Good conversation last night at cell group about our wants, our needs, the things that would make life easier and filtering all of those through God's Mission.
When Wes spoke on Philippians 4:10-13, he gave some background on the Philippians & their giving.
Turns out the church at Philippi is one of the churches Paul was writing about in 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 that gave out of "the most severe trial" and their "extreme poverty". We also talked about how to make generosity more a part of our lives.
The funny thing is, for the 1st time in my life, I understand this. When I was giving out of an abundance, I would often do it grudgingly. But now that we don't have an abundance & we're dependent upon God's mercy...KNOWING that everything is a gift from Him DOES make it a lot easier to let stuff (& money) go.
Then, last night as I was reading through Crazy Love (Francis Chan), what does the chapter start talking about...you guessed it...giving. He even references the 2 Corinthians passage that Wes had discussed. But he also points to the miracle when Jesus fed the thousands.
"Jesus gave the loaves to His disciples and then the disciples passed them out to the crowd. Imagine if the disciples had simply held onto the food Jesus gave them, continually thanking Him for providing lunch for them. That would've been stupid when there was enough food to feed the thousands who were gathered and hungry.
But that is exactly what we do when we fail to give freely and joyfully. We are loaded down with too many good things, more than we could ever need, while others are desperate for a small loaf. The good things we cling to are more than money; we hoard our resources, our gifts, our time, our families, our friends. As we begin to practice regular giving, we see how ludicrous it is to hold on to the abundance God has given us and merely repeat the words thank you."
Hmmm...I'm sensing a theme...over and over again. EVERYTHING I'm being drawn to read in Scripture...the books I'm being drawn to read...confirm over and over again that the American church has gotten it ALL wrong. I SO need to get my hands on a copy of Radical by David Platt! It apparently talks about this "blind spot" in American Christianity that my indulgence, my comfort, my abundance at the expense of others is somehow okay. I've always had a "soft spot" for the poor, but could VERY easily turn my eyes & heart away when I didn't see them.
Now Holy Spirit is bringing to mind REPEATEDLY, the desire to help the "widows and the orphans" and the poor...down my street, in my state (i.e. Appalachia), and around the globe. Holy Spirit just reminded me this morning that this passion is a newly awakened one, it takes time to formulate a plan. It seems like it's a sudden, drastic change...and it is. As I was thinking about it, He assured my heart that as I seek after His (heart)...I will naturally care about the things that He does!
I am SO ready! As long as He leads me, I'm ready to put feet to my thoughts and words...AND take our family along on the journey. I see it in my kids...they WANT more excitement...they HAVE passion, compassion, blind-trust and love. It's time we use these gifts to write a better story!
When Wes spoke on Philippians 4:10-13, he gave some background on the Philippians & their giving.
Turns out the church at Philippi is one of the churches Paul was writing about in 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 that gave out of "the most severe trial" and their "extreme poverty". We also talked about how to make generosity more a part of our lives.
The funny thing is, for the 1st time in my life, I understand this. When I was giving out of an abundance, I would often do it grudgingly. But now that we don't have an abundance & we're dependent upon God's mercy...KNOWING that everything is a gift from Him DOES make it a lot easier to let stuff (& money) go.
Then, last night as I was reading through Crazy Love (Francis Chan), what does the chapter start talking about...you guessed it...giving. He even references the 2 Corinthians passage that Wes had discussed. But he also points to the miracle when Jesus fed the thousands.
"Jesus gave the loaves to His disciples and then the disciples passed them out to the crowd. Imagine if the disciples had simply held onto the food Jesus gave them, continually thanking Him for providing lunch for them. That would've been stupid when there was enough food to feed the thousands who were gathered and hungry.
But that is exactly what we do when we fail to give freely and joyfully. We are loaded down with too many good things, more than we could ever need, while others are desperate for a small loaf. The good things we cling to are more than money; we hoard our resources, our gifts, our time, our families, our friends. As we begin to practice regular giving, we see how ludicrous it is to hold on to the abundance God has given us and merely repeat the words thank you."
Hmmm...I'm sensing a theme...over and over again. EVERYTHING I'm being drawn to read in Scripture...the books I'm being drawn to read...confirm over and over again that the American church has gotten it ALL wrong. I SO need to get my hands on a copy of Radical by David Platt! It apparently talks about this "blind spot" in American Christianity that my indulgence, my comfort, my abundance at the expense of others is somehow okay. I've always had a "soft spot" for the poor, but could VERY easily turn my eyes & heart away when I didn't see them.
Now Holy Spirit is bringing to mind REPEATEDLY, the desire to help the "widows and the orphans" and the poor...down my street, in my state (i.e. Appalachia), and around the globe. Holy Spirit just reminded me this morning that this passion is a newly awakened one, it takes time to formulate a plan. It seems like it's a sudden, drastic change...and it is. As I was thinking about it, He assured my heart that as I seek after His (heart)...I will naturally care about the things that He does!
I am SO ready! As long as He leads me, I'm ready to put feet to my thoughts and words...AND take our family along on the journey. I see it in my kids...they WANT more excitement...they HAVE passion, compassion, blind-trust and love. It's time we use these gifts to write a better story!
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