Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. Proverbs 3:27
“Generosity has to do with our capacity to get caught up in this flow of something bigger than ourselves, to imagine ourselves as a portal of divine abundance. Rightly understood, divine providence frees us from our illusions of control for the sake of God’s abundant charity. In so doing we may also invite others to participate in the unhindered flow of God’s goods.
The vision of generosity I am sketching here is not simply personal or private. What we need in today’s economy are examples of people carrying this trust in abundance, the flow of generosity, into their business practices. By that I do not mean simply that businesses should make large donations to worthy causes (though that’s not a bad thing); rather, I mean businesses should build the habits and practices of generosity into the process of producing and selling goods.
We need to be able to see, describe, and imagine doing business in such a way that we refuse to make profit our highest goal, thus focusing our work on the shared good that is produced both for the workers and the buyers. Generous business…refuses to create wealth for some at the expense of others but trusts that God has given enough abundance for everyone to have what they need. The job of generous business is to participate in that flow of abundance.”
Scott Bader-Saye in Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear: The Christian Practice of Everyday Life (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2007) 143.
Jenni and I fly to Florida today to speak multiple times at the CBMC President’s Council Weekend. Today’s post reflects the general impact I pray we have in the lives of the attendees: to inspire them to trust that God has given enough abundance for everyone to have what they need and to participate as portals in that flow of divine abundance through generous business. Make it so Lord Jesus!