Cheerful generousity

 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:7-8 (NIV)

A generous spirit is a decision of the will, not a fleeting emotion of the heart. We give generously in times of plenty, and in times of great need. Each of us spends our days in countless different vocations and pursuits, but whether you are a stay-at-home mom or dad, a member of the armed forces serving far from home, CEO, retail worker, in ministry or anywhere and anyone in-between, the call upon your life is to unconditional generosity.

As the Apostle Paul reminds us, we give what we have decided to give. Not reluctantly or under compulsion, but cheerfully. Again, a cheerful disposition is not reserved for those with a naturally bubbly personality. Cheerfulness is a choice every single one of us can make. And so, wherever life may have you, whatever the joys or challenges of your situation and season, you are called to cheerfully give your life away as a blessing to others. 

Cheerful generosity is a calling that requires a response. You and I are entirely free to reject the call and ignore the invitation of the Lord. We are able to carry on with our own personal concerns and cares, ignoring the needs of those around us. And because God is patient and abounding in love for his children, he will continue to extend his goodness to us, even if we are closed off from him and others. However, until we learn to use our freedom to say yes to Christ, we will never truly know the joy of being human. 

The details of your life may give you plenty of reasons to not be cheerful or generous. You may be drowning in the deep end of parenting. Your work may keep you on the road or overseas for extended periods of time, leaving you vulnerable to isolation, loneliness, and depression. Perhaps relational conflict or the loss of a loved one has left you upside down, without any natural impulse towards generous and cheerful living. 

Though we may struggle to see it, these are the moments that lead us into a deep and abiding faith.

In Paul’s words, we must daily remember that God is able to bless us abundantly. So often we believe the blessing of the Lord to be conditional, based upon our suitedness to receive his blessing. This is entirely backwards! God is able to bless because he is himself a pure and perfect gift. The blessing of his life can be encountered in all things and at all times, even this very moment you find yourself in. 

Receive the gift of his grace, and set your heart, mind, and will upon a generous and cheerful life, abounding in every good work. 

Contagious

 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. Ephesians 5:2, NKJV

Are you contagious? That seems to be the talk still on everyone’s lips these days, even with a vaccine being distributed. So much so that the other day when I was reading my Bible, I actually saw the word “contagious” when it really said “courageous” LOL That really got me thinking…what am I contagious with? Am I contagious with courage and faith or am I contagious with skepticism, fear, and doubt?

I am blessed in my life to be surrounded by some pretty amazing people and friends. People who are seriously contagious. Like some who have lost loved ones this year or a year ago and yet is contagious with joy. You can’t help but feel well...more joyful from their witness…when around or having conversation with them. Or there’s some who are contagious with Truth. You walk away realizing that the lies you have been believing are just that…lies. Their contagious truth empowers me to be bold, confident, and full of faith in my good. Then there’s those who are absolutely contagious with encouragement. One afternoon with them and all the “feels” of “not being enough” get destroyed through the contagion of their encouragement. 

Just like the coronavirus, whatever is inside of you will affect the people around you in some way. Since fear has been so contagious, certainly reaching its own pandemic proportions, I feel like the Lord is calling us to rise up in the opposite spirit, the spirit of contagious courageousness and faith expressed regularly. 

But I want you to see what I saw that day when I saw the word “contagious” instead of “courageous”. I feel like it may open up a whole new meaning to you, almost like a window into the impact of how what The Lord has placed inside of you can impact others for the Kingdom, with the contagions of love, joy, peace, hope, and healing. 

“Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be contagious” (John 14:27)

“For in this unbelieving world you will experience trouble and sorrows, but you must be contagious, for I have conquered the world” (John 16:33)

“Empower us, as your servants, to speak the word of God freely and contagiously” (Acts 4:29).

“And what I’m going through has actually caused many believers to become even more contagious in the Lord and to be bold and passionate to preach the Word of God…” (Philippians 1:14).

So just what do you want to cultivate in your life that makes you more contagious?  

Is it wholeness, peace, hope, joy, vision, wisdom, healing brokenness, trust, courage? The Lord is the giver of every good and perfect gift and He wants you to be contagious with it more than you do. Just ask, seek, knock… Trust Him. He loves to answer those kinds of prayers and make you a courageous-contagious carrier of His goodness and love.

Declare Today: I choose to be contagious for the Kingdom of God as His ambassador. I remind myself that I am seated next to God and have access to every good thing, unlimited peace, unhindered hope, unrestrained joy. Whatever I focus on grows and as I grow, I overflow to be a blessing to somebody else. Yes, I am absolutely contagious and that’s a good thing

Working out of debt

 When she told the man of God what had happened, he said to her, “Now sell the olive oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on what is left over.” 2 Kings 4:7

An unnamed mom in Scripture was moved to seek assistance for fear of losing to creditors her most prized possessions, her two sons. The God-fearing widow wisely went to the man of God, prophet Elisha, and asked for help. Her dead husband was the prophet’s ministry colleague and friend. Though she was still in a state of grief, he did not prey on her emotional condition by creating codependency, nor did he offer pious platitudes of prayer and ignore the desperate situation. 

Instead, he asked her to take a step of faith by being creative and innovative in what he knew she could do; make olive oil. She humbled herself to her friends and asked for their empty containers to fill. Resourcefully and in faith she did her part by gathering the jars, and God did His part by filling the jars. The humble, wise widow and her two boys were given the gift of paying off debt with leftover assets to live on. 

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:20).

How can we give the gift of paying off debt to other worthy souls? We look for those who really desire assistance. They want help for the sake of something bigger than themselves:  their children, their community, their Savior Jesus Christ. They are the 20% who are willing to do the hard work, be creative, change habits and trust the Lord to work in ways that are not our ways. Be intentional to invest in humble, wise hearts willing to ask those in their network for resources to help them meet their debt free goals. God takes Spirit-led efforts and exceeds our expectations.

When the people of God serve the people of God with the gift of paying off debt, those outside the faith will clammer to learn of this elevated level of generous love. Owing only the debt of love frees our souls to inhale and exhale the rarified air of generous love. A love not encumbered by creditors attempting to confiscate our joy and replace it with resentment. A love that gives a willing heart a fresh start to follow God’s heart. Be grateful for those who helped pay off your debt, so now you can be generous and do the same for coachable friends in the faith. 

“Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code—don’t sleep with another person’s spouse, don’t take someone’s life, don’t take what isn’t yours, don’t always be wanting what you don’t have, and any other “don’t” you can think of—finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can’t go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love”

A good teacher

 You call me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am. John 13:13

Recently I had been thinking about the teachers who poured into and had great impact on my life. Just think for a second that a portion of our success, and abilities in life are are result of  someone who was dedicated to teaching us to read, write, add and subtract. and was dedicated to it out of their passion to educate. Which leads me to this question. What would life be like if we hadn’t learned those things? I am so grateful for everyone who helped make me who I am today.”   

When I think about my many teachers, one stands out. Her name was Mrs. Graham. I  remember that she was kind and would not let me settle for anything but my best, and I will never forget how she forced me to do presentations before my peers to get me out of my shyness (which has blessed me since considering it is how to be a Pastor and shy).  I also remember she loved me and my classmates, as it showed in how she taught and pushed us beyond what we saw in ourselves. 

Just like I think of the impact of Mrs. Graham on my life as a teacher, I also think of another teacher of mine in Jesus. 

Matthew 4:23 shows how He teaches with power. 

Matthew 7:28 reveals how He teaches with authority. 

But in everything, Jesus always teaches with love. 

Of himself, Christ says in Matthew 11:29, “I am gentle and humble in heart.” This is His heart: gentle and humble. It’s who He is. So, even when Christ teaches with authority and power, He never stops being loving. Even when we sin and we need to be corrected, His love never fails. His loving heart motivates Him to show us the way and teach us how to navigate life’s problems, pitfalls, and even sin.   

One afternoon, I was thinking about a sin I had struggled with. In a quick moment, the Lord showed me a picture in my mind’s eye of three circles. One circle represented me. One circle represented my sin, and one circle represented Christ. He showed me by moving these circles around that I believed that when I am doing well and not being disobedient, that Christ is standing right next to me. Then, He showed me how I believed that when I sin, that He moves away from me and a black circle of sin is in-between the two of us. “This is not how it is,” He said. “I never move away from you. In fact, I am working to stand between you and your sin to deliver you.” 

He teaches with power. 

He teaches with authority. 

But He always teaches with love. Just like Mrs. Graham did. He is gentle and humble in heart. 

“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). 

Sustainer

 I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me. 

Psalm 3:5

I write these words early in the morning, watching the day slowly come to life out my front window. In the calm of this moment, I am reminded of how little I contribute to the rhythms of life that surround me, not to mention my own existence and sustenance. Yes, our Lord invites us to partner with him in bringing forth life and beauty in our world, yet this life does not originate with me, and it is impossible for me to sustain myself independent of the love and mercy of God. 

We face a global moment in which the world longs for safety and security. After a brutal year of lockdowns and quarantines, social distancing and contact tracing, we are all eager to return to normalcy. But beyond a desire for indoor dining, live music, or sporting events, this moment has also alerted us to our own vulnerabilities and weaknesses, a truth that we spend most of our lives trying hard to ignore!

A return to normalcy does not bring with it the end of your dependence upon God for the very breath you take. Vaccines may protect you from a virus, yet they do not free you from the curse of sin and death. We still live in a world that longs for redemption, healing, and freedom, which is only found in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He alone is the source of salvation and the hope that death does not and will never have the final word. 

Do not let your desire to “get back to normal” keep you from looking ahead and longing for a world that is transformed by the power of God. While it is good and right to desire to be free from the suffering brought on by a global pandemic, we must set our hopes on the coming kingdom of God, looking to the day when every disease will be healed, every relationship restored, and every tear wiped away. 

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).