40-Day Devotion, Day 19

PREPARATION: READ 2 CORINTHIANS 8:1-5; 9:5-7

Flashlight: Generosity

David Jeremiah, the founder of World Vision, tells the story of Bob Pierce. Pierce had advanced leukemia, but he went to visit a colleague in Indonesia before he died. As they were walking through a small village, they came upon a young girl lying on a bamboo mat next to the river. She was dying of cancer and had only a short time to live. After questioning why she wasn’t in a clinic, Pierce was told that she wanted to spend her last days next to the river, where it was cool and familiar.
Filled with compassion, Pierce knelt beside the girl, stroked her hair, and began praying for her. She looked up and spoke and Pierce turned to his friend for an interpretation. He obliged: “She said, ‘If I could only sleep again. If I could only sleep again.’ Apparently, her pain is too great to allow her the relief of rest.”
Pierce began to weep. He reached into his pocket and took out his own sleeping pills, the ones his doctor had given him because the pain from his leukemia was too great for him to sleep at night. He handed the bottle to his friend. “You make sure this young lady gets a good night’s sleep,” he said, “as long as these pills last.”
Bob was ten days from where he could get his prescription refilled. That meant ten painful and restless nights. But even in the midst of his suffering, God infused in him a supernatural sense of satisfaction that he had done the right thing.
As Christians, we are commanded to share God’s goodness with others. That means generosity in everything and it often comes with sacrifice. But God, who has shown such incredible generosity to us, going so far as to send His son to carry our sins to the cross, asks us to follow His lead and share His love with the world. That requires giving from our resources—all of them: time, talent, money, and even energy.
Consider for a moment the power of giving. God equipped us all with different abilities and opportunities. Taken individually those things are awe- inspiring and fun to observe. But when God’s people give of their resources, something extraordinary, even supernatural, happens: God’s power is unleashed and the world sees the love described in the Bible—love that even the staunchest skeptic would be hard- pressed to deny.
Rick Warren says it this way: “God gave me a gift, not for me but for you, and God gave you a gift, not for you but for me. If you don’t use your gift, you’re depriving me. If I don’t use my gift, I’m depriving you.”
So how can you be more generous in your life? Start by recognizing opportunities right in front of you. How simple is it to share friendship with someone who does not have a friend?
How easy is it to brighten the day of lonely elderly folks and shut-ins with just a short visit? How much time does it take to bless someone by assisting with housework, shopping or yard-work, especially those unable to do them on their own? How much love is communicated when you simply take the time to read a story to a child? Those things are remarkably simple, but the results are simply remarkable.
The most amazing part of all: your actions don’t just affect those you help. They bless you, too. Deuteronomy 15:10 says: “You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.” One more idea about generosity: it should be your first instinct, a habit rather than an afterthought. That comes with practice, but eventually, generosity becomes part of your spiritual DNA.
Consider the story told by a missionary in Africa. He tells about the morning a native boy knocked on the door of his hut. The boy held a large fish in his hands and, when the door opened, the young man smiled and said, “Pastor, you taught us what the Bible teaches about tithing. Today I caught this fish, and I am bringing it as a tithe.”
As the missionary gratefully accepted the fish, he questioned the boy: “If this is your tithe, where are the other nine fish?” The boy grinned and replied, “Oh, they’re still back in the river. I’m going back to catch them right now.”
That kind of instinctive generosity mirrors the heart of God. We serve a giving God, a God who poured Himself out for us on the cross and who continues to pour blessings into our lives. In Luke 6, Jesus reminded us God wants us to follow His lead and when we do, He fills our lives with His presence! “Give and it will be given to you,” said Jesus. “A good measure, pressed down and shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (To continue reading, go to my comment below.)