Big Idea
Quoting the message: Giving is something God wants for us, not from us, end quote. — He made us to be givers, and that's an act of worship that brings us joy, not loss.
Giving isn't a demand God squeezes out of us — it's a gift He made us for, like a father inviting a scared kid down a water slide because he knows the joy on the other side. When we let go and trust God with our money, He catches us at the bottom, and what looked like drowning turns into closeness with Him and victory in areas we never expected.
Key points
1We were made to worship, and worship means embracing that we were made by God and for God — including in how we handle money.
Pastor Bill opens with the picture of kids afraid to go down a water slide, some eager, some frozen with fear, to describe how people respond to being told they were made 'for' something rather than just told to do it. He says giving is the topic in this series that makes people reach for their floaties and refuse to swim anymore.
2Israel's 81 days of battle cries followed by running from Goliath pictures how we can worship loudly and still refuse to trust God with our finances.
Working through 1 Samuel 17, Pastor Bill shows how Goliath taunted Israel twice a day for 40 days and Saul and the army, despite their worship rally cries, were terrified and ran. He connects this directly to churchgoers who sing 'hoorah' to Jesus but say 'oh no' the moment giving comes up, arguing that declaring God's glory means following Him, not just singing at Him.
3Eliab's anger at David for merely asking about the fight reveals how we get mad at the mirror instead of facing our own fear and lack of faith.
Pastor Bill unpacks David's older brother Eliab belittling him for asking about the king's reward, arguing Eliab was really angry because David's willingness exposed his own cowardice. He applies this to how people lash out at preachers or the church over giving messages, when the real issue is fear of losing control.
4David's faithfulness in small things (fighting lions and bears as a shepherd) qualified him to fight the giant, showing giving flows from a heart already trusting God in the little things.
He walks through David's resume to Saul — killing a lion and a bear with his bare hands — framing this not as cockiness but faithfulness, and ties it to his own story of learning to give as a young, underpaid youth pastor who made excuses until his heart changed.
5There are concrete reasons to give: because Jesus asks us to, because giving makes us feel closer to Him, because we believe in the local church's mission, and because it teaches our children not to be selfish.
Pastor Bill lists four (of seven) reasons his family gives, tying each to scripture and personal story — Luke 6 and Matthew 6 on giving being for us, John 3:16 on love always giving, the church's building and groundbreaking as shared victory, and his own kids' Christmas mission boxes teaching generosity.
6David ran quickly at Goliath instead of stalling, modeling that we shouldn't delay obedience by pretending to 'pray about' something God has already commanded.
He highlights that David 'quickly ran' at the giant rather than procrastinating, and challenges the common Christian delay tactic of saying 'I need to pray about it' when God has already clearly spoken about giving. He says you don't need to pray about doing something God already told you to do.
7Killing the Goliath of money in your life causes the surrounding army of other struggles — marriage stress, anxiety, selfishness — to fall too.
Pastor Bill closes by naming money as the biggest Goliath many believers face, and promises that defeating it, like David's kill routing the whole Philistine army, causes other issues to collapse as well. He returns to the slide picture: letting go, trusting God to catch you at the bottom, is what worship and giving actually require.
Application
Pastor Bill frames the ask as running quickly at the giant instead of stalling with excuses about not being ready.
Stop making excuses and start giving now
Don't wait until you feel financially ready or 'have the armor' — take what you have, like David's sling and stones, and begin giving this week rather than delaying.
Give first, not from the leftovers
Decide a percentage to give to God before paying bills or spending elsewhere, letting your giving determine your standard of living rather than the reverse.
Make Rock Point your primary place of giving
If this is your church family, give here first rather than scattering gifts elsewhere, since God called you to be part of this local mission and its victories, including the upcoming groundbreaking on December 8.
Invite your kids into your giving
Don't give secretly — explain to your children why you're giving and let them participate, as Pastor Bill's family did with mission boxes and saved coins, so they learn generosity instead of selfishness.
Stop delaying with 'I need to pray about it'
Recognize that stalling on something God has already clearly commanded is an excuse, not spiritual caution — run at the decision to give instead of talking yourself out of it.
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
