At Stewardship, we think about generosity every day of the year as we support generous donors and then partner with churches and charities to administer those gifts.
While gift giving and hospitality are central to Western traditions of celebrating Christmas, we must dig deeper than these temporary joys to find true expressions of generosity.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the pressures of work, family or church commitments, the nativity story invites us to pause. Take a moment now to see generosity through the lives of the ordinary people in the Nativity story who responded to God with open hands.
But before we meet them, we mustn’t ignore the meta-narrative. The nativity story is just one chapter of a far bigger story of God’s generosity to a human race that didn’t deserve it. The birth of Jesus is a gift that, in our state of rebellion before God, none of us asked for, could earn or can ever repay. Christmas reveals that true generosity is inspired with God’s heart for his people. ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son’ - John 3:16. Christmas begins with grace.
The characters in the Nativity story are also fantastic examples of how we should be reacting when God does the unexpected in our lives:
1. Mary’s open handed ‘yes’
Mary’s life was completely disrupted by the angel’s announcement and we would naturally expect her response to have one of been fear, denial or disobedience. Instead, her words and actions demonstrate a deep trust, courage and willingness. Mary offers her life, plans and future to God’s purpose.
‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered (Luke 1:38). Her generosity is not financial but personal, expressed through obedience that costs something real. Her story invites us to consider where we might respond to God with similar bravery and openness.
Read Mary’s story in Luke 1:26-38
2. Joseph’s quiet, costly obedience
Joseph learns that Mary is expecting a child through the Holy Spirit and chooses a path marked by integrity. He protects Mary and the unborn Jesus, doing what is right at great personal cost. Joseph shows a generosity of restraint, compassion and sacrifice. His obedience creates a safe place for God’s work to unfold.
Read Joseph’s story in Matthew 1:18-25
3. The shepherds who made space
The shepherds are among the first to hear the angel’s announcement of Jesus’ birth. They do not dismiss the message. Instead, they leave their flocks and hurry to Bethlehem. Despite their poverty, they show generosity in the attention they give to God’s call and the time they offer to witness and share what they have seen. They make space in their ordinary night for the extraordinary.
Read the Shepherd’s story in Luke 2:8-20
4. The Magi’s wholehearted worship
In a mysterious sub-plot, the Magi, or ‘wise men’, see a star and set out on a long journey to honour the child who has been born king of the Jews. They bring costly and prophetic gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Their generosity lies not only in what they give, but in the perseverance and devotion of their search, despite evil attempts to subvert it. Their example prompts us to consider what joyful, sacrificial worship looks like when we follow the guidance of God in faith.
Read their story in Matthew 2:1-12
5. Elizabeth’s generous encouragement
When Mary visits Elizabeth, she is met not with doubt but with blessing. Elizabeth recognises God’s work in Mary and speaks words that strengthen her.
‘Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfil his promises to her’ Elizabeth says in Luke 1:45 (NIV). Her generosity is the gift of encouragement and companionship, offered at exactly the right moment.
Read Elizabeth’s story in Luke 1:39-45
Find your Christmas story
Consider which of these characters you connect with most.
How do their lives and choices speak into yours? You may be facing decisions that surprise others or feel counter-cultural, or 2026 may see you walking the same path marked by quiet, joyful sacrifice in response to God’s generosity to you.
Whichever season you are in, may the generosity of Christmas lift your heart and give you confidence in God, the author of the greatest story and the author of your circumstances.
From all at Stewardship, a happy Christmas.
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James Bishop
James is our Digital Marketing Manager and works within our Purpose team to connect Christians to the causes they care about and to inspire them to live out the freedom that active generosity offers. He works on website content and email newsletters, advertising on social media and making sure people using search engines can find us. James also contributes to campaigns such as 40acts and the Generosity Report.
Before joining Stewardship in 2025, James worked in marketing departments of all sizes, from a biotech startup to a large civil engineering consultancy and most recently a learning disability charity.
James lives in Surrey and serves in a local church as a director of their non-profit community café and on their AV team. James is reluctantly making a middle-age transition from football to golf and loves making homemade pizza and good coffee.
