Bear Hunt: You Have to Go Through ItMinta

I’ve never been a good giver and generosity has never been my strong suit. 

My credit card expired a few months ago. It just so happened to be the same card tied to my automatic withdrawal for my tithe to the church (I had to set it up that way because I kept “forgetting” to bring my checkbook). When I got the email reminder, I told myself I’d take care of it later and, once again, I forgot.  Sure enough, a few months passed, and I still hadn’t updated my information. I remember praying one morning and I heard the Lord tell me to start giving thanks. He told me that He wanted me to spend the next month using my prayer time to only give thanks for the things He had already provided for me instead of praying about my needs and wants. I hesitantly agreed.

For the next few weeks I spent 10 minutes every morning offering gratitude for my wife, for my family, for my job, for my house, and more. At the end of week two I felt the words in my heart, “Generosity starts with gratitude.”

I didn’t know exactly what that meant so I continued giving thanks and every morning when I finished, I would hear the same words, “Generosity starts with gratitude.”

Leviticus tells us about all the sacrifices made by the Israelites: burnt offerings, grain, sin, guilt, and thanksgiving. All of these were required by law except the sacrifice of thanksgiving. The sacrifice of thanksgiving was offered when someone was feeling particularly thankful to God and wanted to go to the temple and show their appreciation. Some of the sacrifice would be burnt for God, some of the sacrifice would be given to the priest, and the rest of the sacrifice would be given to the people in the camp to enjoy for food. 

It was then that I realized a heart of generosity was always intended to begin with a heart of gratitude. There is something about giving thanks that unlocks in us a willingness to share. The more we meditate on how good our God is, the more we are willing to give up a portion of the things He has blessed us with.

At the end of those weeks, I then felt God ask me to update my credit card and to raise the amount I was giving to the church. I gladly did so, but only because He had been building in me an attitude of gratitude. The cool thing about the sacrifice of thanksgiving is that the end result is a blessing to those around us. Our gifts were always intended to bless others.