How have our encounters with God impacted our wallets? This is the question that Dave and Reb dig into with Rev. Ray Borg from Financial Discipleship Canada on episode #356 of “Let’s Talk Money with Dave and Reb”. Together they look at the story of Jacob and his encounter with God found in Genesis 28, alongside the generous journey and gifts of the Magi that we celebrate during this Christmas season.
Jacob’s encounter with God at Bethel reminded Reb of Blaise Pascal’s prayer “Fire”. Out of Pascal’s encounter with God he gave His life wholeheartedly to God, and Reb says that these kinds of encounters fuel our desire to give to others.
FIRE. GOD of Abraham, GOD of Isaac, GOD of Jacob not of the philosophers and of the learned. Certitude. Certitude. Feeling. Joy. Peace. GOD of Jesus Christ. My God and your God. Your GOD will be my God. Forgetfulness of the world and of everything, except GOD. He is only found by the ways taught in the Gospel. Grandeur of the human soul. Righteous Father, the world has not known you, but I have known you. Joy, joy, joy, tears of joy.1
Listen to today’s episode sponsored by Financial Discipleship Canada and notmine.ca—a ministry to the body of Christ that voices and encourages dialogue and new conversations regarding finance and discipleship. To learn how you can connect your finances to being a disciple of Christ go to https://www.financialdiscipleship.ca/. To order Reb’s e-book, audio book, or soft-cover copy of Cultivating Trust: Finding God’s Hope and Freedom for Your Finances, go to www.morethanenoughbooks.ca.
Today, Dave and Reb also mention their very first podcast recording from November, 2016. Lots of things have changed since then but if you are interested to re-listen you can find it here.
1 Fusselman, M. (2017). What Blaise Pascal Saw In A November Night Of Fire That Inaugurated A Year Of Grace. The Federalist. https://thefederalist.com/2017/11/23/blaise-pascal-saw-november-night-fire-inaugurated-year-grace/. Accessed December 2, 2023.