Generosity in God’s Economy

Generosity is often times under defined. When people hear the word generosity, their minds usually drift toward monetary giving.  While that is a part of being generous, it is only a small part! This thinking is a good example of a secular worldview. Many people, Christians and non-Christians alike, will give to a good cause.  Look at the amount of dollars raised for hurricane Katrina, the recent tornadoes in Southern Indiana and MO, and the many other disasters over the past few years. It is tremendous how generous we can be when it comes to a monetary need of that scale. Don’t get me wrong, giving to these great causes is a good thing, in most cases. Unfortunately, when the generosity is rooted in the secular culture, like we saw during Katrina, the Christian, and non-Christian for that matter, must be diligent in checking out the sources to see how legit they truly are - millions of dollars were squandered by scams during these disasters because caring folks didn't do their homework or give to reputable organizations!

I say all of this because in God’s economy, generosity means so much more than any monetary gift.  To be truly generous in God’s eyes is to give of your self, your whole life, for the sake and the cause of Christ. We are to dedicate our time, talents and treasures to the Lord and Savior of our lives...Jesus Christ!  Here’s what that looks like:

Time - We allow time in our daily activities to focus on God and where He is working, and join Him in that work. We spend time with others in hopes of drawing them closer to Jesus - mentoring.

                                               

Talents - We use the talents God has given us to strengthen His Kingdom. We may volunteer to paint, teach, greet people, change someone’s oil, play guitar, go clean up after a disaster...the opportunities to use your gifts/talents for the Kingdom are endless!

Treasures - We may donate something we don’t “need” to help someone else out (like a car, clothing, computer, etc.), we may pay for someone’s meal that God placed on your heart just to bless them, you may sponsor a child in need, and you may even discover the blessings of giving your tithe to your local church so that God can multiply it and use it for His glory. See Matthew 6:21 - For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Our Time, Talents and Treasures are to be first used to glorify God...no excuses! In developing a Biblical Worldview, we must humble ourselves, doing nothing selfish, and treat others the way Christ did...He loved them! He went public in His love for us...we can do the same!

 NIV Philippians 2:3-4

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.