It’s that time again, the office party or works’ dinner out looms, and someone has come up with the bright scheme of having a Secret Santa. The idea (in case you are unfamiliar) is that each person in the organisation buys a gift for one other person, whose name is drawn randomly from a top hat, if done properly, but an old Jiffy bag if not. The end result is that everyone receives a present at the event, with no one left out.
One of the things I love about generosity is that it’s always available to us. The worst kind of day can happen, you can stub your toe, work can be rubbish, the dog can vomit on the rug – and you can still walk out the door and practice generosity. The door never closes on generosity, and the chance to make someone else’s life better is always there. It’s always an option.
Reverse tithing. Generous even in poverty. Christians love a juxtaposition. We love to illustrate a point using polar opposites. Maybe that’s because it’s all over the Bible. That’s why you can read the phrase reverse tithing without even batting an eyelid, because at first it seems illustrative. Except reverse tithing isn’t just an illustration, it’s a real way to tithe. Or at least it is for Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church and his wife.
When I was at school in the 1970s, the word “slavery” meant the TV series “Roots.” We were all glued to it, open-mouthed at the successive generations of enslaved people who made up writer Alex Haley’s family. Today, in 2018, modern slavery is everywhere, its toxic fingers reaching into every country and community. People are still forced to work against their will by cruel masters.
What were you taught about generosity when you were a child?
Growing up, we did not have much money, but my father – a carpenter – gave his time and skills to our elderly and poor neighbours.
As a visually impaired person, my husband, John, has often been the recipient of generous giving. He has benefitted from fund-raising activities and street collections, and has been the owner of four gorgeous guide dogs. He is extremely grateful to charities like Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, RNIB, Calibre (who send him audio books) and the BWBF who provide him with an internet radio.
But it’s important to him to be able to give too.
Before we can answer that question we have to agree on one key biblical principle: God owns it all. King David acknowledges this after he and his people have given generously for the building of the temple, “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you and we have given you only what comes from your hand.” 1 Chronicles 29:14.
Apparently, my neighbour thought I was a vandal when she heard me rooting around in our gated bin alley. I don’t know if she was reassured that I was entirely sane when I popped out of a rubbish bin with a cheery smile to say ‘Hello! Just doing a little cleaning!’
I know someone who frequently says, ‘Oh, if only I could win the Lottery, then I would give it all away!’ For the record, I know for a fact that this person doesn’t even buy a ticket, so the generous sentiment will never be put to the test. But the thinking is common enough: With half a million, think of the good we could do! The projects we could fund! The mouths we could feed! We assume that, if we are to be generous, we need a full pot to be generous from. It makes sense, doesn’t it?
Although “stewardship” sounds like a bible word, it isn’t. But it is a bible concept. The concept is twofold – there’s stewardship of what’s been given particularly to you and there’s stewardship of everything else. Stewardship is the way we look after things – not the way we own things. We are stewards, or trustees, or custodians – of something that belongs to someone else but which has been put into our charge. Stewards are not owners, they are guardians.
blogs by the Stewardship team and selected guest writers.
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