A Year in the Wheelbarrow

Summary

Podcast Summary: Red Rocks Church Weekend Messages

Episode: A Year in the Wheelbarrow
Date: November 29, 2025
Host: Red Rocks Church

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Overview

This episode, titled "A Year in the Wheelbarrow," forms part of the Kingdom Builders series at Red Rocks Church. The message centers on biblical faith, trust, and generosity—specifically, the call to surrender finances to God's purposes and to experience a year of living by faith in "God's wheelbarrow." Through scripture, story, and humor, the speaker (presumably Pastor Doug) encourages listeners to move beyond belief into actionable trust, particularly around financial giving, and challenges them to see how a year of consistent, faith-filled generosity can transform both lives and communities.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Church and Kingdom Builders Context

• Red Rocks Church positions itself as “imperfect people pursuing a perfect God” and emphasizes the global impact of the Church.
• The Kingdom Builders series is about much more than finances; it's about legacy, building something greater for future generations (01:01).
• Celebrating over 1,000 baptisms across campuses recently underscores God's movement (01:51).

  "We are imperfect people pursuing a perfect God." (00:41, A)

2. Faith Is More Than Belief—It’s Trust

• Opening with Hebrews 11, the speaker distinguishes between believing God can act and trusting Him enough to act accordingly (02:55–04:12).
• Charles Blondin's story (the tightrope walker who challenged onlookers to get in his wheelbarrow) is used as a metaphor—the gap between cheering faith and actionable trust (04:12–06:56).

  "Faith is both the belief and the trust. So belief is the mindset, trust is the action. Belief says, 'Yeah, you can do that.' ... Trust says, 'I'll get in the wheelbarrow.'" (06:56, A)
  "The more that you get to know God, the more you'll trust him. And the more you start to trust God, the more that you'll start to hop into the wheelbarrow of life with God." (07:27, A)

3. Trusting With Finances—God’s Invitation to Test Him

• Malachi 3:10 is highlighted as the only instance where God says, "Test me," specifically about financial giving (08:54–09:18).

  "Test me in this, that's key, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven." (08:56, B)

• The speaker asks listeners: What if you gave "God a year in the wheelbarrow," trusting Him fully with your finances? (10:10)

  "If you're wanting God to do more in 2026, then I suggest finishing 2025, not just hoping for it, but sowing into it." (10:36, A)

4. Acknowledging the Emotions and Barriers Around Church & Money

• The pastor transparently discusses discomfort around tithing messages—both from his own life and in the broader church culture (11:23–12:26).

• Many people have had bad experiences or skepticism tied to churches and financial matters, perpetuated by digital "church hurt" (12:17–12:44).

• He offers two other churches’ names for listeners mistrustful of Red Rocks, stating his deeper concern is for people to be "planted" and generous somewhere, for their own sakes (15:44–16:44).

  "Don't let your lack of trust in people keep you from finding out that your generosity God will use to completely change your life." (16:44, B)

5. Scriptural Models of Faithful Generosity

• Hebrews 11:4 (Abel’s offering) underscores that real faith is shown by first-and-best giving, not leftover giving (18:03–18:37).

  "Abel's mindset was, it's all yours in the first place. I'm an owner of nothing. I'm a steward of everything. You can have all of me." (18:19, A)

6. Practical Steps: Living a Year in the Wheelbarrow

1. Get in the Wheelbarrow – Start Somewhere

• Begin with giving a small percentage (even 2%) and watch what God does as you build trust (19:51–20:13).
• Quoting 2 Corinthians 9:6 and the parable of the talents, he suggests faith multiplies, not maintains (21:17–22:29).

  "Faith does not maintain. Faith multiplies." (20:28, B – via Pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr.)

2. Stay in the Wheelbarrow – Make Giving Consistent & Grow

• Consistency (recurring giving) reduces the recurring battle and builds long-term impact; he suggests increasing the percentage as faith grows (25:20–28:32).
• Tithing is defined as the "first and best 10%", and is seen as budgeting obedience and planning to be generous (28:32–29:25).

3. See It Through – Give Above and Beyond

• Go beyond tithing in response to God's leading and as a marker of trust and abundance thinking (31:58–33:22).
• Generosity is not God's way to get money from us but a way to transform our hearts and lives (33:27–34:06).

  "He needs to trust you. Can God get money through you? Are you a vessel that stewards what you've been given? Or are you a vault that stores the blessing of God?" (33:44, A)

7. Personal Stories and Honest Reflections

• The speaker recounts the early years of marriage, financial struggles, and tithing without understanding, leading eventually to deepening trust and provisions (13:28–14:09, 34:31–36:27).

• He dismisses prosperity gospel tropes ("we got a check for $75,000"—joking, it didn’t happen!), instead emphasizing slow, steady blessing and peace, not always financial windfalls (36:27–36:55).

  "Up until this point in my life, this is my testimony...God takes care of his generous kids." (36:53, B)

• He notes a consistent pattern: those who tithe and trust are "always blessed," living with more peace and freedom, regardless of circumstances, versus those who don’t, who are often worried and stressed (29:45–30:39).

8. The Heart of Generosity—God's Model

• Creation itself is an outflow of God's abundance, not lack (32:21–33:22).
• We were created in God's image as stewards with an abundance mindset; sin turned this to scarcity and self-preservation (32:17–33:22).

  "The lie since the very beginning of time from the devil is, take what's yours, because God is holding out on you. So don't build his kingdom, build your castle, which in light of eternity, might as well be sandcastles on the beach as the tide is coming in." (33:11, A)

9. The Corporate Challenge—Impact and Legacy

• Kingdom Builders isn’t about buildings, but transformed lives; buildings are channels for this purpose (44:05).
• The Church is in a unique moment: spiritual hunger is rising globally, and this is a window ("harvest") that must be seized now (42:51–43:41).
• Over 12,000 salvations and 2,610 baptisms at Red Rocks in 2025—tangible bottom line results of faithful giving (44:22).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "Faith is both the belief and the trust. Belief says, 'Yeah, you can do that.' ... Trust says, 'I'll get in the wheelbarrow.'" (06:56, A)
• "If Jasmine can trust this 120-pound kid with parachute pants and a flying rug with her life, then I can probably trust the creator of the universe with my money." (08:29, A)
• "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse ... Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven." (08:56, B)
• "If you're having financial weight and burdens and troubles now, then to me it sounds like you need financial breakthrough in your life. Like now. ... Now sounds like the perfect time to try him." (09:34, A)
• "Don't let your lack of trust in people keep you from finding out that your generosity God will use to completely change your life." (16:44, B)
• "Abel's mindset was, it's all yours in the first place. I'm an owner of nothing. I'm a steward of everything. You can have all of me." (18:19, A)
• "Faith does not maintain. Faith multiplies." (20:28, B)
• "Tithing is just trusting. And that's what I love about it...it actually forces you to budget your obedience." (29:18, B)
• "Money will never give you the security that your soul is searching for. And tithing is trusting." (30:48, A)
• "Generosity is how we fight to become those stewards with a mindset of abundance again." (33:27, B)
• "God knows how to bless his kids who trust him with their treasure." (37:26, A)
• "He’s a father before he’s anything else. And he’s a good dad." (37:48, A)
• "The presence of God is not on the other side of the tightrope. The presence of God is in here. The presence of God. The promised land is not there. Your promised land is wherever God's presence is in your life." (46:58, A)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |-----------|----------------------------------------------| | 00:41 | Red Rocks values and Kingdom Builders intro | | 04:12 | Charles Blondin wheelbarrow story | | 06:56 | Faith: belief vs. trust | | 08:54 | Malachi 3:10—God’s challenge to test Him | | 10:10 | The "Year in the Wheelbarrow" challenge | | 12:26 | Transparency about church hurt & finances | | 16:44 | Trust and generosity beyond this church | | 18:03 | Abel’s example: first and best offering | | 19:51 | Get in the wheelbarrow: start somewhere | | 25:20 | Stay in the wheelbarrow: consistency & growth| | 28:32 | Tithing defined: first and best 10% | | 33:27 | Generosity as God’s character | | 36:53 | God’s faithfulness to generous children | | 42:51 | Current spiritual climate and opportunity | | 44:22 | Results: salvations and baptisms in 2025 | | 46:58 | The presence of God is the true promised land|

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Flow, Language, and Tone

The tone of the message is warm, authentic, humorous, and motivating. The pastor draws from biblical stories, modern analogies (Disney, poker, Aladdin), and personal experiences to make scriptural principles accessible. He is candid about struggles, never promises "prosperity gospel" quick fixes, and underscores that generosity is about freedom, trust, and transformation more than about numbers or institutional benefit.

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Conclusion: The Challenge

Listeners are called to trust God by living generously for a year—"giving God a year in the wheelbarrow"—and to watch Him work. This is presented as a pathway to both personal freedom and to advancing the mission of Jesus through the Church: “Start somewhere, make it consistent, grow over time, see it through to the end and go above and beyond. Trust him, try him, test him, and see that he isn’t a very good father who knows everything that you need.” (45:14, B)

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Key Invitation:
Get in the wheelbarrow. Build the kingdom with your trust—because, as the episode closes, the foundation of God’s kingdom is the most secure place you could ever stand.

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Transcript

[A]

Come on, Red Rocks Church. Come on. Do you believe the presence of God is in this place? Then if you believe it, give him a shout of praise right here and right now. Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go. Welcome to Red Rocks Church. Can we make some noise for every red rocker joining us? From Denver to Austin to Brussels to beyond, all over the world and loud and proud for the men and women at our correctional facility campuses? We love you so much. Come on, man. And you know what? Just so there's no confusion about who we are, what we believe, or what this is, we are imperfect people pursuing a perfect God. We believe Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. And this is not a concert, even though the music's awesome. And I can say that because I.

[B]

Have nothing to do with it, nor.

[A]

Is it a TED Talk or a self help seminar. This is the Church of Jesus Christ.

[B]

Amen.

[A]

This is the most powerful evangelical tool on the planet. And when you give to this place and serve at this place and pray for this place, and you invite your friends and your co workers to this place, make no mistake about it, you are investing into and building the most irresistible movement that history knows about, the Church of Jesus. And this is about something so much bigger than Red Rocks Church. This is about the Kingdom of God and this series Kingdom Built Builders. It's for us, about way more than finances. This is about building stories, building something that is bigger than all of us, building a thriving church to pass on to the next generation. For that is what it means to be a Kingdom Builder.

[B]

Amen.

[A]

Two weeks ago, we kicked off Kingdom Builders 2025 the right way by baptizing. Don't miss this. 1157 people across all locations. That's crazy, man. We never get used to that. And then last week, Pastor Sean preached the house down about biblical giving and doing money God's way. And honestly, the reason he speaks with so much authority, I don't know if you've noticed that in those messages he preaches. There's authority in it. And the reason is because. And I've had front row seats to watch. He and Jill live this stuff out every single day better than almost anybody else I've seen. They are two of the most generous people I have ever met. Can we make some noise for our past pastors who lead with authenticity? Preach what you practice. I love you today. I'm going to give you the title in just a second. Might have something to do with this wheelbarrow. That's on stage. But we're going to read the first.

[B]

Four chapters of Hebrews 11 first. Here we go.

[A]

Faith shows us the reality of what we hope for. It is the evidence of things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in the days of old earned a good reputation. By faith, we understand that the entire universe was formed at God's command.

[B]

And what we now see did not.

[A]

Come from anything that can be seen. In other words, faith makes the invisible visible, much like Jesus came to make an invisible God tangible. The church is here to make an invisible kingdom to tangible, invisible as well.

[B]

And the delivery system is our faith. It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel's offering was. It was evidence that he was a righteous man and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith. That's so good. This message is called A Year in the Wheelbarrow. A Year in the Wheelbarrow. God, we love you so much. Would you inspire, Would you encourage us today? Would you invite us into your story? Would you challenge us to take steps of faith? We love you all for your glory in Jesus name.

[A]

And everybody said, amen. Go ahead. Go ahead and give away a high five. Take a seat. A year in the wheelbarrow. Back in the late 1800s, there was a man by the name of Charles Blondin, the Michael Jordan of tightrope walking, if you will. And Charles Blandin was the very first man to tie a tightrope 1100ft across Niagara Falls and walk all the way across it. And everywhere he went, he gathered crowds. Because Blondin was. He was a man of the people. Which means he didn't just walk across it. Like, that's boring. You know, you gotta give the people what they want, make it even more dangerous. And so one time he walked across Niagara Falls. A tightrope. He did it on stilts. There was another day where he brought a portable like stove, went halfway, and then made an omelet. I'm like my guy cooking breakfast hundreds of feet above, 600,000 gallons of rushing water every single second. And the crowd went wild every time. But then one day he decided to push the limits. And so he filled a wheelbarrow with a few hundred pounds of cement and he walked across the tightrope from one side to the other, blindfolded, because why would you not do it blindfolded? And he gets all the way to the other side and then he dumps out the cement like it's child's play, and the crowd's going wild. And now he decides to do some crowd work. And he's feeding off the energy. And he's like, who thinks I can go all the way back? And everybody's cheering, we love you, Charles. Marry me, Charles. You know, and so he. He's feeding off this energy. He goes, okay, who thinks I can push a person in this wheelbarrow back to the other side? And people are screaming, you're the man, Blondeen. You're the Godfather. I don't really know why I said that, but it just felt like it fit, you know? And then so everybody's hyped. And then comes the fatal question. He says, okay, which one of you is gonna get in the wheelbarrow? And let me push you from this side to that. Crickets.

[B]

I imagine, like a tumbleweed blowing across the quieted crowd.

[A]

And they were once cheering, and now this has become a pretty famous story because of the hundreds of believers, because they were believers who were present, not a single person had enough trust to.

[B]

Get in the wheelbarrow.

[A]

Faith is both the belief and the trust. So belief is the mindset, trust is the action. Belief says, yeah, you can do that. Yeah, for sure. Like, I believe, but trust says, I'll get in the wheelbarrow. Trust. When you trust, there's evidence of your trust. Hebrews 11:1. One more time. Faith shows the reality of what we hope for. So there's the mindset part. It's also the evidence of things we cannot see. You know, I think the more that you get to know God, the more you'll trust him. And the more you start to trust God, the more that you'll start to hop into the wheelbarrow of life with God. And the more you get into the wheelbarrow of life with God, the more they'll start to be evidence of God's work in your life via your trust in the life that you live and the decisions that you make and even the finances that you steward. Trust is built by knowing God. And then trust is built even more by going with God. God reminds me of that scene in Aladdin. I know it's not really a scene, it's drawings in a cartoon. But when Aladdin's on the magic carpet and he pulls up to Jasmine's palace balcony and he stretches out his hand and says, do you What? Do you trust me? Because if you trust me, I can show you the world. A whole new world, a dazzling place you never knew. It's taking so much self control of me.

[B]

Not to sing it right now.

[A]

Cause if I did, I would crush it. And you know I would. But it would distract you from the point that I'm trying to make. And the point I'm trying to make right now is if Jasmine can trust this 120 pound kid with parachute pants and a flying rug with her life, then I can probably trust the creator of the universe with my. With my money. Malachi, chapter three. Or if you're new to the Bible.

[B]

Malachi, chapter three, verse ten.

[A]

It says this. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, that's key, says.

[B]

The Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing, there will not be room enough to store it.

[A]

The one place in the Bible where.

[B]

God says, test me because he knows.

[A]

How scary it can be to trust.

[B]

Him with something as precious to us as our treasure, something that we need for life. That's why God says, try me and.

[A]

See that I don't take care of you. So I read that and I go, so why would you wait to try him then? If you're having financial weight and burdens and troubles now, then to me it sounds like you need financial breakthrough in your life. Like now. Which would mean now sounds like the perfect time to try him. If he says, you can truly test me and see that I won't take care of you, why would you wait to try him? So here's my question. What if in between this kingdom builder's.

[B]

Offering and next year's kingdom builder's offering, you gave God an entire year in the wheelbarrow and didn't just believe that Malachi 3 is real, but you trusted him enough to really do money his way, and you tried him just to see what happens.

[A]

Like, if you believe that God. If you're wanting God to do more in 2026, then I suggest finishing 2025, not just hoping for it, but sowing into it. Let's finish 2025 with some faith so that we can start 2026 with focus. And because we should be the people who live life in such a way that is, it demands an explanation from the rest of the crowd who don't know him as much as we know him. Cause we don't just believe.

[B]

We put our weight on this. We trust him. You ever play poker? Cause you shouldn't. But.

[A]

In Texas hold', em, you're dealt two cards, and you hold those two cards kind of close to the Chest.

[B]

But for the rest of this message, I want to put both my cards on the table to be as transparent and real as I can possibly be. My first card is I know how emotional the topic of giving can be. Cause I know from firsthand experience most of you would prefer I preach about any other topic than money. You're like, pastor, just give the lust talk again, all right? Preach about pornography.

[A]

I don't care. Just don't talk to me about my money. You know, so two things. Number one, I'm not. I'm talking to us about God's money. But that's not even meant to be a gotcha, because I get it, all right? I really do get how challenging this whole thing can be because I'm human.

[B]

And I'm in it with you guys, all right?

[A]

And I know it's emotional, this topic of money, because maybe you walk in here and you've had a bad experience.

[B]

Experience at a church where they've mishandled money.

[A]

Or you have a friend who has.

[B]

A friend who knows somebody who knows somebody who had that experience.

[A]

Or you listen to a podcast with.

[B]

The church that messed up, or you.

[A]

Watched a documentary about a pastor that messed up. And it seems like church hurt is.

[B]

Digitally contagious these days. And we all kind of catch the virus and then we all show up together and there's sort of this ethos.

[A]

Of, oh, church talking about money.

[B]

Something's.

[A]

Something's off about that because God doesn't care.

[B]

Oh, God cares about this. This is the topic that Jesus talked about. He would not shut up about this topic because it's not about money. Like Pastor Sean said last week, it is, but it's not. It's actually about your heart. And I know how emotional this topic can be. I have a vivid memory of two years into marriage. Me and Sam were living paycheck to paycheck. We had a really rocky start to our marriage for a lot of reasons. Finances was just one of them. I was making $21,000 a year as a part time young adult pastor. She was folding clothes at Forever 21 while she was looking for another job. And here comes the end of the month and once again we're trying to figure out if we can even make rent. And we are tithing because somebody told.

[A]

Us we were supposed to, but they.

[B]

Didn'T tell us why or what it was supposed to be doing in our lives. And I'll never forget, Sam came home. It was like 9:30. She walked through the front door and I could tell she was Crying her whole commute. And she walked through the door and she. I'll never forget. She said, I hate Forever 21 so much. And I think I said something back.

[A]

Like, and my salary is going to be forever $21,000 for the rest of our marriage because God doesn't see us. And I know that feeling. I remember that like it was yesterday. And so last week, I asked God to break my heart. For those in our church carrying the.

[B]

Financial weight of the world on your shoulders, those who are terrified of your financial future, marriages that are on the rocks now because of money, the number one cause of divorce in our nation. And I just felt in my heart like it's thousands of people in our church, and no wonder Jesus had a lot to say about it. I know how it feels to go from carrying the weight of worry because you're doing money your way to doing money God's way and getting to release the burden of outcome to him. I swear, it feels like you take off a weight vest that you have been wearing your entire adult life. So my first card on the table, I. I want you to experience that. I want you to experience that generosity and giving God's way feels a lot like freedom. Not just write a check to a church, because you should. So that's the first card on the table. My second card on the table. I want you to be all in at Red Rocks Church.

[A]

I really do.

[B]

Not just to attend here, but to plant yourself in this house. To give your time, your talent, and your treasure here as an owner, as an investor. Because I believe in our vision and I believe in our stewardship, and I believe more than ever that the best is still yet to come.

[A]

But even more than that, I want you to be planted somewhere. Somewhere where you trust the church enough to go. I can plant myself in this house. So just so you know my heart a little bit more as we talk about money today, here are two other churches you can give to if you don't trust the motives here. Okay. Flatirons Church.

[B]

That's the church I went to right.

[A]

After I graduated college.

[B]

Awesome church. Making the same heaven as us.

[A]

More crowded Cornerstone Austin. This is a church plant starting next year, started by our own, our very.

[B]

Own Connor and Aaron Grimm in Austin. They're moving there next week to plant this.

[A]

They wouldn't mind. All right. If you gave your offering, if you gave your. It's my joy to put this on the screen.

[B]

It's my absolute joy.

[A]

And here's the reason. If you want to implement what I'm preaching about today, but you don't fully trust me or the motives of a church that's talking about money.

[B]

I get it, I get it. Don't let your lack of trust in people keep you from finding out that your generosity God will use to completely change your life.

[A]

Your life. God will use it to take you into a new chapter, a dazzling place you never a whole new world. Okay? I'm telling you, trust God. Try God. Test God. He tells you to. Because Hebrews 11, one of the most famous chapters in the entire Bible. And a lot of scholars have historically called it the hall of Faith. And like we read it begins with.

[B]

This definition of faith.

[A]

And then the rest of the chapter is a demonstration of faith. And the writer of Hebrews gives a list of people from the Old Testament who live their lives in the wheelbarrow with God out on a tightrope. And it's gonna list a bunch of them. Noah built, Abraham went, and Abraham believed. The Israelites marched, Rahab helped.

[B]

It keeps going.

[A]

But it's interesting to me, the very first thing the hall of Faith wants.

[B]

All of us to know is that.

[A]

Abel gave Hebrews 11:4.

[B]

It was by faith Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Remember Sean mentioned this last week. He brought his first and his best. Cain brought his leftovers. Cain had that mindset of is this enough?

[A]

Like, are we? That's good, right? Abel's mindset was, it's all yours. In the first place, I'm an owner of nothing. I'm a steward of everything. You can have all of me.

[B]

Thank you for letting me keep some of this.

[A]

And it was Abel who was blessed because of it.

[B]

Abel's offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith. And the author's whole point is this. Faith is not just believing God is real. Faith is trusting that God will move.

[A]

It's the difference between I believe that God could use Red Rock's church to continue to change the world. It's the difference between that and the trust that says, I trust it so much that I'll serve, that I'll pray, that I'll invite, that I'll give, that I'll sacrifice above and beyond during Kingdom Builders to see it happen. I'll get in the wheelbarrow because I don't just want to see what God's gonna do. I wanna be what God is going to do. See, Abel's offering was the Evidence of his faith. So if you want to give God a year in the wheelbarrow, the first thing you need to do is get in the wheelbarrow.

[B]

That's number one. You gotta start somewhere, get in the wheelbarrow. So let's just talk practically for a second. Like, maybe you try giving 2% out of a paycheck, and you go, God, what might you do with this 2%? I gotta get in. I gotta start somewhere. 2 Corinthians 9, 6 says this, remember this.

[A]

A farmer who plants only a few.

[B]

Seeds will get a small crop.

[A]

But the one who plants generously will.

[B]

Will get a generous crop.

[A]

Now, really quick, I think there's a.

[B]

Revelation there that actually has two levels to it.

[A]

The main level that we. That's the obvious one, is that if you sow a generous crop, you will reap a more abundant harvest than somebody who just sows a little bit, right? But don't also miss the fact that you gotta start somewhere, because maybe the first level is simply somebody who sows a little bit. Like that's better than somebody. Somebody who sows nothing. You gotta start. You gotta start somewhere. Give something, get into the wheelbarrow, start trying. God. Pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr. Says it this way. Faith does not maintain. Faith multiplies. Think about the parable of the talents, where one guy's given five, one is.

[B]

Given two, and one is given one.

[A]

And the Master comes back from his trip and says, what did you do with my money? And the two guys that had two in the family, they multiplied it, right? They had invested it, but the guy who had won just buried it.

[B]

He said, I was afraid of losing it.

[A]

So I just.

[B]

I just held onto it.

[A]

I just maintained it. And Jesus says, the master calls that.

[B]

Guy lazy and wicked and takes the.

[A]

Little he had away from him and gives it to those who would actually.

[B]

Do something with it.

[A]

If you ever find yourself looking around wondering why other people seem to be getting more opportunities or more open doors or more blessing, I'm gonna be careful here, because God is not a formula. But at the same time, God honors our stewardship. And you're looking around like, man, it seems like their lives are getting bigger and more promotions or more open doors. What, like it might be because you need to get the revelation that they already have, that faith does not just maintain what you've been given. Faith multiplies what you've been given. It's just. In order to multiply it, you gotta release what you got. You gotta start somewhere.

[B]

The first step is to simply get into the wheelbarrow.

[A]

A couple of years ago, my mom and dad, who are known around our.

[B]

House as Izzy and Pops, took us to Disney World. And we got to experience the happiest place on earth through the eyes of our kids. Will is positive that he flew the real Millennium Falcon, and Kinsley's completely convinced she met the real Rapunzel. It really was like magic experiencing it through kids. However, if I could go back, there's one thing I'd do different.

[A]

I would have taken out a second.

[B]

Mortgage on our house and bought the Lightning Lane pass. All right?

[A]

Now, if you don't know what a lightning lane pass is, it's the pass that lets you skip the line and go straight to the front. It's the pass that allows the other dad to swoop in and take the purple teacup that your daughter had been eyeing while you were in line in the Orlando humidity for 90 minutes for teacups. All right? And then they get that teacup and you just want to, like, punch him in the face, but you can't because it's the teacups and Mickey's always watching, you know?

[B]

This is the Lightning Lane pass. Just like the Magic Kingdom, God's kingdom has a lightning lane, and it is generosity. And sometimes we look around at blessed Christians with financial freedom and we wonder what makes them so special. Wanting to punch them in their face for having access to all of life's proverbial purple teacups, when in reality it.

[A]

Might be that they just have a revelation.

[B]

You need that. I need.

[A]

Like, let's humble ourselves here in God's kingdom. That revelation is this. The more generous you sow, the more abundant you yield. Because when you release what you got, you get what you give. This isn't self help. I'm quoting Jesus here. Like, farmers don't plant seeds and cry over them like, I just missed that seed. Because they know it's not goodbye. It's just. It's see you later. Like, you gotta get this. To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. To give above and beyond in an end of year offering is to believe in 2026 and what God wants to do in our church and in your life as well. God doesn't give trees. God gives seeds. And you hold onto that seed. That seed is all it will ever be. But not me, man.

[B]

I'm planting something.

[A]

I'm getting in the wheelbarrow, I'm starting somewhere.

[B]

And the next is this. Stay in the wheelbarrow, make it consistent, and grow over time. Because God is not calling you to a moment of generosity. Sometimes he does, but there's a zoomed out bigger picture. He's calling you to a life of generosity. And you gotta, like, learn to get comfy on the tightrope with Jesus. And maybe the second key is you gotta learn to stay in the wheelbarrow. That mindset of, well, I was in the wheelbarrow last year, but it kind of feels like I'm on a tightrope over Niagara Falls. Doesn't faith kind of feel fickle like that from time to time where you're like, I'm stepping into the unknown with Jesus. And this is scary. And even to this day, you guys, the topic of generosity has completely changed my life and completely change my marriage.

[A]

However, it's still very frustratingly difficult for.

[B]

Me because I'm human, okay?

[A]

I would way rather live on 100% of what I bring in than 90% of what I bring in. All right? Especially in times as crazy as these where you don't know what's gonna happen next year. And on top of that, then this whole Kingdom Builder series we do at the end of every year where we all pray that prayer, God, based on all the ways you bless me and my family, what can can I give to build your kingdom and not just mine? And we take an end of year above and beyond offering. I have the same problem as Sean does with Jill, with me and Sam. I know we're both going to pray that prayer.

[B]

And then her number is going to.

[A]

Be bigger than mine because it always is.

[B]

And we're going to go with her.

[A]

Number and not mine, because we always do. And God's going to come through because God always does. And it builds my faith every time, but it's like I have amnesia, you know, like, he comes through every time, but it's like, I was in the wheelbarrow, but then I want to get out of the wheelbarrow because who wants to be in a wheelbarrow over Niagara Falls? And it's still like, and I'm human. I'm like, I'd rather use that to go to Cancun than give it as a sacrifice. And it's always that moment.

[B]

The fight is to stay in it. So whether you're taking this step at Red Rocks or one of those other churches or a different church, what if you set up recurring giving, do it consistently, and then start to grow in it. And the recurring giving, here's the beauty of that, so you don't have to fight the same mental battle Every pay period of am I gonna stay in the wheelbarrow another two weeks or am I getting out? You set it and then you forget it. And what God can do over time and then just begin to grow in it. Like, you started at 2%. What if by February next year, you're given 3%? And then after Easter, mid April, you're like, you're at 4% and you skip 5% altogether. Then it's Kingdom Builders 20, 26, and you're given 6, 7%. You know, and it just had to, because if I didn't do it, somebody else in here would have yelled it out. I'm as mad as you. And then before you know it.

[A]

You.

[B]

Realize you are returning the first and best 10% to God, which is the tithe, by the way. And definitions matter. So to reiterate this for another week, when I say tithe, I don't just mean, like, you give sometimes. That is very beautiful. And that's where you are right now on your generosity journey. But that's not what tithing means. Tithing means the first and best tenth of every single paycheck is keyword returned to God and sowed into the church you're planted in. Because that is when God says, see that I won't open the floodgates of blessing over your life.

[A]

And you know what I've realized?

[B]

Tithing is just trusting.

[A]

And that's what I love about it. I've had a love hate relationship with it. And I've grown as I've gotten older.

[B]

To love it a lot more.

[A]

Because it actually forces you to budget your obedience. It forces you to plan to be generous.

[B]

Cause we all love the idea of being generous.

[A]

And we all wanna know that we.

[B]

Go to a church that's generous. But that's very different than you and me living generous.

[A]

And I'm so serious about this. It's like every friend I have or person I pastor who does money God's way or tith, it's like no matter the economy and no matter the paycheck they bring in, they're always using words like blessed. Like, I'm just. God's so good, isn't he? They're always fine. They're always just living free and living light. And that makes no common sense in the world. And yet on like, the flip side of that same coin, everybody I know, friends I have people I pastor, and I'm like speaking Christians who don't do money God's way yet and don't tithe, it's like, doesn't matter how much they're making, they're always stressed out. They're always worried about the economy, always worried about, are we gonna have enough? It's like, no matter how much they.

[B]

Have.

[A]

It'S actually never enough.

[B]

And.

[A]

See, money will never give you the security that your soul is searching for.

[B]

And tithing is trusting. Tithing is trusting. It forces you to get in here and stay in here. Cause what God can do. Like, there's moments of generosity, but then there's a life in the wheelbarrow and the legacy you could leave and the garden that you could cultivate over a life in the wheelbarrow, that when you return, the first God redeems the rest. And it makes no common sense at all. But in the kingdom of God, it makes all the uncommon sense in the world. And we are an uncommon church of uncommon followers of Jesus who sacrifice in an uncommon way. If you gave God a year in the wheelbarrow, you'd be finding out that tithing will change your life, but you'll also be finding out that tithing will help us to continue changing the world. So the final one would be this. See it through to the end. See it through to the end. Give above and beyond.

[A]

Because, you know, let's just be honest.

[B]

Giving was God's idea in the first place.

[A]

I don't know if you've ever thought about that, but it wasn't the idea of a bunch of ambitious church leaders 100 years ago. It was actually like, we live generously.

[B]

Because we're made in the image of a generous God.

[A]

Creation in and of itself did not happen because God was lacking or lonely and needed us to fill a void.

[B]

That he had in his heart.

[A]

It was an overflow of his generosity and his abundance in every way. Like, I didn't have my kids so they could do chores for me. I had my kids so I could enjoy them as they enjoy this gift called life. Creation itself is an overflow of God's generous spirit. And we're made in the image of a generous God. We were created in the garden to be stewards with an abundant mindset. But then the fall in Genesis 3 made us sinners with a scarcity mindset. You better take what's yours. And the lie since the very beginning of time from the devil is, take what's yours, because God is holding out on you. So don't build his kingdom, build your castle, which in light of eternity, might as well be sandcastles on the beach.

[B]

As the tide is coming in.

[A]

Generosity is how we fight to become.

[B]

Those stewards with a mindset of abundance again. That when it comes to resources, God is right now wanting to get it to you. He just needs to know that he can get it through you.

[A]

He needs to trust you. Can God get money through you? Are you a vessel that stewards what you've been given? Or are you a vault that stores the blessing of God from heaven is like a river. It just flows until we block it. And I believe returning our first and our best 10% to God is obedience.

[B]

And generosity is giving above and beyond. And it's actually not about money. It's about the heart. It's not about an amount. It's about the sacrifice. The rich young ruler, he probably gave a lot, but his heart completely missed Jesus. Meanwhile, the widow who gave those two coins, she gave less money than the rich young ruler by far, but she was way more generous. That's why even like our legacy team here at Red Rocks is not a rich kids club, it's a team for those who have the spiritual gift of generosity. The widow with the two coins would have been on that team. The rich young ruler probably wouldn't have had an interest. Cause it's nothing to do with the mount and everything to do with heart. For where your treasure is, your heart will be also. I remember that night when Sam came home from Forever 21 and we had our crisis of faith and we had been tithing because somebody told us we were supposed to be tithing. And when I first heard that, I was really frustrated and mad because I actually never got a reason or a why or what it was supposed to do or unlock in our lives. And I remember that night thinking, I'm sure the church will be fine without our little contribution, which is true. But realize that night, this is actually not about the church at all. This is about us. And God. Giving will always be about you and your heavenly Father. And we've learned a lot of things the hard way. We've learned a few things the easy way by the grace of God. This is one of those things we have learned the easy way. And that night, I remember our conversation, we just. We said, you know what? We're gonna stay in the wheelbarrow. We didn't actually say that because I just had this metaphor this morning on my flight. But. This is one of those days where we decide who our family is going to be for decades to come. And I want God to be able to trust us with the little we have right now. So we continued to tithe and give and three weeks later, we got a check for 75,000. I'm kidding. No, we didn't. I wish we did.

[A]

In Jesus name, that shall be your story. I wish I could tell you I had that story. But it was many more years of.

[B]

Even church planning before I broke the.

[A]

40K a year barrier. I remember that was a big celebration in our condo. But, guys, here's. I'm 37 years old, and up until this point in my life, this is my testimony. Cause I don't know much, but I do know this, that God takes care.

[B]

Of his generous kids.

[A]

He does. You can't convince me otherwise. All right, These are the words of David at the end of his Life in Psalm 37, two of my favorite verses in the Bible. I was young and now I'm old. He's reflecting on his life. Yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread. They are always generous and they lend freely. Their children will be a blessing. And I've been at this journey called generosity now for 17 years. I've tied down a lot of paychecks. I've been through a lot of end of year offerings. I've watched a lot of friends be in it with us and do the exact same thing. And I used to be young, and I'm still kind of young. All right, depending on the room I'm in. You don't have to answer that. I'm just gonna go with it. But I'm old. Older than I was. Got more gray in my hair. Okay. But I can tell you up until this point in my life that God knows how to bless his kids who trust him with their treasure. He knows what you need. But then, even beyond that, he knows how to bless you. He really does. He's a father before he's anything else. And he's a good dad. And I've just seen that so many times in the lives of people so close to me where I know their financial situation, and I know that they're in the wheelbarrow when it comes to doing money God's way. And they just. They're always using words like, we're just blessed. Even in times where, like, on paper and on a spreadsheet, on Excel, it doesn't really seem like you should be saying that you're blessed, but they have so much peace and so much joy, feeling so much purpose, just trusting. Hey, God's got this. They live freely and lightly. It seems like their kids are blessed to be a blessing. You can't convince me this isn't real. And I will never preach how God.

[B]

Chooses to bless his generous kids. That is above my pay grade and up to him. But until my final breath, I will preach that he will. He knows how to bless his kids who trust him with their treasure. And all he's ever wanted to do is give to you. It's just in order to do that, he needs access to every part of your life, including your finances. That tends to be the last little room in our hearts that we let God into. Some of us never do. That's locked. And we take that key with us to the grave. So I just wanted to say, man, as a guy who gets it, if giving is still something you have to do and not yet something you get to do, man, you are still missing the goodness of God's heart towards you. I think more than anything, that's why I want to challenge you to get in this wheelbarrow for a year. Not because of, like, blessing that I believe will be unlocked in your life. And whatever that looks like, that's up to him. Not. Okay, that's up to him. But I think you'll find that he's better than you thought. That's why here, like, we'll never ask you to give a dime. All we'll do is teach what Jesus taught as best as we can. Live as examples of kingdom builders as best as we can. Invite you into this Red Rock story that God is writing and then ask you to ask him, because this is between you and him. Always, God, based on all the ways you blessed me this year, what can I give to build your kingdom and not mine? In this family, this is what we do. At the end of every year, we pray that prayer. We finish the year in faith to start the next year in favor and focus. And whatever God is calling you to give, I challenge you to go to him. And we're all planning on doing that by next weekend. By the way, for next weekend, Sean's gonna finish this series the right way. We're gonna celebrate a lot of what God has done through Red rocks just in 2025. So you gotta make sure that you're here and bring a little bit of a party vibe with you because we have a lot of stuff to celebrate, so. So come ready and bring your faith. I will say Hebrews 11:6, if you go a couple more verses, it says it's impossible to please God without faith. See, I wonder if the inverse is also true, that with faith, is it possible to displease him? You get in the Wheelbarrow. As imperfect as you are, he just loves. He loves the faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. God loves faith, the mindset and the action, right? Eventually, one person actually did get into the Wheelbarrow with Charles Blondin, and it was his manager.

[A]

The guy who knew.

[B]

Him better than anybody else was like, I don't just believe you can do this. I've seen you do this so many times. I know your character. I trust you enough that I will get in the wheelbarrow barrel and let you push me across a tightrope 1100ft from one side of Niagara Falls to the other, blindfolded. And they made history. And we have an opportunity in front of us to. To make history as the church. Right now, we are living in a fairly historical moment. I don't know if you've noticed this or been paying attention, but more and more people are interested in church and curious about Jesus than they have been in decades in our nation.

[A]

But even more than that, like all around the world, Bible sales right now are through the roof. Christian apps downloads are like exponential. Like right now, right in front of us, there is an opportunity. There's a window of opportunity. It's called harvest, all right? And harvest isn't the result. Harvest is the opportunity for the result.

[B]

Result.

[A]

So harvest has a window. And the opportunity of a lifetime must be taken in the lifetime of the opportunity. In Hebrews 12, the very next chapter tells us this in the first verse. Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us to up.

[B]

And let us run with endurance the.

[A]

Race God has set before us. And what I read in that is that the baton is now in our hands. The baton that was in Abel's hand, that was in Abraham's hand, that was in Rahab's, in Moses, in the disciples when they started this church. It's now in our hands. The only question is, what will we do with it? If you've been around here for any time at all, you know, we say it this way, let's go change the world with that baton. Let's go build the church. Which, by the way, is not a place, it's a people. And that will always be the bottom line people. Red rocks people. The bottom line people. Over 12,000 salvations just in 2025. That is the bottom line. 2,610 baptisms just in 2025. That is the bottom line. Kingdom Builders is not about building buildings. It's about building stories. The reason we build buildings is because they're very effective when it comes to sharing the love of Jesus and the Gospel with people. But they are simply a means to an end. Utilities and programs are a means to an end. All the things we have to spend money on are the necessary means to a very real end, the true bottom line, which is making heaven more crowded. That's why we do what we do, helping people to know God and live on purpose, so that we can take.

[B]

The baton that's in our hands and we can go change the world. And that's my challenge for us corporately, which means it has to be the challenge for every one of them, every single one of us, individual, individually, because I know the power of generosity to not only accelerate our vision of making heaven more crowded, but also to completely change your life in the process. Give God a year in the wheelbarrow. Start somewhere, make it consistent, grow over time, and see it through to the end and go above and beyond. Trust him, try him, test him, and see that he isn't a very good father who knows everything that you need. Because I believe in what we're building. And I believe that Jesus said, when Jesus said, where your treasure goes, there your heart will, will follow. I believe that was true, that when God gets our hearts, that we get God's presence all right. And things like apathy and feeling uninspired and things like worries about the future and fears about tomorrow, those are actually, I believe, symptoms of being outside the wheelbarrow for too long. See, you think all those things like being afraid and living on edge, like that's going to come out if I hop in here. But actually, once you're in here, I believe you start to trust God more and more. And things start to shift from feeling like you are on a tightrope over a waterfall to more like you are standing on the most sturdy foundation that your feet have ever stood on in your entire life because of the one pushing the wheelbarrow. Because you trust the one who is in control. And the presence of God is not on the other side of the tightrope. The presence of God is in here. The presence of God. The promised land is not there. Your promised land is wherever God's presence is in your life. Our promised land as a church will never be another building. It will always be the presence of God. Which means we are in our promised land right here and right now. And we are standing on a kingdom that will never be shaken. Build your life on money and no.

[A]

Matter how much of it you have.

[B]

You will feel like your foundation is made of sand and it's shaky and you're always worried about the economy and always, always a little bit scared and a little bit on edge.

[A]

On what?

[B]

What? Am I going to be okay a year from now? Are my kids going to be okay? But do this God's way, give him a year in the wheelbarrow and find out firsthand that he is good. And I think you will find it feels way less like going on a tightrope rope in a wheelbarrow and way more like standing on the foundation of the kingdom of God. The only kingdom that has never been shaken or will ever be shaken. Amen. Will you guys stand up?

[A]

So as we worship, maybe try raising.

[B]

Your hands in a posture of gratitude and praise. That's all that is, by the way, declaring God, your presence is my promised land land. And I'm not moving. I'm not moving from it. Wherever your presence is, that's where I want to be. Even, even if it's in a wheelbarrow over a waterfall. The safest place to be is in the middle of God's will for your life. I want to be where your presence is. So maybe, maybe you raise your hands during worship declaring that. Or maybe you just try holding your hands out in front of you in sort of a posture of surrender, saying like, much like Abel, God, everything I have is yours in the first place. But whatever it is that you do, know that you are standing on the foundation of the kingdom that has always been and will always be. Let's build that kingdom. God, we love you. And the offering that we pray over over this next week and that we bring to you is our worship. It's our privilege. Thank you. That we get to do this, that we get to build an eternal kingdom, that we get everything that comes with your presence in the process and the fullness of living with purpose and the peace of your promised provision in every moment and the joy of playing with house money. And on top of it all, all we get to live now in holy anticipation of the eternity that we have to look forward to with you, which is our real treasure, your kingdom that goes from here all the way into the rest of forever. We are your kingdom builders. It is our privilege and our honor to build it alongside you in Jesus name, Amen.