew 25:25, NIV)

Reflection: What financial fear have you been avoiding or hiding from? How might inviting God into that fear and taking one step of practical action begin to dismantle its power over you?

Day 5: Expecting God’s Reward for Diligence

God promises to bless and reward our faithful stewardship, not merely for our benefit but so we can be a blessing to others. Diligence in managing what He has given us positions us to experience His provision. This journey can move us from being in need of a breakthrough to becoming the answer to someone else’s prayer. Our ultimate goal is to have enough breathing room in our finances to meet the needs of those around us. [01:12:25]

“Take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags.” (Matthew 25:28, NIV)

Reflection: As you consider God’s desire to bless your faithfulness, who in your life might God be wanting to bless through you? What would it look like to steward your resources with their need in mind?

Sermon Summary

Jesus’ parable of the talents reframes money as entrusted resource rather than personal property. The narrative begins with an owner giving varying sums to servants, calling the hearer to a posture of stewardship: give God the first portion, then manage the remaining resources on purpose. The life God intends is not accidental; deliberate habits, planning, and consistent choices produce fruit that looks like natural talent but grows out of disciplined stewardship. Tithing grounds the heart in obedience, but serious discipleship applies diligence to the remaining 90% so money fuels kingdom purpose instead of anxiety or self-indulgence.

Ownership belongs to God, so earthly wealth carries divine accountability. Recognizing that nothing is ultimately “mine” shifts responsibility and relieves the illusion that control rests solely with the individual. That posture also invites God to be active partner and judge in financial life: if something breaks or fails, the steward can pray from humility instead of entitlement. Every pound, then, must answer to a purpose; allocation and intentional budgeting turn vague resources into means for mercy, mission, and family care.

Practical steps root these truths. The community model shows deliberate allocation: tithe, staff support, program funding, venue costs, savings, and administration—each portion serves a clear aim. Personal stewardship requires a written budget and weekly or monthly reconciliation. Bringing finances into the light removes the power of fear and shame; facing facts converts wandering drift into accountable adjustment. Fear of the facts only prolongs bondage, while gratitude, honest accounting, and responsibility create space to bless others.

Diligence attracts reward in the parable’s logic: careful work multiplies entrusted resources, while hiding them invites loss. The aim of prosperity here reframes wealth as breathing room to meet needs around the steward, to become part of others’ breakthroughs rather than merely improving comfort. Practical ministry responds to stuckness, fear, and cynicism with prayer and community, opening an altar of surrender so hearts can realign with God’s authority and purpose for money.

Key Takeaways

1. Live on purpose with money Intentional financial habits convert random spending into kingdom strategy. Deliberate planning, routine choices, and practiced disciplines create the appearance of ease that others call “talent,” but which actually springs from sustained stewardship. Treating money as a tool rather than an idol reshapes daily decisions toward generosity and mission. [50:30]
2. Own nothing; steward everything Adopt a posture that all resources originate from God and return to God’s purpose. This frees the heart from entitlement and reframes loss, repair, and relational strains as shared concerns under divine sovereignty. Stewardship then becomes an act of worship, not mere accounting. [54:14]
3. Allocate every pound with purpose Give each income pound an assignment: tithe, necessities, savings, ministry, and margin. Allocation enacts intention and makes blessing reproducible—resources directed by purpose serve others rather than simply fueling desire. A clear plan prevents drift and creates room to answer real needs. [61:36]
4. Face facts; reconcile and receive Bring finances into the light through budgets and regular reconciliation instead of hiding from the truth. Fear of the facts prolongs bondage; gratitude and honest accounting produce freedom to act, adjust, and grow. Diligent reconciliation invites multiplication and opens pathways to bless others. [66:25]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[43:04] - Parable introduction: talents and stewardship
[43:27] - The kingdom and the parable
[47:43] - Tithe first; steward the 90%
[50:58] - Make it count: live on purpose
[54:14] - I own nothing: posture of stewardship
[59:22] - Every pound has a purpose
[63:45] - Church allocation and budgeting example
[64:11] - Write a budget; stick to it
[66:25] - Reconcile regularly; guard your flocks
[69:14] - Fear of the facts: bring to light
[72:25] - Diligence leads to reward
[74:20] - Invitation: altar and prayer
[78:32] - Closing worship and benediction

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
Matthew 25:14–30 (NIV)
*Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.*

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Observation questions

According to the parable, what did the master do before leaving on his journey, and how did he distribute his wealth?
What specific actions did the servants with five and two bags of gold take, and what was the result?
How did the servant with one bag of gold respond, and what reason did he give for his action?
What happened when the master returned and settled accounts with each servant?

Interpretation questions

The master entrusted his wealth “each according to his ability.” What might this imply about how God views and distributes resources to people?
The servant who hid the money said, “I was afraid.” How might fear prevent someone from stewarding resources well?
The master commended the faithful servants with the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” What does this reveal about what God values in stewardship?
The parable ends with the unfaithful servant losing what he had. What does this suggest about the relationship between responsibility and reward in God’s economy?

Application questions

If all resources ultimately belong to God, how might that change the way you view your income, possessions, or even your time? [54:14]
What would it look like to “give every pound a purpose” in your budget? Are there areas where money is currently being spent without intentionality? [01:01:36]
The parable highlights the importance of diligence and action. What’s one practical step you could take this week to better steward what God has entrusted to you?
Have you ever avoided facing financial realities out of fear or shame? What would it look like to “bring finances into the light” through honest budgeting or accountability? [01:09:14]
How could having “breathing room” in your finances allow you to participate in meeting others’ needs or become part of someone else’s breakthrough? [52:44]
In what areas of life (not just finances) do you tend to “live by accident” rather than “on purpose”? How can you apply stewardship principles there?
Is there a specific fear, stuckness, or cynicism holding you back from trusting God with your resources? What would it look like to surrender that to Him in prayer? [01:15:04]

Sermon Clips

you, Jesus. Prosperous does not mean the house that you live in. I wanna redefine prosperity for the purpose of these few remaining minutes that we have for this message and for you to consider prosperity to be that you have given to you by god enough breathing space in your budget to actually help meet other people's needs. That's the definition of prosperity that we're talking about. Not a better holiday, a bigger house, a bigger car, whatever. Those stuff. God's not too fussed what car you drive. He's bothered what kind of person you are driving that car. Yeah. [00:52:37] (39 seconds) #RedefineProsperity

You wouldn't be able to breathe in and out. There will be no respiratory system oxygenating your blood when you breathe in and out if it wasn't for God. So, therefore, everything you have ultimately comes from God. The minute you recognize or posture yourself in that way, it opens up possibilities. One, one Timothy six verse seven says this, for we brought nothing into the world, and we take nothing out of it. In 2020, we had some, minor problems with our house, and we had to move out. And it just happened that my parents [00:54:49] (40 seconds) #AllComesFromGod

were going on a world cruise. Say la di da. La di da. For the translation app, that means I don't know what it means. But my mom and dad were away for six weeks, and so we were able to move into their house for six weeks, and it was a real blessing. But let me tell you, it was no generous act on my behalf to let them come back when they got back. Yeah. If I changed the locks and said, no. No. No. This is my house now. That's called squatting. I think sometimes we're like squatters with god. We take that which he's given us that belongs to him that we're supposed to steward and go, this is mine now, my precious. [00:55:29] (43 seconds) #RespectGodsGifts

And when god comes to, you know, you know, ask of it, we're like, no. No. No. No. No. No. I've changed the locks. You're not coming in. My mom and dad had every right at any point to come home from their holiday and not knock. They had a key, and they walked in. And I couldn't say, can you come back in a few days? Because it's their house. I own nothing. [00:56:12] (24 seconds) #GodCanAskBack

The good thing about that, although it sounds on the surface a little kinda like it's not good, well, two things. Number one, it means that god can ask for it back at any time. And, really, I have no right to say to my parents, well, you gave it me, so therefore, it's mine now. No. No. No. They could ask at any point. They can do what they want because it's their house. I was just grateful that we didn't have water dripping in on our heads for six weeks because that's what we came from, and it was an absolute blessing that we were able to have it. And so if God comes to you and ask you to give something, [00:56:37] (39 seconds) #CheerfulGiverMindset

the reason why the bible says he loves a cheerful giver is because it's someone who understands this isn't mine anyway. I'm gonna give it to God because he's asking for it because it's his. And so every week when we take our offering, every year when we do our vision offering, that is an opportunity for you to establish again in your heart and the world around you that I owe nothing. This all belongs to God. I'm not a money is not my master. God is my master. Money serves me in the purposes of God. I serve God. [00:57:15] (34 seconds) #MoneyServesPurpose

The second thing, and this is even better, is that if it's all gods, then it's his problem when it's not working. You can pray, god, your car is broke. Your car has an oil leak, Jesus. You can say, God, the spouse that you gave me that belongs to you, I never do that. My spouse does. Those children that you blessed me with, there's a problem, and thank god it's your problem as well as mine because I'm just a steward. And I thank god for my spouse, the love of my life, twenty seven years married in September. I did that knowing we'd get a chair. Forgive me. My children don't belong to me. They're a gift from God. [00:57:49] (69 seconds) #GodSharesTheBurden

I own nothing. Second thing from this parable is every pound has a purpose. Verse 15 says this, to one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, listen to this phrase, each according to his ability. God knows your ability better than you. I know that because in scripture, it's illustrated a few times. When when Jesus fed 5,000 people, this was not a parable. This was an actual miracle that happened. The bible says that the disciples got to the edge of their ability with the resource that they had, and they went to Jesus and said, we can't feed these people. You feed them. And Jesus said, no. You feed them. [00:59:04] (44 seconds) #GiftsAccordingToAbility

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