Generosity by David Jeremiah

Friday, July 13 Generosity    And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8    For many years, analyses have shown that middle- and low-income people tend to give a greater percentage of their income to charity than high-income people do. The difference isn’t huge—three-plus percent to charity for middle-/low-income families, one-plus percent for high earners. It seems the more we have, the less we are willing to part with it.

Recommended Reading: Philippians 4:10-19

Jesus made a point of praising people who give sacrificially instead of giving out of their abundance (Mark 12:41-44). And Paul praised the Macedonian churches who gave out of their poverty to help the church in Jerusalem (2 Corinthians 8:1-4). Behind every instance of sacrificial giving is the promise that God’s grace will provide “sufficiency in all things.” Because giving is God-like, God’s abundance undergirds it. Giving sacrificially and generously is a way to grow faith. God can’t fill a hand that has a tight grasp on money. God moves money into and out of our open hands. The church treasurer counts what we give; God counts what we keep. John Blanchard