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Here are some pictures from last night's Operation Christmas Child Night at Hesston MB:

Introduction : Generosity, Money, Giving.   This is one topic that congregations do not enjoy hearing about AND one of the topics that pastors do not like to preach or teach on.   This is an area that I personally struggle with.   But before you stop listening, let me share a secret about my feelings on this topic.   As a pastor, I am not a fan of the way giving, generosity, money has been taught in the church.   Much (not all) of the curriculum or teaching I have discovered focuses too much on guilt and shame to get results.   Today’s passage shows us how generosity is good news not bad news.   Give (Vs. 14-18) ·          Vs. 14-Good to share in my troubles o    The Greek word translated “share” emphasizes that participation. Same root word used in Philippians 1:7. The basic translation, “fellowship,” means a deep partnership of two going the same direction . [1] o    Paul had...

Here is a selection from Everyday Prayers by Scotty Smith: Heavenly Father, we come before you today challenged by this picture of radical grace. This one story alone underscores why we can never emphasize your grace too much. Grace is never to be counterbalanced with law, only multiplied with more grace. Indeed, through Jesus you continue to give us grace upon grace (John 1:16). What an amazing story—the severely afflicted and extremely poor Christians of Macedonia became a model of radical generosity to the much wealthier believers in Corinth. And according to you, their motivation wasn’t fear and guilt; it was multiplied grace. For you love cheerful giving, not reluctant giving compelled by pressure from without (2 Cor. 9:7).  Father, only your grace is powerful enough to give us abundant joy in the absence of affluence, coupled with hearts that beg to give sacrificially beyond our means for the benefit of strangers! The law cannot produce that kind of people—not even ...

Thank you to all who donated for Operation Christmas Child! It was a joy to  join together for Family Night. We donated 123 boxes this year. Thankful for the best gift of all, Jesus.

This past week, we received a generous gift from a church family.  If you have read my blog over the last four years, you know we have been trying to sell our house in Iola.  We finally closed on October 31, 2012.  We were so excited!  However, due to the down market, we ended up having to pay to sale our house.  I know it doesn't make sense and it really confuses our kids.  But it was our reality.  Only a handful of people knew that we had to take money to closing.  We went to the bank on the 31st and basically depleted our checking and savings accounts to close on the house.  There was just enough money to keep both accounts open.  We were thankful that we did not need to borrow money from anyone.  Then unexpectedly, we received a gift that left us speechless! It reminded me of a verse that has been important to me over these last four years.  Ephesians 3:20-21 says, 20  Now to him who is able to do immeasurably mo...

I have enjoyed Sunday School classes based on materials from Chip Ingram.  But Ingram has a great resource to teach us about generosity called  The Genius of Generosity. Our D6 Dads group will be going through it this year.  I finished the book (it is a quick read) on Thursday.  Here are a few quotes from the final chapter: "On the contrary, it's (sacrifice) a lifestyle.  It flows out of a heart of worship." "He knows our needs and wants to bless us.  That rubs off on us. We want to bless others as well." "Our material possessions are just the start.  Our sacrifice and worship get really serious when we start to offer our time, reputation, future, dreams, and everything else we cling to." "God is not a harsh killjoy; He is a kind and benevolent Father who always has our highest and best interests in mind.  If and when sacrifice is called for, it is always linked to God's intention to give us far better than we could ever imagine."...

As you know if you read my blog regularly, I am reading The Genius of Generosity by Chip Ingram.  This very short book is packed full of challenge and encouragement.  Here are a few quotes I read this week: "That's why the average Christian only gives about 2.5 percent of his or her income to the work of God's kingdom. Giving feels risky." "Generous people give proportionally to the way God has blessed them." "It's much better to drop our assumptions and expectations and ask God to lead us to the proportion that best reflects our heart and our income." "God always blesses those who are generous, but it isn't always a material blessing." "I firmly believe that the perception that stewardship and giving are guilt-laden responsibilities is depriving most Christians of one of the greatest joys of life." "In the big picture, generosity is not deprivation. It's a shrewd investment for today and tomorrow....

This is my fourth post from the LEAD ONE event sponsored by Mission USA. Jon Wiebe of the MB Foundation shared on the the topic of, "Maximizing Generosity in Tough Times: A Realignment of Faith and Fundraising." Here are my notes: Tough Times Giving Realities General Population <1% Roman Catholics 1.5% Mainline Denominations 2.8% Evangelicals 4% A Crisis Exists Few seminaries teaching on generosity Pastors avoid it Fundraisers at Christian Organizations are competing 4 Biblical Principles Urge those who sit as stewards of storehouses to open them rather than hoard them.          (Genesis 41:56-57) Invite those with a portfolio of assets to sell as asset. (Acts 4:34-37) Direct the church to send aid to those in need. (2 Corinthians 8-9) Ask everyone to give sacrificially. (1 Kings 17; Mark 12:41-44; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7) 4 Tools Evaluative Tool Organizational Tool (see 7 steps below) Discipleship Tool Individual Tool...

I finished reading "The Treasure Principle" by Randy Alcorn today. There is a lot of great stuff in this book about giving and generosity. I wanted to share a few that challenged me and hopefully will challenge and bless you. "Tithing isn't the ceiling of giving; it's the floor. It's not the finish line of giving; it's just the starting blocks. Tithes can be the training wheels to launch us into the mind-set, skills, and habits of grace giving." "Ironically, many people can't afford to give precisely because they're not giving." "giving is a skill. With practice, we get better at it. We can learn to give more, give more often, and give more strategically." "What does it mean to give beyond our ability? It means pushing our giving past the point where the figures add up. It means giving when the bottom line says we can't." "The more you give, the more comes back to you, because God is the greatest ...