Try Generosity- By Bev Monck

In my sermon on Sunday 15th March, I spoke on the theme of ‘Try Generosity’ and how our generosity towards others flows from God’s abundant generosity towards us, which in turn leads to thanksgiving to God. I spoke about how we can be generous with what we have, focussing particularly on being generous with what we give financially. You can listen on our website here: https://www.stpaulsirelandwood.org/podcast/episode/295b5ec2/try-generosity

When was the last time you had a conversation about giving money to the church – in your small group, among friends or even within your family? Lots of people give generously to support the mission and ministry of St Paul’s Church, but talking about money is not something we always do or find easy.

Giving 10% of my income to the church is something I’ve done since I was a student. Why

10%? The Old Testament speaks about a practice called ‘tithing’, where a tenth of everything belongs to God (Leviticus 27.30). The Israelites would give a tenth of everything they received - from grain to fruit to livestock. As God provided generously to them, so in turn they gave generously back to God.

In the Gospels Jesus talks quite a bit about money and responds to where people misuse or are ruled by money – from parables involving bags of money, to turning over the tables of the money changers exploiting people in the temple courts.

How we are generous with our money and our attitude towards it matters to God. In 2

Corinthians 9 it says: ‘Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to

give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.’ These verses

challenge us to consider how decisive we are about the money we give and the attitude in

which we give.

As you reflect on your own generosity, here is a reminder of some of the responses I

suggested on Sunday:

• Consider giving 10% of your income to support the mission and ministry of St

Paul’s

• If you already give, review your giving. When was the last time you did this, or what

about when you receive unexpected income?

• Respond to how God is calling you to be generous – He may prompt you to give

your money, skills, time or resources to bless others.

• Give thanks to God for His generosity to you and the generosity of others.

  
  

Giving generously can sometimes feel like a step of faith – but in 2 Corinthians Paul

reassures and reminds us: ‘God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.’

Finally, for those wanting to see some of the slides I shared during my talk, here they are: