showing your generosity

That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food to eat or enough clothes to wear. For life is more than food, and your body more than clothing. 

– Luke 12:22

A few weeks ago, I shared with you that the Bible has over 8,800 promises for you to hold on to; these are promises that, as you live in God’s will, are opened up to you as a follower of Jesus.

And of all these promises, over 2,000 of them speak specifically about generosity and giving. Of all the themes in the Bible—giving, money and how you manage your possessions is mentioned most.

Just why do you think that the Bible mentions giving more than almost any other subject? It’s because your generosity says something about your heart. Specifically, it determines where your priorities are.

As Christ-followers, we might fall into the trap of thinking with a scarcity mindset. The scarcity mindset says that when God supplies, I must consume. That’s the way most people in our world operate today.

The paycheck comes in and I spend it. I’m always afraid of not having enough, so I’m only generous with what I have AFTER I’ve met my own needs. We only give from what’s left over.

But the Bible teaches us a different model of stewardship, called the supply mindset. The supply mindset recognizes that everything comes from God in the first place, and we don’t own it in the first place. Because we know it isn’t ours, we steward it well and act generously FIRST, living as we give to others.

The supply mindset never lives in fear, because it recognizes with gratitude that everything is a gift from God.

As Jesus reminds us in Luke 12: “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food to eat or enough clothes to wear. For life is more than food, and your body more than clothing.”

Generosity, since it operates out of abundance and not from scarcity, will never lead to fear. In a time and place where most people go to bed at night worrying about money, where finances are the number one cause of failed marriages and where people consume out of a constant fear of not having enough—the supply mindset teaches us that all things can be entrusted to God.

When you honor God with your generosity, it changes your heart and opens you up to trust Him for your provision. Suddenly, you become a more generous, compassionate and loving person.