“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. Isaiah 55:8
“As I give, I try to remain sensitive to where the Holy Spirit is moving. There have been three of four times in the last ten years when I have thrown my rules, metrics, and deep analysis out the window because I had a strong sense that this was something I needed to do. Every time I’ve acted on this prompting from the Spirit, the results for the Kingdom have been spectacular…
Recognize that God can lead in ways that don’t follow your format and be willing to follow Him any way He leads. Prayer is therefore essential in the giving process, as is taking time to reflect. I am by nature fast and reactionary and have learned from friends to pause, pray, reflect, and listen to God’s promptings–and then decisions seem clearer.”
David Weekley in The Giver and the Gift: Principles of Kingdom Fundraising by Peter Greer and David Weekley (Bloomington: Bethany House, 2015) 83-84.
Yesterday I quoted Greer from this little book, and today I wanted to share this word from Weekley. We must remain open to the leading of the Holy Spirit when determining what ministries to support. Often in modern times, giving decisions are driven by statistics rather than the Spirit. Instead, we must position ourselves to follow God’s promptings as His ways are often not our ways.
Do you pray about your giving? People often ask me: To whom should I give? Or how much should I give? My response to these types of questions is to ask God because He is the owner of the resources. If you don’t have a routine of praying about your giving, consider adopting Weekley’s advice: “pause, pray, reflect, and listen to God’s promptings!”