May 15, 2014 | Living As Giving

Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed. [2 Corinthians 9:6-8 NRSV]
I was recently blessed by the opportunity to teach on the oft-neglected and/or abused spiritual discipline of giving. Below are a few fascinating thoughts from others that I hadn’t time to include in that message. I pray these quotes move you as they did me, motivating living that is all about giving. May our open hearts and hands give as we have received – freely.

From Andy Stanley’s book How to Be Rich:

In 2000, the average “poor” family had goods and services rivaling middle-class families of the 1970’s. In addition, most poor families don’t stay poor. Over the sixteen-year period tracked by one study, 95% of the families in the lowest income quintile climbed the economic ladder to higher quintiles. As Michael Cox, an economist with the Federal Reserve, noted, “The rich may have gotten a little richer, but the poor have gotten much richer.”

Gallup conducted a poll to see how different socioeconomic groups defined “rich.” Not surprisingly, everybody had a different definition-and nobody thought he fit it. For each and every person, “rich” was roughly double the amount possessed by the person defining it. “Rich” is a moving target. No matter how much money we have or make, we will probably never consider ourselves rich. The biggest challenge facing rich people is that they’ve lost their ability to recognize that they’re rich.

We all feel we need more. Appetites have only one word in their vocabulary-MORE. Appetites are never fully and finally satisfied. Even after the most satisfying meal imaginable, we eventually find ourselves rummaging through the pantry for a snack.

Appetites aren’t bad things. I believe God created them. I also believe sin distorted them. Appetites bring zest and passion to life. But they are terrible filters for making decisions. I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say that our responses to our appetites will determine the direction and quality of our lives.

So, while generosity may be the antidote for the dizzying effects of wealth, the appetite for more may function as an antidote against God-honoring generosity. Your appetite for more stuff, status, and security has the potential to quash your efforts to be generous. And that’s a problem.

If you feed an appetite, it grows. Satisfying an appetite does not diminish it. It expands it. To diminish an appetite, you have to starve it. So, in the early days of marriage, when none of us have a lot of extra money to do extra things, we don’t do extra things. And we were content. We were forced to starve that appetite. But once our incomes and our purchasing power began to increase, we started feeding that ugly beast. In doing so, we gave up a slice of contentment. And so it goes.

Sin encourages the consumerist mentality, and generosity is the antidote.

From a member of my pulpit team:

I have clothes that I never wear, dishes that are never eaten off of, books that I have already read.  These things sit around my home taking up space, collecting dust, and being a fire hazard. I could jealously hold on to them, hoarding what is mine. I could squirrel them away for that someday when I might need them again.  OR I could pass them on to the next person who needs them. It used to be hard to do this.  With practice I have found that it is fun, both because it blesses someone now, and because when that someday comes rolling around God always gives it, or something better, back to me.  I always seem to have whatever I need. (And honestly I rather God take care of the storage issues.)

From Randy Alcorn’s classic The Treasure Principle:

The act of giving is a vivid reminder that it’s all about God, not about us. It’s saying I am not the point, He is the point. He does not exist for me. I exist for Him. God’s money has a higher purpose than my affluence. Giving is a joyful surrender to a greater person and a greater agenda. Giving affirms Christ’s lordship. It dethrones me and exalts Him. It breaks the chains of mammon that would enslave me.

As long as I still have something, I believe I own it. But when I give it away, I relinquish the control, power, and prestige that come with wealth. At the moment of release the light turns on. The magic spell is broken. My mind clears, and I recognize God as owner, myself as servant, and other people as intended beneficiaries of what God has entrusted to me.

Giving doesn’t strip me of vested interests; rather, it shifts my vested interests from earth to heaven – from self to God.

From a friend:

Every time I write a check it reminds me that God has given us the privilege of partnering with the recipients in the calling that God has given them. I get a thrill down my spine every time and I thank the Lord for the wonderful honor of giving to Him through giving to our brothers and sisters.
Filed Under: Weekly Email