Wednesday, October 1st

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Wednesday, Oct. 1

Acts 2:42-47
And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

As a pastor I have the unusual privilege of witnessing all kinds of extraordinary acts of generosity that happen in the life of a church like FBCG. One such act took place a number of years ago and was extremely private. I got a call one day at my office from a man who had been part of the church for a long time but who had been somewhat withdrawn for years. He had made some poor financial decisions and had, in turn, received forgiveness for a substantial amount of debt. Even though forgiven, I think he carried a sense of shame that kept him from participating much in church life.

When he called he just asked me to come to his office because he had something to give me. So I drove to his office and he said simply that he had been forgiven much and that God had recently blessed him with resources and he believed the purpose of the blessing was to bless others. Then he handed me an envelope that was stuffed with cash. He asked me to use the money to help those in need - but that no one was to know who gave the money.

I promised him I would do that - and we prayed together and I left. He and I never talked about that gift again and he died a few years later.

Luke tells us that one of the marks of the very first church was generosity.

And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people.
Each time I read this text I notice the connection between gladness and generosity. It seems to me that Luke has noticed that gladness and generosity tend to inhabit the same heart. Maybe he is telling us that gladness tends to produce generosity, and that generosity tends to produce gladness.

Think about that. Do you know anyone who is truly glad but tends to be stingy with their possessions or money? Do you know anyone who is generous with their time or possessions who profoundly unhappy? My guess is you will find it far easier to think of people who are both glad and generous because each of those characteristics tends to produce the other.

I think there is also a connection between generosity and praising God. I think the early church was a generous church because it was a joyful church; and I think it was a joyful church because it was a worshiping church.

My prayer for myself and for our church is that we would be extraordinary in our generosity, remarkable in our joy and unabashed in our praise!

Pastor Brian Coffey