Infinitum Advent Break Barriers, Week 2Sample

Generosity is Reciprocal

Do you like magic? It can be so enthralling to watch something happen that you KNOW it is impossible, yet your eyes tell you it happened! God’s kids being generous is a lot like that: magic. Jesus says (Luke 6:38), “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” That’s a promise from Him that even when the math doesn’t add up, even when you can’t follow the generosity trail back to its source, even when there is no explanation…generosity returns to those who give it.

Sometimes we CAN see it. For instance: you smile at a stranger you’re passing on the sidewalk, and they smile back, and your heart is warmed: reciprocal generosity with a logical explanation. But Jesus claims that even when you can’t track it, generosity given is returned back—in abundant overflow beyond what you gave in the first place!

Take a moment to think of a time when you unexpectedly received someone’s lavish generosity. It doesn’t have to be financial. Perhaps they made space for your voice in a workgroup, or welcomed you into their home and heart, or kept a steady stream of encouragement arriving on your phone during a difficult time.

One stunning quality of Jesus is His capacity to give without strings attached. Lavishly and unendingly, He distributes His resources and Himself to us—to everyone! But in the design of the Christian life, even HE is the recipient of generosity openly given—He delights in the joy of His loved ones. He was also clear that as we are generous with each other, it is as if we are being generous with Him.

As we express our generosity with our loved ones this Christmas through gifts, let’s give with reckless abandon—not waiting for the logical reciprocity to arrive in the moment of unwrapping a present. Let’s let go of all strings attached to these gifts and look for the magic of the reciprocal nature of generosity. Letting our generosity return to us in a completely different form, at a different time, from a different source. Let’s give to each other, surrender to the magic of generosity—trusting that the nature of generosity is reciprocal.

If you would like to follow along each week of Advent with Infinitum, please visit https://infinitumlife.com/2022advent for more bible reading plans and advent resources.