December 14, 2009
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Re: More Generosity
In regard to 'more generosity' as one of my goals for 2010: Something that God made me realize a long time ago was that you don't need more money to be more generous, what you do need is a clear understanding of the God who Provides. I am challenged when I think about the widow whom Jesus commended in Mark 12. He was pleased with her, not because of the actual amount she put into the offering box, but because of what it meant to her. The fraction of a penny that she put in was actually worth everything to her. It was all she had to live on. Am I able to give everything to God?
Richard Foster captures well how to be more generous in Celebration of Discipline:
"If what we have we receive as a gift, and if what we have is to be cared for by God, and if what we have is available to others, then we will possess freedom from anxiety.""We cling to our possessions rather than sharing because we are anxious about tomorrow. But if we truly believe that God is who Jesus said He is then we do not need to be afraid. When we come to see God as the Almighty Creator and our loving Father we can share because we know that He will care for us."
The way to more generosity comes from more trust in God. I need to see everything I have as a gift from God that I can easily pass along to others, because God will see to it (yereh-lo) that it'll be passed back to me again if ever I have need.
