Holy Process or hollow promise? Generosity Revealed.
By Rev. Terry Love, Pastor of Administration
When we associate with the church we are asked to be active participants through our prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness. It may seem that these elements of devotion are part of a self-serving project to keep the church afloat. But, the truth of the matter is that these efforts are a Holy Process, crucial to Jesus’ essential point of his Gospel: “Strive first for the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Approaching Loyalty Sunday, when we are asked to consider what gifts we will return to God in gratitude for the coming year, can be one of the most spiritually rewarding times for the striving Christian, or one of the times we most want to avoid. Perhaps, the main reason for our reluctance to embrace the Holy Process of generous gratitude is not understanding how important it is to the fullest relationship with Christ. Protestant Reformer Martin Luther referred to gratitude as “the basic Christian attitude” and is still referred to as “the heart of the Gospel.”
In Christian gratitude there is the acknowledgment of God’s generosity that inspires Christians to shape their own thoughts and actions around such ideas. The generosity of the grateful Christian is regarded as a power that shapes not only emotions and thoughts, but actions and deeds as well. And, it seems, the most-happy of the flock are those who are most generous to the needs for which they become aware.
For sure, your donations will be of great assistance in empowering the love of Christ to flow through the ministry of Broadmoor United Methodist Church. Your prayerful consideration and generous response will bring you great joy as well. Approach your estimate of giving with a new awareness of this Holy Process and respond gratefully.