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Generous to a Fault


Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice. (Psalm 112:5)

          Today’s passage is the one provided by BibleGateway.com as their verse of the day. The topic provided by Gary Chapman in Love is a Way of Life is generosity. I’m going to take that as a confirmation that God wants me – and maybe you – to ponder generosity today.
          According to the dictionary, to be generous is to show a readiness to give more of something than is strictly necessary or expected. Technically speaking, Mr. Chauvin was generous in his abuse of Mr. Floyd. The Democrats are lavishly generous in their hatred for Mr. Trump. He reciprocates in kind, but since he’s one man, and the Democrats number nearly 46 million, his generosity is like a pebble on the beach of Democratic sand. Likewise, it’s amazing how generous we tend to be with other people’s money. I think it’s clear that this is not the sort of generosity we’re advised to practice.  
          Americans give about 1.4% of our GDP to charity. Keep in mind that the next most generous nations (New Zealand and Canada) give a little over half as much of their GDP. I’d like to see that number rise to ten percent for all three nations, but I admit, I’m not doing my part on that score. Part of the problem for a lot of us is lack of faith. Part of it (closely related) is fear. Another part is the lack of attention. We just don’t notice opportunities to give. A fourth part (closely related) is that we just don’t have the habit.
          A friend talked to me yesterday about goal setting and those of you who know me know I love to set goals. Reaching them? That’s another matter. I love to get organized; I just can’t seem to stay that way. But I have learned a couple things that may help with generosity. The first is that generosity doesn’t have to be about handing out money. I pick up other people’s trash. If my walk takes 30 minutes, that’s $7.50 (at the desired minimum wage of $15/hour) a day, usually at least five days a week. That’s $1950 per year in charity labor for the communities in which I live.
          The point is, we can be generous without giving away every penny we own. We need to be generous with our money, too, but the way to develop the habit of generosity may involve finding something else you can give. Do you have time you can give? A talent or skill you can use? Can you be generous in your praise? Your prayer? As you practice these easier forms of generosity, you;ll prepare yourself for the harder.
          Here’s another piece of the puzzle of generosity. I you love someone, you don’t mind giving to them.

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