Kingdom Life: Generosity

He looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasury; he also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on. ~ Luke 21-1-4
Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor. ~ Proverbs 22:9
Too many have dispensed with generosity in order to practice charity. ~ Albert Camus.
True generosity is an offering given freely and out of pure love. No strings attached. No expectations. Time and love are the most valuable possessions you can share. ~ Suze Orman


Generosity is, I think, one of the most misunderstood words in faith. It is so often, as Albert Camus says, confused with charity.
But there is a tried and true way to tell the difference.
One that modern psychology has backed up!
Neuroscience has shown that generosity actually makes us happy! Even thinking about doing something generous, can lift our mood.

 Think of that. And the writer of Proverbs seemed to have that knowledge long before neuroscientists. We are blessed when we are generous.

 Generosity is something born of the heart. Born of love. If we are intended for community, then generosity is the way we get to share love with each other and with the world.

 We are generous when we share what is important to us.  What gives us joy. When we share what we love or value with others so that they may also experience that love and joy. And by doing so, our joy grows.

 We are charitable when we share not out of our most valued possession, but out of our abundance. 

Charity can be practiced certainly. And this is not to say charity has no place in community or in our world.

 But generosity is a way of being. We can fall into generosity by taking a leap of faith. By opening our heart to see our neighbor as part of our community and the Kingdom of God and by valuing them with love and joy as we do ourselves.

 Prayer: Lord, open my heart to love that I may fully experience the joy and blessing that comes from a full and generous life. Amen.



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