Giving Unleashed

Monday, March 19, 2012

The Macedonian Throw-Down

Okay, the title does make it sound like some sort of ancient world Ultimate Fighting Competition. I know, I know. I have a tendency to be a bit over-dramatic. But, every time I read through Chapters 8 and 9 of Second Corinthians, I often think of what Paul must have been feeling when he wrote it.

Let's set the scene: Paul was writing this second letter to the believers in the city of Corinth. Apparently, during this period, the church in Jerusalem was in great need, and Paul was working to muster financial support for the "saints in Jerusalem". Prior to the writing of this letter, the Corinthian believers had expressed interest in sending support, but for whatever reason, they had not followed through on their pledge.

Rather than try to browbeat the Corinthian church to "cough up" the money that they had been eager to give before, he decides to use a slightly different tactic: friendly competition. He begins in Chapter 8 by citing the example of the churches in Macedonia. The believers in this region had been living in what Paul describes as "extreme poverty". However, in spite of this turmoil, they had indeed followed through on their commitment to assist the church in Jerusalem.

In fact, Paul was aware of their dire situation, and it is clear that he had at some point tried to persuade them that they were under no obligation to give. In light of their desperate poverty, Paul felt that it must have been better for them to take what little they had and care for themselves. But, the Macedonian churches plead with Paul to allow them to give towards the collection. Paul even indicates that they gave what would have been proportionally appropriate, they gave well beyond that.

In essence, Paul was saying, "Hey guys! We've got these believers in Macedonia who, due to their extreme poverty, really have no business giving generously, and yet they have sacrificed tremendously in order to help the believers in Jerusalem. So, why haven't you all given as you earlier pledged? What gives?"

Maybe we need to ask ourselves the same question: What gives?

In America, even in the midst of some of the most turbulent economic times since the Great Depression, we are still one of the most affluent nations on the planet. And yet, when we hit an economic pothole along the road of our lives, one that makes us tighten our belts a little, what is commonly the first budget item to get dumped? Why, giving, of course.

I'm not saying that everyone sacrifices giving. I know a great many people who have remained faithful in giving, in spite of difficult circumstances, and I'm happy to say that God is still as faithful as ever in making sure their needs are provided. But, it cannot be denied that there is a large segment of the Christian population in America who have forsaken the grace of giving as a means of propping up their monthly budget. Sometimes, the reasoning for doing so is understandable on logical levels. Clearly, if it comes down to buying groceries to feed the family or giving to God, there is logical precedence for caring for the family. I'm not necessarily addressing those types of situations.

What I am addressing are those people who just simply don't want to give up their 24 Mbps high-speed internet in favor of a lower download speed. I'm addressing those people who don't want to cut back on their cable/satellite TV. I'm addressing those people who scramble desperately to hang on to two cars with enormous payments that they have no business trying to keep. I'm addressing those people who simply don't want to put forth the effort to cook a meal for dinner instead of dining out at a restaurant. I'm addressing those people who just can't bring themselves to stop dropping $5 per day off at their favorite coffee shop.

When we resist the Holy-Spirit-Inspired desire to give in exchange for some of these meaningless creature comforts, we are essentially telling God that He is not quite as important as ____________ (fill in the blank with whatever the stronghold is: nice cars, high-speed internet, television, eating out, Starbucks, etc).

Is that really what we want to say to God?

I think if Paul were alive today, every single Christian church in America would be getting a rather lengthy letter postmarked from somewhere in the Middle East. And a few pages in, would be a challenge to give like the Macedonian believers.

Something of a throw-down, I expect.

My curiosity lies in how that message would be received. Would we rise the challenge? Or would we continue to wallow in the mire of our complacency, ready to throw vital ministries in our community under the bus, just so our level of comfort can be maintained?

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

It is also available to Amazon Prime members as a free eBook download as a part of the Kindle Lending Library. Pastors and church administrators can contact me directly at jesse@accidental-author.com to find out about discounts available for churches that wish to use this for teaching and small group curriculum.

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Sunday, March 18, 2012

What Kind of God...?

Many people who are not believers plant their flag of disbelief in the shaky ground of doubt based on questions like the following:

"What kind of God would say He loves us, and then send us to Hell?"

"What kind of God would tempt Adam and Eve by placing a forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden?"

"What kind of God would allow the atrocities we see every day on the news, if we claim that He is love?"

Now, clearly, these questions have been posed hundreds of thousands of times, sometimes in an effort to truly understand the nature of God, and other times to hide behind a seemingly impossible question to grasp in order to sidestep the issue of faith.

But, now I would like to turn to a question that is equally difficult to wrap our heads around. It goes something like this:

"What kind of God would ask me to give when He knows that I'm struggling just to make ends meet every month?"

Of course, there are several variations on this question, based on a number of different variables (paycheck frequency, how much the person asking the question is struggling, etc). I think, whether vocally or internally, each of us has asked that question at some point in our lives. But at the core of this question is a pervasive issue of selfishness. We have a very distorted view of what God really wants for our lives. Let me try and shed some light on this with some very simple statements:

God is not interested in our happiness; He's interested in our holiness. You see, we seem to think that God clearly wants us to be happy, and if we sacrifice to give, we might end up sacrificing our happiness. Nothing could be further from the truth. Happiness is fleeting. Happiness is an emotional response. God wants something deeper. He wants us to experience the joy of being set apart (holy) for His purposes. And to that end, we need to be willing to sacrifice a little bit (or a lot) of "happiness" in order to promote God's Will in our lives.

God is not interested in our comfort; He's interested in our commitment. Comfort and complacency go hand-in-hand. Nobody said the Christian life would be comfortable. In fact, there are a plethora of verses that indicate the exact opposite of this sentiment (John 16:33, James 1:2, 1 Peter 4:12 are just a few notable examples). The Christian life is not about form, but function. We endure ordeals and trials so that we can grow in our faith, and you can bet that when we successfully endure one trial through the power and strength of Jesus Christ, the next one will be just a bit more difficult. God wants us to be committed to Him, and to serving His purpose for our lives. I would venture to say that He doesn't give a rip about our comfort.

God is not interested in our wealth; He's interested in our worship. How wealthy we are, how prosperous we become and how much prestige we garner are not the least bit important to God. He wants our worship. He wants us to live a life of total submission to His plan for our lives. This does not necessarily include becoming rich. While there certainly are Christ-followers who are wealthy by worldly standards, it is not because they have been faithful Christians. The two have nothing to do with each other. God wants us to worship Him in everything that we do. He wants us to worship when singing our praises. He wants us to worship Him in our quiet times every day. He wants us to worship Him through diligence at work. He wants us to worship Him through our relationship with our spouse and children. He wants us to worship Him through our relationship with our friends and co-workers. And, He wants us to worship Him with our money through the giving of tithes and offerings.

Can giving be scary? Of course it can. When it looks like there isn't enough money in the budget to give to God, it can be absolutely terrifying. But has God ever failed to provide for the needs of someone who is faithful in their giving and generosity? I can't think of even a single example. That's an exceptional track record.

And that's what kind of a God He really is.

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Into Every Life: Part 3

Walk into any gym during peak hours, and you will probably hear a chorus of grunts, heavy breathing and any other bodily noise that indicates that extreme effort is being expended. These are not the types of noises that you expect to hear at, say, a birthday party or a golf course (well, maybe, if you are a duffer like me).

No, head over to your local gym, and you are going to encounter noises that accompany pain. People at these establishments are inflicting pain on themselves to achieve a very specific goal: they want to be fitter, stronger and healthier in general.

This brings us to the final cause for turmoil in our lives: sometimes our pain is designed to make us stronger.

Think back to the times that helped to define who you are today. I am willing to be that a majority of these pivotal events in our lives have some pain component. Pain has a way of squeezing us to the point of exposing all of our strengths and weaknesses, and if we approach pain with the right attitude, it can help to strengthen those areas where we are lacking in fortitude.

Let's be very clear: God does not cause pain. We're plenty good at inviting pain into our own lives without His help. However, God can use any situation, especially those that include a healthy dose of pain, to strengthen us and prepare us for the work He has planned for us.

Turmoil can be a form of preparation in our finances as well. For example, someone might lose a job, and therefore a significant amount of income. He or she be forced to examine what things are expendable in the budget. When the source of turmoil is gone (ie, another job is found), that person may decide that whatever they had to sacrifice was not really necessary in the first place, and moving ahead, the money they would have spent on it is now available for use in more noble, God-honoring activities.

Turmoil is never pleasant. Just ask Job. But, if we are faithful in seeking God's Will for our lives, there is never a turbulent situation that can't be used to help make us stronger.

Even in our finances.

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Into Every Life: Part 2

Yesterday, we dealt with the first common cause of turmoil in our lives: our sin. We constantly are reaping the fallout of poor decisions and disobedience to God's commands in our lives. Jonah was the prime example, but as in the story of Jonah, he was offered a second chance to make the right decision. We are all offered that choice (sometimes, third, fourth, fifth and sixth chances...and so on).

Today, I would like to deal with the second cause of turmoil that is given in the book I co-authored with Marc Farnell (Learning to Give in a Getting World) by examining the idea that sometimes turmoil in our lives is designed for the benefit of others.

Pain is never pleasant. Let's be clear about that. Just ask someone who has gone through the process of donating bone marrow. I highly doubt that anyone has ever put that high on their bucket list. However, when another human's life hangs in the balance, many people are motivated to donate bone marrow.

But why? What is the motivation?

Simple: the pain of bone marrow donation is motivated by the possible life-saving benefits for another person.

You see, in spite of making all the right moves, we commonly find ourselves in situations that bring us enormous pain, only to later find out that our suffering served some benefit of a fellow human being. Take, for instance, the story of Paul and Silas in Acts Chapter 16. After casting out a demon from a slave girl who had been used by her owners as a fortune-teller (and for them, a fortune-bringer), they were hauled off to be tried by the local magistrates. Even though they did what was right in God's eyes, they were unjustly beaten without mercy and thrown in prison to be held in the stocks overnight.

I dare say if this were any one of us, the temptation to bemoan our circumstances would be nearly undeniable. Instead, Paul and Silas sang praises to God, and during this time, the earth shook violently, throwing open the prison gates and their shackles. The prison guard, knowing that escaped prisoners would likely mean his untimely demise was about to commit suicide when Paul and Silas stopped him. By the end of the story, the prison guard had pleaded with Paul and Silas to tell how he might be saved, and salvation came to his entire household.

What an incredible impact Paul and Silas had, even though their day had taken a decidedly awful turn. There are three things that need to be gleaned from this story before I bring this back around to the subject of giving.

In spite of their agony, they chose not to complain but to sing praises to God. What an example for us all!
I believe they were able to sing these praises because, as highly effective evangelists, they were keenly tuned into every situation, noting opportunities for evangelizing all around them.
Instead of running and caring for themselves, they recognized an opportunity to bring the Gospel to the prison guard.

There are many times that our financial turmoil is not, in fact, due to disobedience regarding our stewardship. Sometimes, external forces (the ailing economy, for example) can rain down a shower of unwanted hardship. However, we must always bear in mind that God can use any circumstances for His glory. Therefore, I submit the following parallels to the story of Paul and Silas.

In spite of our agony in our sometimes precarious financial situations, there is always a reason to praise God. We have salvation. We have air to breathe. We have friends, families, other church members who care for us deeply. Those alone are reason enough to sing praises every second of every day.
We should also praise God, knowing by faith that He can use our circumstances to minister to others.
Instead of looking only after ourselves, we should be carefully observant of those around us, seeking to find how our situation might be used to benefit them.

Financial struggles are never pleasant. However, when we stare down the fear and continue to find ways to give to God faithfully in the face of these turbulent times, our actions become a living testimony to those around us.

In the face of financial turmoil, what do your actions say about you?

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Into Every Life: Part 1

Turmoil is not a matter of "if", but a matter of "when". I hate to be the one to tell you that if you didn't already know, but rest assured, if you aren't in the middle of turmoil, you are most likely getting ready to head into it.

In Learning to Give in a Getting World, we cover three common reasons for turbulence in most people's lives:

1. Turmoil can be a result of sin

2. Turmoil can be designed for the benefit of others

3. Turmoil can be designed as preparation

Over the next three posts, I am going to talk about these individually, and the first of these is quite possibly one of the most serious.

Clearly, one of the most notable examples of turmoil as a result of sin in the Bible is Jonah. God unequivocally told him that he wanted him to minister in Nineveh, but instead, Jonah turned tail and ran. Of course, we all know the story of what happened following his disobedience. Like the small child that resides in every one of us, he heard what was being requested of him, decided in no uncertain terms that he didn't want to do it, and ran away from the responsibility.

God had other plans. He sent the storm to batter the boat he was using as his vehicle of escape. And, through a series of exchanges between Jonah and the other men on board, the decision to throw him overboard was reached. Before he knew it, Jonah was in the belly of a giant fish.

I can't imagine how awful that experience must have been, but I think that most of us can identify when we've been in situations that were about as rank and odious as being trapped in the belly of a whale. And I think if we were honest, most, if not all, of those situations were caused by our own poor choices (situations where this is not the case will be covered in the next two blog posts).

Many of us face very difficult financial circumstances; this is certain. The economy, while in some areas, is beginning to recover, is not turning around quickly enough for most to feel secure and safe. No doubt, almost all of us are hit with external forces beyond our control that can really make the area of finances a minefield of doubt. However, in the micro-economy of family finances, we can have some control.

What we spend is entirely determined by us. We make decisions every day that affect where our money goes. Yes, of course, we need to make sure that we have a roof over our heads, food for our families, clothes to wear and some form of transportation to take us to and from our jobs. Generally that isn't the issue.

It is in those gray areas where we spend money on luxuries where sin can creep in. When discretionary spending erodes our ability to give the way that God intended for us, we tread into the murky waters of disobedience. Disobedience equals sin, plain and simple. We find new and unusual ways to siphon available cash out of our budgets and away from people and ministries that desperately need it, and then, through our own twisted logic, we expect God to bless us.

Wrong, wrong wrong!

To be clear, I'm not saying that every time we defy God's expectation of us to give generously that we reap some sort of lightning bolt of Divine retribution. What I am saying is that we deprive ourselves of God's blessings, both tangible and intangible. When we go against His Will for our lives and our finances, sometimes, we will find ourselves in the middle of an existential belly of the beast where our struggles only seem to increase in severity.

Fortunately for all of us, there is always a pathway back to obedience. Jonah cried out to God from inside the fish, and his prayer was heard and answered. In Chapter 3 of the book of Jonah, we are told that the word of God came to Jonah a second time, and having learned a very hard (and atrociously smelly) lesson, he obeyed.

As we explore the struggles, the benefits and the blessings of giving throughout the life of this blog, we will always return to the fact that the Word of the Lord is coming to us time and time again. Every single day that we are allowed to live and breathe, we have another opportunity to obey God in His request to us to give generously of our resources.

If you are in the belly of the beast, take a page from the book of Jonah and cry out to God for forgiveness. Then, ask God for the strength to be obedient to Him in the discipline of giving. I'm not going to load you down with a bunch of garbage about having untold wealth bestowed upon you as a result of faithful stewardship (it's not Biblical). Instead, I can tell you that complete obedience to God and greater trust in Him to carry you through your hardships can radically change the way you view all those things that have been stealing money away from your ability to be generous.

When we can walk away from those things that have no lasting significance and trade them in for things of eternal worth, that is the source of true blessing.

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Monday, March 12, 2012

The Spirit is Willing, But...

I firmly believe that when it comes to giving, most Christ-followers wish that they could give (or give more, if they are already giving). Granted, there are those out there who will argue until they are blue in the face about giving back to God, because they do, in fact, have no desire to give. I'm not talking to those people in this post.

The people I'm talking to are the people who have that twinge in their heart that prompts them with the desire to make good use of their resources for the Kingdom of God. These are the ones who see a need and want nothing more than to give their time, talents and treasures to address that need. For these people, it has nothing to do with a lack of desire.

Instead of being about desire, it is about discipline. It is no coincidence that the words "disciple" and "discipline" arise from the same root word. Consistent growth in the grace of giving sacrificially and practicing good stewardship is all about discipline.

Let me ask you the following rather ridiculous rhetorical questions.

Can a person run a marathon without ever having tied on a pair of running shoes? Can anyone run a marathon without training?
Could someone book a show at Radio City Music Hall, come out on stage and play Franz Liszt's Liebestraum (one of the all-time best classical piano pieces ever, and I refuse to debate that) without ever having pressed a single key on the piano?
Can someone write a thousand-page book if they have never written a single word?

The obvious answer to these questions is "NO!". Of course not. Nothing worth achieving in this life cannot be obtained without some blood, sweat and tears. So it is with giving.

The steps to faithful giving are quite simple, actually. Simple, NOT easy. It goes a little something like this:

START, preferably as soon as possible.
Do it again.
Do it again.
Do it again.
Do it again.

See a pattern forming here? The best way to start giving is just to start. If your thought processes regarding giving approach the level of debate of a criminal court case, then you are overthinking it. Just start. Once you've started, the next opportunity you have, repeat that behavior.

Will there probably be hurdles along the way? Sure. Will you fail? You might. Should you quit when that happens? Absolutely not. Thomas Edison failed around one thousand times before he finally perfected the light bulb. Hopefully, we don't have to go through that many failures to form a solid discipline of giving, but even if it does take that long, persistence and perseverance are key.

It's time to start disciplining yourself so that your actions match up with your desire.

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever

Out of Order!

I believe humans are negotiators by nature. Some may be better than others, but there is always a particularly satisfying feeling to striking a deal with someone that is of greater benefit to us than the original offer. Most know that there are great times to "wheel and deal", such as car shopping, house shopping and when perusing used wares at garage sales. Fewer of us will go beyond "the norm" and bargain at places that are not so obvious: car repair shops, electronics stores and even doctor's offices.

Let me first start by saying that there is absolutely nothing wrong with negotiating. It is a great way to make sure that you, as a consumer are getting the best value for your money. While some will take it a bit too far, and try to negotiate the price for a meal at McDonald's (I'm partially kidding, although I know there has to be at least one person out there who has tried it), bargaining can benefit almost everyone in appropriate situations.

When is negotiating not a good idea? I'll give you a hint: most Christ-followers have done it at least once (if not many times) during their lives. I'll give you three other hints.

"Oh God, if you just get me this promotion and the raise that comes with it, I promise I'll start tithing on every paycheck."
"Oh Lord, if you just get us out of this mess, we'll start giving to You."
"Please, Lord, if you just ___________, then I'll __________." (fill in the blanks for yourself)

At issue here is the idea that if the Lord will just bless us, we will initiate some obedient act. For many of us, as we look at our finances, we think that if the Lord will just bestow upon us a fabulous raise or a better job, then we will have more room in our budgets to start (or increase) or giving faithfully to Him. There is one problem with this idea.

It is ABSURD!

The Bible is full of examples of people who received blessings because of their obedience, but the cause-effect relationship stays in the stated order. Cause comes before effect. No high school student gets a perfect score on an examination, then goes home and studies for it. No stage-actor gives a poignant performance, then goes home after the show and studies lines for the first time. No investor reaps benefits from an investment before he or she makes the decision to invest.

And as ridiculous as these examples are, it is exactly what we ask God to do when we try to negotiate with him. The simple fact is: Blessings FOLLOW obedience. Let's take a look at Malachi 3:10.

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. (NIV, 1984)

Take careful not of the order in this verse. First comes the command: "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse" (Emphasis added). God asks His people to obey His command to tithe. Then, after He issues this command, He indicates that they will be blessed beyond measure. Notice that God doesn't promise a tremendous outpouring of blessing before His people obey His command. That would sound more like a "bribe" than an incentive for obedience.

Are you trying to strike a deal with God? Is it working?

My guess would be "no".

Learning to Give in a Getting World, by Marc Farnell and Jesse Greever, is available as both a paperback and eBook at the following locations:

CreateSpace (paperback, $13.99)

Amazon.com (paperback, $13.99; eBook, $8.99)

You can also become a fan of the book at www.facebook.com/LearningToGive.

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/JesseSGreever