Utah's Hope

Jodie Berndt adds to the Praying the Scriptures series by encouraging couples to pray for their marriages! She explains how you are responsible for your own faith, how to pray with different personalities, praying through conflict over finances, and praying the scriptures through a season of difficulty. This is a discussion you won’t want to miss!

Receive a copy of "Praying the Scriptures for Your Marriage" and an audio download of " Praying for Your Marriage is Essential" for your donation of any amount! Plus, receive member-exclusive benefits when you make a recurring gift today. Your monthly support helps families thrive.

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Women were some of Jesus’ earliest financial supporters. In Luke 8, readers learn that Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna, and many other women followed Jesus and supported His ministry from their own resources. On the next Faith & Finance Live, Rob West and Sharon Epps explore what their example teaches us about grace, generosity, and using our influence for God’s purposes. Then, it’s on to calls. That’s Faith & Finance Live, biblical wisdom for your financial journey. That’s weekdays at 4pm Eastern/3pm Central on Moody Radio.

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Some of the earliest financial supporters of Jesus’ ministry were women.

Luke 8:1–3 introduces us to Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna, and “many others” who traveled with Jesus and the Twelve. Luke adds a remarkable detail: these women were supporting Jesus’ ministry “out of their means.”

Sharon Epps, President of Kingdom Advisors and one of the founders of Women Doing Well, points to their story as a powerful picture of generosity. These women didn’t simply contribute resources to a cause. They had encountered Jesus personally, received His grace, and responded by using what they had to serve Him and others.

Their example reminds us that Christian generosity begins not with what we give to God, but with what we have already received from Him.

Luke tells us that these women had experienced Jesus’ healing and restoration. Mary Magdalene had been delivered from seven demons, while others had been healed of diseases and afflictions. Then, having received from Jesus, they gave.

“God always pours into us first,” Epps explains. “Our breath, our skills, our life, and our resources are all gifts from Him.”

That changes the starting point for generosity. We don’t give to earn God’s favor or repay Him for His grace. We give because His grace has already been freely given to us.

Everything we possess—our money, abilities, opportunities, relationships, and time—ultimately comes from God. When we begin there, generosity becomes less about meeting an obligation and more about faithfully responding to what we have received.

An old Latin phrase, incurvatus in se, means “curved in on oneself.” It describes the human tendency to turn inward and make life primarily about ourselves. That temptation can become especially strong when life feels exhausting.

Epps uses the playful word “exhausterwhelmulated”—exhausted, overwhelmed, and overstimulated—to describe how many people feel today. When we’re depleted, our instinct can be to turn inward and focus almost exclusively on our own needs.

But remembering God’s care gives us another way forward.

“When we can breathe in God’s care, we can resist the self-focus and actually flow outward,” Epps says. “Let His generosity flow through us, even when life feels heavy.”

Generosity invites us to notice the people God has placed around us. It turns our attention outward—not because our own needs don’t matter, but because God’s provision frees us to see beyond ourselves.

The women of Luke 8 also remind us that faithful stewardship extends beyond financial giving.

Today, women can use their resources, work, relationships, businesses, investments, experience, and influence for others' good. That might mean supporting a local ministry, operating a business with integrity, investing in ways that promote human flourishing, mentoring someone who needs guidance, or simply responding to a need close to home.

“We can use our positions and relationships as part of God’s work of restoration,” Epps says.

God entrusts each of us with different resources and opportunities. Faithful stewardship asks how we might use those gifts in love of God and neighbor.

For someone who wants to become more generous but already feels stretched, the answer doesn’t have to be a dramatic financial commitment. Epps encourages women to begin by remembering who they are.

“You are a daughter of the King,” she says. “Pause long enough to breathe in His love and acknowledge that He’s our ultimate provider. Then look for just one small, concrete way you can share.”

Perhaps it’s meeting a need you notice today. Maybe it’s offering you

What’s the proof that we’re part of the body of Christ? Is there a membership card, a secret handshake, an insignia we wear on our clothing? I mean, the Bible says they’ll know we’re Christians by our love, but what about some bona fide credentials? Today on A NEW BEGINNING, Pastor Greg Laurie points out the persecution we may face is a pretty good indicator that we’re part of God’s family. When’s the last time you heard of an unbeliever being persecuted for Christ? Pastor Greg explains it all today.

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You share a bed, a calendar, maybe a Costco membership. But lately, your deepest conversation is, “Who’s picking up the kids?” Feeling disconnected from your spouse doesn’t always mean your marriage is in crisis. Jennifer Abbott joins Cheryl Shumake on FamilyLife Today to talk about the quieter kind of marital drift—where nothing's on fire, but while you're getting everything done, something's missing from your marriage.

Show Notes and Resources

• Weekend to Remember marriage getaway: weekendtoremember.com
• Fight Fair! Winning at Conflict Without Losing at Love by Tim and Joy Downs: visit the shop

• Thanks to the Christian Standard Bible for sponsoring this episode. Learn more at CSBible.com.
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John Fuller and Dr. Danny Huerta explore the mental health challenges parents face in the exhausting early years, sharing honestly about spousal tension and the need for personal resets. Jim Daly talks with author Jen Babacan about her book Detoured, the importance of moms refueling themselves, and a memorable Target trip gone awry. The conversation wraps up with practical encouragement around self-awareness, community, and small routines that help parents survive the chaos plus a reminder about Focus on the Family's free counseling line.
Detoured
Discovering Your New Identity as a Stay-at-Home Mom (Digital Download)
Speak to a counselor

Jodie Berndt adds to the Praying the Scriptures series by encouraging couples to pray for their marriages! She explains how you are responsible for your own faith, how to pray with different personalities, praying through conflict over finances, and praying the scriptures through a season of difficulty. This is a discussion you won’t want to miss!

Receive a copy of "Praying the Scriptures for Your Marriage" and an audio download of " Praying for Your Marriage is Essential" for your donation of any amount! Plus, receive member-exclusive benefits when you make a recurring gift today. Your monthly support helps families thrive.

Get More Episode Resources 

Do you have a story or comment on how Focus on the Family impacted you or your family? Leave a message for Jim Daly!

If you enjoyed listening to Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, please give us your feedback.