Learning Center Other Christmas: A Lesson in Generosity
| Christmas: A Lesson in Generosity |
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Christmas is a special time of the year to reflect on an attribute of God that we all need to emulate throughout the year
Generosity - A Response of Love Have you noticed how people generally just seem to be friendlier and kinder during the Christmas Season? Have you ever wondered why? I believe it has something to do with the fact that they are in the gift-giving mode. They are thinking about, planning, and participating in providing gifts for those they love. In doing so, they are bringing to the surface an attribute built deep within them as creatures made in the image of God. That is the attribute of generosity. And generosity is to love as thunder is to lightning. Loving and giving are inseparable. So as we get immersed in giving to those we love, we begin showing love to those we don't even know. We collect canned goods for the hungry, we select names from the Angel Trees, and we increase our giving to church and charity. Many non-profit organizations depend upon year-end giving to meet their year-long spending. A Note of Caution Even though people seem friendlier and kinder during the Christmas Season, I understand statistics show more suicides and treatment for depression during this same period. As I have reflected and prayed about this, I feel that those people feel lonely and possibly abandoned. When they see others happy and expressing love, they feel even lonelier and more abandoned to the point of desperation. They don't have the heart knowledge that they are not alone nor abandoned - that their generous God loves them and has given them them through Christ an intimate relationship with Him. I urge you to be especially sensitive to those around you who may show signs of loneliness and depression, and share with them the generous gift God has given them of intimacy with Him through Christ. We Are Stewards of the Image and Attributes of God We are told we are made in the image and likeness of God and certainly one of the attributes of God is His generosity. We not only carry His image, but we are stewards of His image. In other words, we are to reflect the image and attributes of God in all that we do. So during the Christmas season we are reminded of and celebrate God's gift to us. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son" John 3:16 Jesus said, "no one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly" John 10:18 Generosity is not so much a virtuous act, as it is a virtuous response.
Generosity Increases The Quality of Your Life Now But why can't we keep this attribute of generosity throughout the year? Doesn't it make you feel better when you are generous? Christian author, Chip Ingram, in his series "The Genius of Generosity" claims that generosity is the ultimate win/win situation. Our observation of life confirms it. Our experience in life confirms it. The "Christmas Spirit" exemplifies it. Becoming a generous person is simply the smartest way to increase the quality of your life now! I can't help but think of the animated movie, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas". The Grinch couldn't stand the happiness and generosity of the townspeople so he thought that if he snuck in on Christmas Eve and stole all the stuff, including the town-center Christmas tree, he would put an end to the happiness and generosity. To his amazement, when everyone awoke Christmas morning they were celebrating and singing, holding hands in a circle around the spot that used to be occupied by the town Christmas tree. Then, he finally got it! Christmas isn't about the stuff - life isn't about the stuff. And as he began to realize that it was about giving, not getting, his entire character began changing. This shriveled up, mean, scowling person's heart began to grow larger and larger. A smile brightened his face as he raced back to the village in gleeful anticipation of giving back what he had taken, an example of generosity being the smartest way to increase the quality of one's life now.
Generosity Now Produces Eternal Rewards Some may feel uncomfortable about this. Generosity doesn't result in salvation. But scripture is quite clear that salvation is evidenced by generosity. Becoming a generous person is the smartest way to prepare for your eternal future. Scripture supports this in Matthew 6:19-21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. " This verse does not mean that we shouldn't save and invest, because the Bible tells us in other parts of scripture that we are to save and invest. It doesn't mean that we can't spend some on ourselves because other parts of scripture tell us we are to enjoy the fruits of our labor. Scripture is not contradictory. What Jesus is saying is that even in our saving and investing, even in the way we spend it on ourselves, it should be done in such a way that brings glory and honor to God and in so doing we lay up treasures for ourselves in heaven. This is part of the reason why we at Christian Financial Principles are so passionate about Biblically Responsible Investing.
God Blesses Generous People God wants us to reflect His character of generosity with the money, possessions, and talent he has temporarily entrusted to us. Faithfulness with material wealth is a prerequisite to being entrusted with spiritual wealth and rewards. Jesus is quoted in Luke 16:10-11 as saying, "He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" NASB, NIV So God blesses us, some with material wealth, others with talents and abilities, and others with both. He is paying attention to how we use them to determine if he will entrust more blessings for us to generously share. Jesus promised, "give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you." Luke 6:38 Proverbs 19:17 states, "Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed." And we read in Proverbs 11:24-25, "One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. " Now, I want to be very careful here not to give the wrong impression that God blesses generous people with material wealth. In some cases that may be true, but if you don't have an abundance of material wealth, if you're just living from paycheck to paycheck or worse, that doesn't mean that God is withholding his blessing from you. God measures wealth differently than the world. Wealth is not just measured in money and possessions. Wealth is measured more by who you are. It is measured by your character. God is much more interested in improving your character than improving your circumstances. As I was in the process of preparing this article through prayer and meditation on the Word of God, a good Christian friend mentioned how, as hard as they tried, they just couldn't seem to save any money. They just lived from paycheck to paycheck. I reminded him that at least they could survive from paycheck to paycheck. The majority of the people in the world just want to have a day that they're not hungry. He stated that he and his wife were just talking about that and were thankful that they could provide for their family. He stated, "You know, God could be protecting a person by not allowing them to have more material wealth." There are websites dedicated to giving advice to protect people who come into a large sum of money quickly through an inheritance or some other means. They give example after example of broken marriages, suicides, and destroyed lives caused by a sudden increase in wealth. The people Jesus was the harshest with, the Pharisees, basically believed that God blessed materially those who were Godly people. So, although God blesses generous people, being generous just to obtain God's blessing robs you of the true rewards of generosity.
The Amazing John Saville Chip Ingram tells the story of the Amazing John Saville. As a young minister of a small suburban church, Chip was approached by John, a wealthy CPA who owned a prestigious firm in the neighboring big city. John told Chip, "I've got a problem. I've got the resources to help those in need and would like to help those in need, but working in the city all week, I am not aware of those who have the needs. I have the resources and you have the opportunities since you are involved in the daily activities of people here in town. Here is a checkbook for your use in helping others. I've put $1,000 in the account. As you come across someone having financial difficulties, use your discretion in using this checkbook to meet their needs. Whenever you need additional money deposited, just let me know and I'll wire additional money into the account. Periodically, I would like you to visit my office and tell me about the people you have helped, and we will celebrate with an extravagant meal as you tell me the stories." Chip stated that three things happened in his life due to this relationship with John. 1. Rarely a day went by that he didn't think of John. Every need raised the question, "What would John want me to do?" 2. He became more meticulous about balancing John's checkbook than his own. 3. John and Chip became best friends as they celebrated during their periodic extravagant meals while Chip told John about the extraordinary stories on how people were helped using John's resources. This is a true story but it is so much more than that. It is a parable of our relationship with God. God owns everything and we are his money managers. As we grow more and more to understand and act upon this principle, we grow closer to God. Generosity is the gateway to intimacy with God. Summary
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