"Well, if sin ain’t fun, you ain’t doing it right."

Pastor and author J.D. Greear writes: "Growing up, I remember a country preacher who used to come to our youth group and warn us about the dangers of sin. One of his favorite tactics was to point his finger at us and shout, 'Sin ain’t fun!' I never corrected him, but even at the time I thought, 'Well, if sin ain’t fun, you ain’t doing it right.'”

"Mischief" by Rajeev Rajagopalan; http://bit.ly/2tkwNCp

The reality is that we wouldn’t sin much if it weren’t fun. 

Sin is fun, but it’s also destructive.

In this weekend's passage we see how King David fell into sin and experienced all of its ugly consequences.

In David we see sin’s capacity to enslave us and to motivate us to cover it up.

But we also see the possibility of renewal through confession and repentance.

That's what this weekend's sermon is about. You can find forgiveness and restoration. 

Why God Flips the Script on Giving

"Flip the script": reverse the usual or existing positions in a situation; do something unexpected or revolutionary.

Imagine abundant financial blessing. Maybe it's not so hard to imagine. Maybe you've experienced it. If not, just imagine it.

Now imagine determining to take from that abundant blessing and give a significant portion back to God because you are grateful to him for his blessings. 

And God says no. 

But he doesn't just say no. He says, "Instead of you giving to me, I want to give more to you...more than you can ever imagine."

That's flipping the script!

That's what happens to David in our passage for this weekend (2 Samuel 7).

In the field of psychology, flipping the script like this is called noncomplementarity.

If you do something nice for me and I do something nice for you, or if you do something mean to me and I respond in kind, that's complementarity.

But if you do something mean to me and I respond with kindness, that's noncomplementarity.

Used carefully and judiciously, this is a powerful force for bringing about change in relationships.

Think about all the ways God flips the script to bring about our reconciliation with him. 

But this flipping the script doesn't end with our salvation. 

Throughout our entire relationship with him, he continues to flip the script in much the same way and for the same reason because no matter where we are in our journey with him, he wants to drive home that a relationship with him is always about grace, from new birth to final judgement. Every step of the way. 

Including our giving. 

Don't miss this weekend's worship gathering and sermon. We'll watch God flip the script on King David when David decides to build a house for God. We'll also explore how he might be flipping the script in our giving.