Pastor Thomas McDaniels is one of the finest leaders you will engage on the internet. He is currently the Lead Pastor at LifeBridge Christian Center in Longview, Texas. Pastor Tom is known as a gifted leader, speaker, writer, and author. His latest book release is Stepping Toward Your Miracle and can be purchased at thomasmcdaniels.com. Make sure you follow him on Twitter by clicking here. Enjoy his post and make sure you check out his blog and website.
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We have a dog named Daisy. Daisy has taught me many lessons on friendship, attitude, and true love. It is true that a dog is man’s best friend. The latest lesson from Daisy is about generosity. Daisy always has something to give.
Every morning when I let Daisy out into the yard she runs and leaps out the door. I marvel at her desire to run into life and leap into her day. Daisy wakes up everyday ready to give her life and energy to others.
I wonder what life would yield to us if we lived every day like Daisy!
Daisy is generous. Generous people energize me. I have noticed there are few truly generous people and I am personally learning to develop this trait in my own life. I always feel I could give more.
We might think there are few generous people in the world because of a lack of resources. However, generosity is never about how much you have, but about how you live. In other words, generosity is not a moment or an event, but a lifestyle.
Winston Churchill wisely said; “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.”
Generosity is defined as a readiness or liberality in giving. Generosity means much more than giving wealth. It includes being generous with our attitudes, emotions, thoughts, ideas, time, talents, and including our treasures.
Generosity does not come naturally for most of us. Life says get all you can, can all you get, and sit on the can. Some would even consider generosity a supernatural way to live.
Generosity is not a moment or an event, but a lifestyle.
Here are a few thoughts on generosity.
- Generosity is generated from a grateful spirit
It is proven that whatever we are grateful for, we are generous toward. In other words our greatest generosity is toward the people or things we are thankful for. If we are grateful toward our car, we are generous to care for it. If we are grateful for our mom and dad we are generous toward them. If we are grateful for our church we are generous toward our church.
- Generosity is never a guessing game
Ever been to one of those lunches and you wondered who’s paying? The generous ones immediately demand the tab and take the mystery out of who is picking it up. Generosity should not be a guessing game but a blessing game. - Generosity is contagious
Extravagant acts of generosity can amaze and startle the world. When others see certain acts of generosity they are inspired to replicate. On several occasions our church has entered the realm of contagious giving.
Generosity is no respecter of persons. It inspires everyone to go higher, give sacrificially, and develop a lifestyle of giving. Developing generosity is about looking for people, places and things to share our time, talents, and resources.
Isaiah 32:8 says, “But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand.” A generous man devises generous things.
Let’s learn to develop a generous spirit. Just think what a difference we can make!
To develop a culture of generosity in your church, click here on the image to the left to sign up for the FREE March 11th The Rocket Company webinar Fund Your Church Now. Great leaders such as Perry Noble, Chris Hodges, Bryan Houston and Casey Graham will teach you how to get more money for ministry. If your church could use additional financial resources do not miss this event.