Generosity

 The discussion about generosity can be surprisingly controversial, and even confrontational at times. It's easy to try and point a finger at a billionaire that seems to give nothing away, and seems to care little for the poor. However there is a whole lot of space between extreme wealth and the poor. Are you wealthy? Am I wealthy? I sure feel I am - even when I struggle to find money to put into my savings accounts I still drive a nice truck, have the luxury of a camper, and many worldy pleasures that a lot do not have.

Money can and does become a deep rooted idol.

However, when I think about wealth, two passages come to mind ...

One, a passage from Proverbs that I continue to come back to (and have often prayed this myself) ...

Two things I ask of you;

deny them not to me before I die:

Remove far from me falsehood and lying;

give me neither poverty nor riches;

feed me with the food that is needful for me,

lest I be full and deny you

and say, “Who is the LORD?”

or lest I be poor and steal

and profane the name of my God. (Proverbs 30:7–9 ESV)

I don't wish poverty upon myself (or anyone), but I also don't wish riches either. I've seen the emptiness, depression, and claws that money can bring (even in my own life) and to wish for more seems futile.

Then there is this other passage that to me, summarizes what our lifestyle and hearts should be toward generosity ...

For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.” (2 Corinthians 8:13–15 ESV)

Some have extra, and some are in need. Those two should strive to balance eachother out.

Yet for me it goes one step further.

My hope is not to just "give more" ... but to live a life and lifestyle that grows in my 'abiliity' to be generous. Strive to live on less, so that my abudnace grows not because my income goes up, but that my cost of living goes down.

This is my struggle ... this is my idol ... it's not so much collecting more things, or wanting more money - but wanting to keep what I have. In some ways (certainly not all) I have been by the Grace of God been given a spirit of contentment with what I have been given. Yet I need to grow much in being content with "less" ...

Let's pray for eachtoher ...

His,

~Matt