On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. 1 Corinthians 16:2-3
“With glad and generous hearts, let us keep in creative tension “reasoned” giving and “risk” giving. There is one kind of giving that carefully evaluates the track record of organizations and individuals, and another that gives without calculation. Both kinds of giving are essential.”
Richard Foster in The Challenge of the Disciplined Life: Christian Reflections on Money, Sex, and Power (HarperOne: San Francisco, 1979) 75.
I love these two expressions: reasoned giving and risk giving. Reasoned giving is intentional, calculated, and distributed to trusted people. It follows the pattern of today’s Scripture.
But sometimes God nudges us to help someone who has made poor decisions. Risk giving says to help them not because they deserve it, but because God helped us when we were undeserving.
What if you made two gifts today? What if you sent a gift to ministry that you trust or that has undertaken a project? And what if you also gave a gift to aid someone who does not deserve it?
Sit with the Holy Spirit. Ponder the possibilities. Follow God’s leading in making reasoned and risk gifts.