Extraordinary Generosity
Written by Ron Retherford
Friday, 05 February 2010 14:22
Extraordinary Generosity



"I am the one who searches the minds and the hearts, and I will give to each
of you as your works deserve." Revelation 2:23



Our faithful stewardship and generosity of all that God has given to us
provides the foundation of the Body of Christ - the church - to survive and
even to thrive. Quite literally, our offering of time, talent, gifts,
service, and witness is so critical to our ministry that if we do not do all
that we can do, it is very possible that our congregation could decline.



Every brick in our courtyard, every window in our building, every shingle on
our roof, every pew in our sanctuary, every square yard of carpeting
throughout our entire building, every square foot of roofing, every part of
our heating and cooling equipment, every computer in our offices, every
chair and table in our Sunday school classes, fellowship hall, and choir
practice room, every light fixture, every piece of equipment in our church
kitchen, every couch in our youth rooms, every book in our library, every
hymnal in our sanctuary, every piano, organ, bell, chime, microphone,
speaker, door, elevator, shrub, flower, tree, planting, every square yard of
our parking lot, every acre of land, every Bible, curriculum, projector,
every retreat we've ever planned, every service or class we've ever
conducted, every concert, cantata, or play that we've ever shared, every
dollar of compensation for every one of our pastors and our church staff,
every van we've rented to take us anywhere from youth mission trips, to
Youth CONVO, to adult color tours, to plays or seminary visits in Chicago
has been provided as a gift to our church and to us through someone else's
extraordinary generosity.



With Paul we can truly say that we have been blessed by grace upon grace. We
are all heirs and beneficiaries of some of the most faithful, courageous,
and extraordinary generosity any congregation could ever receive. All of
this has come from those who've preceded us in the hope, prayer, and dream
that we, too, would have faith.



And we owe the same opportunity to those who are here now to those who come
after us! Our facilities, equipment, resources, and programs have made it
possible for us to have faith and to shape our lives in ways God intends for
us to live. And if we expect our ministry to continue, we need to invest our
time, talents, gifts, service, and witness in our ministry now and in the
future with extraordinary generosity to help our congregation fulfill its
mission. And our role has as much to do with our need to give as it does for
the church's mission to continue. We truly do express our spiritual maturity
and our faithfulness in ministry through our stewardship and generosity in
giving.



Prayer: Through your generosity, O God, we've been privileged to be
nurtured in the faith that has come to us as a means of grace through those
who love you and love us enough to invest in our salvation and your holy
mission. May your Spirit bless us with the courage, faithfulness, and
generosity of spirit to assure that those who come after us will have the
same opportunity we enjoy daily. This we pray in gratitude. Amen.
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