Be Prepared to be Generous
Devotional
READ: John 6:1-13
Growing up, I had little money. There was always a strong temptation to hold tight to everything I had and keep it from others. I lived paycheck to paycheck, prioritizing my own needs and wants before anything else. As I matured as a follower of Jesus, I began to see a common thread in his character as I grew closer to him. There was always selflessness and generosity. These are two defining traits we are called to reflect as His followers. I came to realize that my priorities were in the wrong order. I was in the habit of prioritizing my needs and wants over positioning myself to be generous with whatever I had. I needed to relinquish my perception of ownership and develop a new habit of being ready to give or act.
The boy in our primary passage was able to offer God the resources he had been blessed with, and God was able to use them to meet the needs of others.
The apostle Paul reminds us that God calls us to "do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share" (1 Timothy 6:18). This means to live life with open hands. A tangible way that I have made myself ready to share my finances is through utilizing a special bank account set aside for giving. The account is set up to receive a percentage of my paycheck through auto-draft. This is an intentional, deliberate way to live a generous lifestyle. I know that I have resources prepared that God has blessed me with to bless others at a moment's notice. This is just one example of how you can prepare yourself to be generous. If you have kids, you may find that you're constantly reminding them to take care of their things. One way that I correlate this concept of preparing to be generous with them is by reminding them that everything we have comes from God. By caring for what we have, we prepare those things to bless others by letting their friends use what they have or by later giving it away in the best condition possible.
Have you ever had the Holy Spirit pull on your heart, telling you that there is a need that you should respond to in some way? Being prepared to share whatever resources, time, talents, finances, etc., you have to meet a need in the moment, which enables you to experience what it's like to reflect God's blessings on people immediately. There is nothing like being a real-time change agent for Christ.
It is critical to understand that being prepared to be generous is a practice that applies very broadly. God has blessed us all in very diverse and extraordinary ways. It is up to you to identify these blessings and prepare them for work in God's kingdom. Once we do this, we can realize the fullness of sharing the blessings God has provided us with those in our lives.
Growing up, I had little money. There was always a strong temptation to hold tight to everything I had and keep it from others. I lived paycheck to paycheck, prioritizing my own needs and wants before anything else. As I matured as a follower of Jesus, I began to see a common thread in his character as I grew closer to him. There was always selflessness and generosity. These are two defining traits we are called to reflect as His followers. I came to realize that my priorities were in the wrong order. I was in the habit of prioritizing my needs and wants over positioning myself to be generous with whatever I had. I needed to relinquish my perception of ownership and develop a new habit of being ready to give or act.
The boy in our primary passage was able to offer God the resources he had been blessed with, and God was able to use them to meet the needs of others.
The apostle Paul reminds us that God calls us to "do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share" (1 Timothy 6:18). This means to live life with open hands. A tangible way that I have made myself ready to share my finances is through utilizing a special bank account set aside for giving. The account is set up to receive a percentage of my paycheck through auto-draft. This is an intentional, deliberate way to live a generous lifestyle. I know that I have resources prepared that God has blessed me with to bless others at a moment's notice. This is just one example of how you can prepare yourself to be generous. If you have kids, you may find that you're constantly reminding them to take care of their things. One way that I correlate this concept of preparing to be generous with them is by reminding them that everything we have comes from God. By caring for what we have, we prepare those things to bless others by letting their friends use what they have or by later giving it away in the best condition possible.
Have you ever had the Holy Spirit pull on your heart, telling you that there is a need that you should respond to in some way? Being prepared to share whatever resources, time, talents, finances, etc., you have to meet a need in the moment, which enables you to experience what it's like to reflect God's blessings on people immediately. There is nothing like being a real-time change agent for Christ.
It is critical to understand that being prepared to be generous is a practice that applies very broadly. God has blessed us all in very diverse and extraordinary ways. It is up to you to identify these blessings and prepare them for work in God's kingdom. Once we do this, we can realize the fullness of sharing the blessings God has provided us with those in our lives.
Personal Reflection
Are you proactively allocating time, money, effort, etc… to be generous? How easy is it for you to be generous? Does it interrupt your finances or personal time? Do you have funds or individual items in a condition/state that could be given immediately if needed?
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