When it comes to the idea of being a generous person, more often than not I like to justify my lack of monetary generosity with the idea that God has called me to be generous with my time, my ability to physically help someone, or anything other than money. Yes, God does call us to be generous in those ways, but monetary generosity is so often overlooked. I’m sure that you can think of a time in your life where you were reluctant to be generous with your money because times were tight financially. We’ve all been there, and we can all try to justify our actions in many different ways. At the end of the day, God still tells us through Scripture, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35)

Having a heart for giving isn’t something that any of us our born with. Last Sunday, at the Rockwall campus, Casey Coats gave a great illustration of our natural heart’s desire: “Is any child’s first word ever ‘yours’? Of course it isn’t!”

The word “mine” is a human quality that never has to be taught to anyone. The human heart desires to have more — more money, more time in the day, more house, more cars, and more of whatever else we are wrapped up in during that season of life. We find the quality of becoming generous in all aspects of life when we decide we want more of Jesus. The more we strive to look like Jesus, the easier it is to give time, effort and money. The more we dive into who Jesus was, the more we see that Jesus gave. He gave to the very last moment of his life, when he gave himself up for our sins.

Giving isn’t about feeling good for what we have done. Giving is about worshipping and looking more like our Heavenly Father each and every day.  Knowing why we give is the real glory of it all, because we are built in his image. Not one of our possessions truly belongs to us. It is all a gift from God, and the more we give for his glory, the more blessings we will see throughout our lives. I have been challenged to remember why it is that I give my time, effort and money. I pray that, as the church, we will examine our heart’s desire behind truly giving for God’s glory.