Thursday, January 16th

It was the summer of 1977. I was barely a teenager when my parents had to move us out of our comfortable home up to a mountain in San Sebastian, Puerto Rico. There we joined with two other families, and slept in sleeping bags under a mango tree. Our toilet was a cheap version of a “port-a-potty” made out of scrap wood with a hole in the ground. I think you get the picture. We were poor.
The thing is, just a few months earlier we were a rich family, and so were the families that we joined with on that mountain. So, what happened? I’ll give you the short version. Some two years earlier, my dad became a Christian. He read in the Bible about trusting God and about being generous, so whenever someone had a need, an individual, church or organization, he would give to them generously. By the way, I neglected to tell you that he had also stopped working because he did not want to offend God. That’s how we became financially poor.
The other side of this coin is that I can’t remember another time when our faith in God had grown so much. It was up on that mountain that on a daily basis we witnessed the miracle-working power of God in us and through us. Every single day God miraculously provided everything we needed. And every single day someone we encountered would give his or her life to Christ.
Now, I’m not suggesting that you should go and give everything away. That might just be irresponsible. I am suggesting that you become generous. It’s when you truly decide to place your trust in God, and not in your finances, that your faith will experience big bursts of growth. One last thing, all of us that lived on that mountain have been greatly blessed by God, and we all continue to be generous.

Bible reading
1 Timothy 6:17-19 NIV

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

Heavenly father, I want to be generous. I don’t want my trust to be placed on what or how much I have, I want my trust to be placed squarely on you as my provider. Help my faith in you grow as I practice generosity.