Several years ago, the church I worked with gave a desk to a minister who had started a street ministry to the poor of our city. The desk we gave him had to be at least 25 years-old, and was missing handles and a drawer. But he was proud to have it , and we were proud to give it to him. (Hey, it was going to the dump anyway.)Why do we give away things that we don’t really need and feel we've done something noble? Why didn't I give the guy my nice desk… which I happened to like… and replace my desk with the crummy, old desk? (Because I didn't want a crummy, old desk.)
It's similar to those of us who give all of the weird, canned goods in our pantry (pickled kumquats, etc.) to the church's food drive. Would we give our best shirt, our favorite shoes, or our most expensive dress to the church's clothing drive?
On the other hand, I think it's pretty amazing how on April 20 the Community Christian Church in Chicago gave away their entire Sunday offering... $229, 000!
What does generosity look like in your life?
