The One Who Gave Generously

Kari Patterson > Devotional Thoughts > The One Who Gave Generously
Devotional Thoughts, Frugal Living0

*Visit FrugalLivingNW for the corresponding post.

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I had a full morning.  I traveled to Romania, Moldova, India, Uganda, Mozambique, Mexico and finally back to New Orleans.  When I arrived back home and held my healthy, clean, beautiful children, it was all I could do not to burst into tears.  I walked through my home, taking in the beauty, the luxury, the comfort. And as soon as my kids went down for naps, I got out my laptop, pulled up the Patterson Family Budget in Excel, and began brainstorming ways to reduce the amount in 14 categories in order to increase the amount in one category.  That one category? Giving.

As I mentioned in the FrugalLivingNW article, one of the keys to giving generously is to expose ourselves to real need.

My morning’s world travels were just that. An exposure to real need. In reality I just visited the Real. Life. Exhibit in Tigard, Oregon, a multi-sensory exhibit by Medical Teams International that allows people to see what real life is like for children exposed to disaster, conflict, and poverty.  From the unthinkable terrors of the “Lord’s Resistance Army” to the hopeless destitution of Romanian orphanages to the perpetuating poverty of those who live in the garbage dumps of Mexico City, this exhibit is a powerful reminder that we live in a world in dire need of Christ’s hope.  And, they are making a difference through showing the love of God in tangible ways–disaster relief, medical services and training, and medical supplies distribution.  They are giving generously in every way.

And they are simply following in the footsteps of the One Who Gave Generously.

Of course, Christ is the supreme example of one who gave generously.

He gave His life.  He gave us life.

When we look at Christ and look at the world it really becomes quite simple.  When I look at Christ I see that love held Him on the cross.  He gave His life for me.  In response I joyfully offer my life to serve Him.   When I look at the world I see pain, suffering, disaster, poverty.  I see that these are people for whom Christ died.  If I am a Christian (literally a “little Christ”), and He died for these people, certainly I go without a Latte for these people.

I mentioned in the FrugalLivingNW article that Americans spend $3 BILLION on chewing gum, a non-nutritive substance.  Add to that $26 BILLION on soda, and $18 BILLION on coffee.  Visiting this exhibit reminded me that it is SO easy to make a difference. We just have to do it. And the powerful truth is that when we serve these people we are serving Christ Himself, the One who gave His life, the One who gave us life. Want to hear it straight from His mouth? Consider His words:

34“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

41“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Matthew 25:31-46

Does anyone else just want to weep when they read that?  Every time I read that passage it brings me to my knees. Read it again.

The Gospel has implications for social justice.

“If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warm and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” James 2:15-16 (italics mine)

If the world is ever going to listen to our message, they must first be absolutely convinced of our love.

Friends, we must continue to be diligent about exposing ourselves to real need.  I’m the first to confess that every month when the Voice of the Martyrs magazine arrives I want to hide it under the sofa. My flesh doesn’t want to be reminded of the suffering around the world. I’d rather curl up on the couch with Real Simple and learn new tricks for organizing all the stuff I have.  But every time we let our hearts to be cracked a tiny bit, we allow God to flow through the broken places and touch people with His love and grace.

In the FrugalLivingNW article, we talked about giving creatively. Here is a phenomenal way to take your family through 14 days of creative giving.  We just started this, and it’s such a fabulous way to teach children, encourage compassion, and stimulate creativity in ways to give.

There are so many wonderful organizations that are making a huge difference in the lives of those affected by poverty, disaster, conflict.  Please take a moment and look at some of these, or consider others you may know of.  I pray that we would not be guilty of pinching our pennies only to find we missed the whole point all along.  I pray we would never be guilty of  an empty blessing, “be warm and filled…”–without handing over our coats and our bread.

* Do you have creative ways to inspire your family to giving?  Please share!

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