February 28th Generosity Devotional

February 28, 2013

Enough

And Jesus told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. Luke 12:16-18

e·nough  /iˈnəf/ adj. adequate for the want or need; sufficient for the purpose or to satisfy desire; as in, I have had enough food.

How much is enough?

This is a question that Americans have a tough time answering.  Sixty eight percent of us are overweight, we have closets full of clothes, Racks full of shoes, and garages so filled with stuff we can’t park our cars in them.  The New York Times recently reported that Americans rent 2.3 billion square feet of rental space- 7 square feet of storage for every man, woman and child in the whole nation.  In our house, it seems like every Christmas we pull out trash bags full of barely used toys to give to Good Will to make room for the next crop of toys.  How much is enough?

The definition of “enough” is rather indicting.  “Sufficient for the purpose.” Hm… that could redefine my relationship with food, shopping and many other things.  Do I have sufficient?  If the answer is “yes”, then why more? But the last part of the definition cuts deep: “sufficient to satisfy desire.”  Ouch.  Maybe that’s what our rampant consumerism is about.  We are trying to use stuff to satisfy a desire. We are casting possession or pleasures into that large hole in our heart that can only be filled with God. 

Now I’m not saying that everyone should take a vow of poverty, live in a cardboard box and survive on saltine crackers.  Scripture is clear that God has given all things for us to freely enjoy.  So by all means, enjoy! But settling the question of “How much is enough” will free us to enjoy our relationship with God more fully and liberate us to live more generously in God’s kingdom.

Maybe enough really is enough!

February 27th Generosity Devotional

February 27, 2013

Give First

There is an interesting story about overflow buried in the Historical books of the Old Testament.  In I Kings 17, we find the prophet Elijah in hiding from the evil King of Israel whom he had prophesied against.  After the Lord takes care of Elijah by providing food and water at a small brook called Cherith, he instructs Elijah to go to a widow in Zarephath who will take care of him.  When Elijah approaches the woman, she tells him that she has just enough flour and oil to make one more cake for herself and her son, then they will die of starvation.  Elijah instructs her to trust God and first make a cake for him, in spite of their own need.  He assures her that if she obeys, God will not allow the flour or oil to run out. 

Talk about generosity!  This sounds a little outrageous doesn’t it.  The man of God is expecting her to feed him before she feeds her own son!  Scripture tells us that the woman did exactly what Elijah had said, she generously gave from what little she had to take care of God’s work.  Afterward she discovered that God kept His promise, the “jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry. (I Kings 17:16).  In other words, this dear lady experienced God’s overflow… every day!

Here is the challenge for us.  She did not experience the overflow until she had experienced generosity.  Most of us think it is the other way around.  If God will bless us, we will be happy to give back some of what He has given to us.  In other words we will give God out of our overflow.  In this illustration, the giving preceded the overflow.  Something to think about as we plan our Generosity 2013 offering.

I Kings 17:16

For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.

February 26th Generosity Devotional

February 26, 2013

The Grace of Giving

But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us—see that you also excel in this grace of giving. 2 Corinthians 8:7

Are you a giving person?  Do you excel in the grace of giving? It’s an interesting question, isn’t it? I mean, how many people are willing to own up to being stingy or tightfisted?  Yet the world is filled with ungenerous people. I think this topic is worth considering as we reflect on the theme of overflow this month. After all, if Christ is filling us to overflow, the excess has to go someplace. As that overflow leaks out of our lives and over to others, it looks like giving to those on the outside. Overflow leads to giving.

For the past week I’ve been taking special notice of overflow in the lives of those around me and how I have benefitted.  Here are some of the things I saw:

• My eldest daughter taking some of her free time to go out and shoot archery with her 10 year-old brother instead of watching TV or conversing on Facebook
• Someone unexpectedly picking up my lunch tab at Panera’s in Gainesville
• Volunteers donating hours of time, furniture and expertise to design, paint, decorate and clean so that the beautiful new “Next Step” suite could open on time
• A friend stopping me in the hall to say that I looked distracted and ask if everything was all right
• A random stranger in the grocery store with a loaded cart inviting me to check out ahead of them with my milk and eggs
• An encouraging email from a church member who was blessed by something I wrote and took the time to affirm me
• My wife preparing and bringing me a hot cup of coffee… just because
• Three deacons showing up 1 hour 45 minutes early one Sunday morning to blow off the sidewalks for our congregation after a “dusting of snow”

And that is just a very few. I have been the recipient of so much overflow!  When I realize how blessed I am, it makes me want to be all-the-more generous with the many resources God has entrusted to me.  Take a minute today and reflect on how you have been blessed by the overflow of others!

February 25th Generosity Devotional

February 25, 2013

Giving Grace

            They closed a lane on 66 again.  The orange sign says left lane closed ahead, merge right.  After a long, deep, heavy sigh, I put on my turn signal and join the slow moving line in the right lane.  Of course, there are a few people behind me who think that if they wait to merge, they can get ahead of a few people and get home 3 seconds before they would have.  My tendency is to ride as close to the bumper of the car in front of me as I can so that no one can squeeze in front of me.  They can wait like the rest of us!

            Why is it so hard for me to be gracious to people?  I tell myself it is because they are not doing right (they should wait in line) so they don’t deserve my grace.  This really doesn’t work when we are talking about grace.  Grace, by its very definition, is not deserved.  I Timothy 1:14 says that I am the recipient of grace that has been poured out on me abundantly.  I certainly wasn’t doing right when God poured out his grace.  I didn’t deserve for Him to love me, forgive me and bless me.  But He has, abundantly!  I now live in that abundant, overflowing grace.  How can I then hoard that grace or dispense it conditionally?  Living in this abundant grace compels me to share that grace with others, others who don’t necessarily deserve it. 

            Okay, I’m easing up on the gas pedal, letting in a shiny BMW… grace. 

I Timothy 1:14

“The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ  Jesus”

  

February 22nd Generosity Devotional

February 22, 2013

Living Water 2

[The one rooted in Jesus] is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
 Whatever he does prospers. Psalm 1:3

My dad has some rural property in upstate Pennsylvania.  It’s a beautiful spot with fields, pasture land and woods.  About 10 years ago he put a little cabin on the land.  It has since become a favorite vacation spot for our family.

There is one particular area on the property that I love. It’s a little year-round spring that flows out of some exposed rock on the side of the hill.  No matter how dry the summer or how hot the weather, the grass is always green and lush by the spring.  Trees grow thick nearby and if you want to, you can drink the clean cool water to quench your thirst.   In fact, there is enough water coming out of the rock that you have to be careful where you walk. Even in August you might just get a shoe full of mud. Like an oasis in the desert, the vegetation around this spring is markedly different than the surrounding landscape.  You can see it a mile away and there are always birds, deer and little forest critters hanging around.

To the Christian, relationship with Jesus is like being planted by a fresh spring.  Although circumstances may be difficult and times of drought often come; our spirits can be well-watered by an endless supply of living water.  The sun might be hot, but we need not wither.  Others notice that we are sustained by something deeper than the circumstances of life and are attracted to the spring.  They too are looking for something to quench their thirst, something to sink roots into and be sustained.

And that is the point.  God overflows in our life so that others may benefit.  We are channels of an eternal source of living water.  Drink deeply of the water today.