Generosity

Good morning everyone, it is so good to be here this morning with you all. Right now we get to send out the kiddos to their class where you have the opportunity to learn about God in a way that makes sense to you. Then, remember, you gotta pay attention real good so that you can come find me after service and tell me something you learned today. Then of course we also want to welcome those of you joining us online, etc.

So we are in the middle of this pretty cool new series called I Love My Church. You know, as we have been looking at loving our church we are really looking at what it means to be a church member and even deeper than that we are looking at what it looks like to be a Christian. So when we say I love my church we are kind of just talking about loving Christ becuase the church is Christ bride, and to this church, our church, LRBC is the local expression of Christ bride…so that’s a pretty cool thing I think. We have been thinking about that in terms of Scripture though, I mean I haven’t just been making stuff up, right…so we’ve been thinking about Acts 2 where we read that the early beleivers were devoted to certain things. They were devoted to teaching, fellowship, breaking bread, and prayer. So these things are a bit of a roadmap for us as we move through this series. We have talked about having a strong community and about how fellowship builds that community. We have talked about prayer and worship together and how that builds us up together as a body, and today I would like to discuss generosity. That is one of the teachings that the early Christians would have been taught. You see, the early church would have been made up of various people from Jews to Gentiles and they would have had many different beliefs about generosity and so they needed to be taught about what the Scriptures said about this topic, and what Jesus taught about this topic. So this morning we are going to take a few minutes and we are going to talk about that a bit and I hope to both challenge your own perceptions as well as encourage you in your beliefs. I’m not looking to change the things you believe, unless you believe things that aren’t Biblical, but I want to remind you about the things that you already know to be true…that make sense?

Now, I know churches have a bad reputation for teaching on finances and so I figure we should just really lean into this and so I’m going to unveil the new credit card giving kiosk out in the lobby immediately after service today where we will give everyone an opportunity to use it one at a time… :) I am kidding of course if anyone didn’t catch on :) We do not have a credit card kiosk in the lobby…that is all done online ;) Anyway…Churches have a bad reputation for teaching on this topic mostly because people don’t like churches to touch their money. However, do you know what…Scripture touches your money and so churches kind of have to touch your money too.

Let me tell you a story real quick. Back in the 2000’s there was a young boy named Zach Bonner. When young Zach was 6 years old and living in Tampa hurricane Charley hit the area and did quite a bit a damage to his neighbors. Well Zach was safe but he was devastated by what he saw on the news and knowing that there were other children without things like water. So, he got his little red wagon, and he went door to door collecting bottles of water and other supplies to take down to the shelter and help others. He was generous towards his neighbor. Well, his efforts actually kept going after his mom took him down to the local homeless shelter and he saw the effects of homelessness in his very neighborhood. After that encounter he ended up collecting 27 truckloads of supplies and donated them to homeless families in his neighborhood. He didn’t stop there…he continued collecting supplies. As of 2014 I think Zach had collected something like $1.3 Million for youth and homeless projects. He started a foundation called the Little Red Wagon Foundation, his story (at least up to that time) was turned into a movie called, The Little Red Wagon and he had walked over the course of three years from his house in Tampa to the White House in D.C. in order to raise funds and awareness for homelessness. That’s being generous. Why did Zach do that? Well in his words, "There's no greater feeling in the world than knowing you made a difference in someone's life, especially when it's a child," Zach never intended to start a foundation or create a movement…but he did, at least for a while and he made an impact because of his generosity his heart to help the lost and broken around him.

That is what we are going to be talking about today, the difference a generous heart can make in the world around you. But first we should take a look at our passage and understand what we are going to be reading today…go ahead and turn your Bibles over to 2 Corinthians 9. We are going to read what Scripture says about giving generously and about the heart of a generous giver. In this passage we are going to read Paul is going to introduce three principles to motivate us to give generously. See if you can pick them out on your own as we read this passage together.

2 corinthians 9 6-8

2 Corinthians 9:6–8 ESV

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.

Now as I said in this passage Paul introduces three principles to motivate us towards generous giving. Today we are going to look at generosity in action, not in theory, ok…We are going to reflect on how God calls us to be generous and care for those in need around us. So, the first principle that I want us to look at today is

Sowing Generously (vs.6)

Now this is a farming community so for the most part you guys know how farming works…the more you plant, the more you harvest. That’s pretty much what is being said here. To give you an example, I think every year Stephanie Goodrich plants 8,794 plants in her yard that will continue to give flowers year after year. So then every year she is harvesting all of those plants, plus the plants from the previous years. That’s why she has enough flowers to help us out with flowers here at the church and bless the community randomly with flowers, not to mention all the other things so does with her flowers.

I want to tell you about an amazing story about a woman who was exceedingly obedient and generous. We’re not going to read it, but I would encourage you to read it on your own. This is a story from 1 Kings 17:8-16. You see, in this story there is a woman that Elijah came into contact with, and there was a drought. Elijah meets up with this woman and tells her to give him a drink of water. She does…then he tells her to give him some bread. Her initial response is that she only has enough flour and oil to make a piece of bread for her son and her to eat one last meal before they die. Elijah tells her it will be ok…so she makes to decision to be generous and make his bread before she makes bread for her son and her. There was enough oil and bread for her and her son to eat until the drought was over due to her obedient generosity.

You see, here’s the deal…when you give generously, you are planting seeds that will grow and mature and eventually multiply, both in your life, and in the lives of those you are generous towards. Elijah had what he needed as did the woman and her son. Listen, as a church this month our mission of the month is the local food pantry called Loaves and Fish. Just like we normally do we have a card that we are asking everyone to sign as a sign of support for those that volunteer as well as the staff over at the food pantry. However, over the last few years we have attempted to do a little more than simply sending them a thank you for serving card. We have decided that it would be beneficial to actually support them financially and with a donation of food or supplies. So here’s the deal…Every can of food you give, every dollar you bring, is a seed planted in someone’s life. It may seem small to you, but God can multiply it…Look I see God multiply our little every single month when we see how generous everyone has been over the course of the month in order to maintain your tithes.

Here’s the deal though….it’s not just about how much we give…it’s about the heart behind our giving. So let’s take a look at

Cheerful Giving (vs. 7)

You see, Paul told the church in Corinth that each person must give as he decided in his heart. He isn’t to give reluctantly or out of guilt, because God loves a cheerful giver…so what is that? What is a cheerful giver? I mean, how in the world can someone actually cheerfully giveaway their own possessions that they worked very hard for? Ok…I have to come clean here a little bit. As I was preparing for this message I was reminded about something. See, we did not grow up with alot of extra. So I can remember as I grew up seeing the few things I had as mine…Here’s what that meant…I didn’t wanna get rid of those things because I worked hard for those things, I couldn’t just give it to you if you needed it…you better pay me for it because what if I needed it again. Then something happened to me. See I was generous to those I cared about…but then something started to happen to me without me even realizing it and one day I just started giving away stuff to people who I had just met. Like, I went from “take it from my cold dead hands” kind of ownership to, you need it, I got it…take it. I don’t care…it’s just stuff ya know. Now I say that while also have a garage full of stuff I have “collected” so I know Im weird :) The point is the heart of being generous towards others with what we have though, right. Although, I guess we aren’t just talking about being generous towards others…what about being generous, or at least obedient towards God with what we have.

Let me tell you another story about another woman in Scripture. This person store is found in Mark 12.41-44. This is a story about a woman who was not a wealthy woman. However she went to the temple and she knew that she was instructed to give to the Lord. She felt it was her joy to give to the Lord, so she did. However, there were some other folks who were quite wealthy around at the same time. Well those folks were giving great gifts, but they were giving out of their extra…they were giving because they far more than they needed and so they would give some of it…she was different though, she was giving out of a heart of obedience.

That same thing applies to us today if you think about it. You see, we have been called to give faithfully to the church. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard about people who have changed their perspective on giving faithfully to the Lord and how the Lord has blessed them. That’s not to say that the Lord has taken away all of their struggles, but he has definitely given them joy in the midst of those struggles. However, I remember 1 person in particular…this was a cool story. This lady came to me and she was telling me that she was struggling financially, but she was going to maintain her commitment to start giving financially to the Lord and tithe first. So she did that and then later she came to me and shared with me how later that week multiple people came to her telling her they were gifting her various amount and it ended up being the exact amount she needed to cover her childcare bill…She acknowledged that was God taking care of her as she was cheerfully giving to the Lord.

This morning I want you to reflect on your own heart motive behind your giving. I know that many of you are giving…some of you are giving regularly, some of you are giving irregularly. I don’t know who or how much anyone is giving, but I know different people give different amount. What I want to ask you this morning is if whatever the amount you are giving to the Lord includes the heart of a cheerful giver, or are you giving out of reluctance, or are you giving out of guilt of some sort. Because if you are giving out of compulsion or guilt of any kind, let me just give you permission right now to stop giving. That’s not a reason for giving. Yes we are commanded to give, but we are commanded to give with a cheerful heart. So I want you to answer this question this morning. Am I giving because I feel pressured, or am I giving because I truly want to bless others and honor God?

Now as a church we believe that a tithe is actually 10% of what we bring home. We don’t get mad about gross vs net, that’s between you and God. I can tell you what I do and someone else would do it different, so that doesn’t matter. Here is what matters on this topic…are you faithful and are you cheerful? Now some of you here would say that 10% is a mighty hard pill to swallow if you have never given to a church before, and I get that completely…but you can start with something, can’t you? You can start with some percentage based giving. Maybe this month it’s 1%, and then next month it’s 2% and the following month its 3% so that within 10 months your up to 10%. Do you see how that works? You’re not gonna freeze and be happy with giving less as a loophole, you’re gonna continue to strive to give faithfully with a cheerful heart, and if this is an area you are struggling with then let me ask you to come reach out and let’s have a personal conversation about this, ok. Here’s the deal though, Your cheerful giving can change lives and God takes delight in your generosity.

Now, let’s bring all of this together as we reflect on

God’s Provision (vs. 8)

We saw that in the story with the young lady I told you about a few minutes ago. However, for this group I feel like we need a little bit of a bigger story than that. First of all we have Paul telling these people here in Corinth that God is able to make all grace abound and that God is all sufficient in all thing and that God can make you abound in every good work. So, for those of you that remember you know that our mission of the month is Loaves of Fish The reason it is Loaves and Fish is based on this one amazing story. It’s actually a story that happened more than once. So you can read this for yourself in John 6.1-14 and it’s a story about a day when Jesus began teaching. Jesus began teaching and people just started showing up…like alot of people started to show up! By the time it was around dinner time there were around 5,000 men plus women and children. That’s an estimated somewhere between 10,000-20,000 people that needed to be fed. How can that possibly happen?

Well….haaaave you met God? Yeah, the all powerful God can pretty much do whatever he wants to do, including making things work out with food and supernaturally making the food last. God can also supernaturally make your finances last. Let me tell you about a story right here at LRBC. This was more than 20 years ago…There was a group of people sitting around a table and talking about what needed to be paid. They were discussing missions, and bills, and pastoral salary, and all of those things, and frankly there simply wasn’t enough to go around. So they prayed about it and then they started to reach into their pockets and pull out cash to try and fill in the blank checks that were needed. Well, there wasn’t going to be enough, but that heart was beautiful wasn’t it…A few minutes later, either someone walked in the room, or someone finally spoke up and opened an envelope from the insurance company. It seemed that the insurance company had underpaid something from the fire build out and so as they were going through their own internal audit they found this discrepancy and wrote the church a check for, I think right around $7,000 which was more than enough to pick the church back up from where she was and keep her going all those years ago. You see…God faithfully provided here because of the faithful men and women that have served and given here faithfully and cheerfully for the last 40 years at LRBC…and that will never be forgotten.

My question to you this morning is, do you want to join those men and women in the history of LRBC today? You see, when you step out in faith and make a commitment to generosity then God will supply your needs. You may have to do without a cup of coffee at Sweet-Bean this week, or that extra McDonalds meal this week in order to provide some non-perishable meals to Loaves and Fish or to bring in some funds to put towards that gift. You may have to take a larger step of faith and make the decision to enter into a percentage based giving program with the Lord as you work to trust the Lord more and more. Whatever that step for you this morning, let me encourage you in the Lord’s provisions.

Now, as all we reflect on the sacrifices we might make, we should realize that these small acts of generosity are simply opportunities for us to step out in faith and trust in God’s provision. Scripture promises that when we sow generously, we will also reap generously. You see, it’s not about the size of the gift but the heart behind it, and God honors that faithfulness. So, let’s bring everything we’ve talked about today into focus and see how we can live out this call to generosity in our daily lives.

As we consider what it means to step out in faith and trust in God’s provision, I want to invite you to make a tangible commitment today. In your chairs this morning, you’ll find a commitment card where you will have an opportunity to make a couple of different types of commitments this morning. I would like to ask everyone to prayerfully consider each type of commitment, and I’m going to go over them together with us.

First of all there is a commitment to regular giving. 1. Regular Giving Commitment: The first commitment is to regular, percentage-based giving. This is a commitment to trust God first with your finances on a consistent basis, to make giving a regular part of your worship. Whether you’re just starting out with a small percentage or you’re ready to take a bigger step of faith, this commitment is about putting God first in your financial life and trusting Him to provide. Here’s what I would like to ask you to do with this portion…I’d like you to write down what percentage you are committing to giving to the Lord first, meaning the Lord takes the first slot on your budget, not the leftovers. Listen, no one is looking at your deposits so no one is looking to see if this is even true, if you’re unsure about this, leave your name off of this commitment…The thing is I would like to invite you to make a tangible commitment to the Lord this week where you are physically telling the Lord that you are committing to give him this percentage of your income. And let me tell you this…if it’s less than 10%, let me encourage you to make that a growing percentage. Make it grow by a percentage or a 1/2 percentage every month until you reach that 10% mark…don’t be ok with less than God has asked for. OK. So that’s the fisrt time of commitment.

Then there is this other type of commitment. 2. One-Time Gift to the Food Bank: The second commitment is a one-time gift to support our local food bank, Loaves and Fish. This is an opportunity to make an immediate impact in our community, to help feed those who are struggling right now. Whether it’s donating non-perishable items or contributing financially, this is a way to show God’s love in a practical way. Listen, Im announcing a goal as a church to reach $1000 by the end of the month and so I’d like to ask you to help us get there…So I’d like to ask you to simply write down, yes I will support Loaves and Fish if that is something you are going to do.

The band is going to come up and while the band is playing we will have the ushers walk around and pick up your commitment cards…

Let’s Pray: Pray that God declutters all of our hearts so that we are able to be generous givers to others.