Contagious Generosity

Culture is shaped by what we value! When we, as church leaders, do not value generosity, then the people in our church will not value it either.

By not talking about God's perspective of money and possessions, we condition people to become consumers instead of givers. It is necessary for us to clearly communicate that the goal of generosity is not just funding local church ministries, it is participating in a revolution that God is orchestrating through believers around the world. And that revolution starts with every person at our church being a blessing to people around the world. That is what God promised Abraham in Genesis 12.

We need to strive to seek God, not money. We need to seek to surrender to God's will, listen to Him and His direction, and then do what He says. The spirit and practice of generosity is always an outward sign of an inward commitment - faith. Just as we point to our personal checkbooks or bank accounts as evidence of what we value, the church must look at its own financial habits and determine whether it is holding itself accountable in the same way.

In the end, the primary goal when creating a generous culture in our church is not financial gain or expansion of our budget. The real goal has very little to do with money. The real goal is spiritual formation. Generosity is one of the best external indicators for measuring transformation and spiritual growth.

We might need to ask ourselves, "Through what lens is our church looking? What do outsiders see as important to our church? What do they think we value?"

Encounter The Word

• 2 Corinthians 8:1-5