The Beauty of Generosity

Generosity is of God. He is the one who came up with the concept. And there is no greater act of generosity than God's gift of salvation from sin.

I feel so privileged to know many genuinely generous people. Beautiful people who give of themselves and of their resources, freely and sacrificially.

One of the coolest side effects of letting God use you, to give to others, is the effect it has, no just on the recipient of the gift, but on those who are on the sidelines. I have had the privilege of witnessing some extraordinary acts of generosity.... and I want to write down these incredible, faith-building experiences. The guilty shall remain nameless.....because I don't intend this to be for their glory, but for God's.

At one point last Fall, a family in our small group was in need of some financial help. They had been putting their own money toward God's purposes, but didn't quite have enough for their utility bill that particular month. So, at group, we asked everyone to pray and contribute what they could. We had some people give $20 or $40, even one couple gave $100. It was awesome! But then the next day, one of my, now, real-life heroes showed up at the door. I knew this particular person was struggling financially also. In fact, she was probably in the same boat as the other family and couldn't pay her own utility bill. But she had heard this other sweet family was in need, so she showed up at my doorstep with an envelope. The envelope had $7 inside. She said, "I know it's not much, but it's all I could scrape up."

It took all I had to not burst out in tears. It was a literal translation of the woman who gave her two small copper coins to the temple treasury in Mark 12. This woman didn't have much, but she gave all she had. Amazing. Beautiful generosity!

I also know a young family who, at one point recently, were down to one car. They had three small children, in three car seats, so the backseat was not a fun place. Their one car was reliable, but pretty worn. It fit the family of five, but barely. For this family, operating with one car was at the least inconvenient, and at the most, uncomfortable. When word of this situation came to an older Christian couple, they decided to fix up a mini-van they happened to have possession of and simply GIVE the van to this family. No payments, no conditions, no strings. Just a gift out of the godly generosity in their hearts. Wow. Major God-glorifying generosity.

Who gives cars away, anyway? I didn't think things like that happened in real life. But we happen to know several people who have done this!! Not just one person, but multiple people! Outrageous, right?!

And I have so many more examples.....i think this will have to be a series of entries.

My family and I have been the blessed recipients of many gifts of generosity. There is nothing sweeter, and more humbling, than to receive a gift from God, by the hands of one of His children.

These pictures might seem random, but when I was thinking about imagery associated with generosity....this came to mind. Grace is the purest form of generosity. This was over 2 years ago, but one of the best moments of my life. :)

This was a extraordinary moment....
try not to be distracted by the "ugly cry" going on in the back ground! :)

I think God has been telling me, "Be generous!" I heard this quote today from Saint Augustine and I love it. He said, "Find out how much God has given you and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others."