Meditations

“Grace is the good pleasure of God that inclines Him to bestow benefits upon the undeserving. It is a self-existent principle inherent in the divine nature and appears to us as a self-caused propensity to pity the wretched, spare the guilty, welcome the outcast, and bring into favor those who were before under just disapprobation. Its use to us sinful men is to save us and to make us sit together in heavenly places to demonstrate to the ages the exceeding riches of God’s kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”

A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) in Knowledge of the Holy, excerpt from “The Grace of God” section of chapter 19.

I read some from A. W. Tozer today as I’m hunting pheasant with Randy Discher. Tozer is his favorite! When I read this chapter on the grace of God, this section moved me because generosity in the New Testament is rooted in grace.

Most generosity in our culture today is directed to those society says are “deserving” of support. As I give thanks today for the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors, I am also celebrating that God extended His love and kindness to me when I was undeserving.

Here’s a list of seven statements linked to generosity that Ben Geib gleaned from great sermons by John Piper, Randy Alcorn, et al.

1. As the richest people in the world we have two options: Hoard wealth for ourselves or yield wealth and use it for the glory of Christ.
2. Part of Jesus being Lord of our lives is Him being Lord of our money and possessions.
3. When a life is changed it is demonstrated by a changed outlook on money and possessions.
4. Our giving is a response of God’s grace that He gives to us.
5. Giving is the only way to break the back of humanism.
6. We need to incorporate giving accountability
7. The Christian community should be populated by people who set a cap on their lifestyles and give everything beyond that.

Ben Geib, the aspiring theologian in his “Money, Ministry, and the Magnificence of Christ” blog post.

I stumbled on this list while looking for a manuscript by John Piper. What a find! Perfect for a Sunday post! Imagine what it would be like if our churches lived out these statements. Regardless of what others are doing, our family believes that the life set forth in this list is the only way to live!

Today Jenni and I are driving to Mott, North Dakota, with our German Shorthair Pointer, Joy. We will reconnect with John Roswech, a NY/NJ executive we met while serving at Potter’s House in Guatemala. Randy and Debbie Discher, dear friends from Minnesota will also join us. May God grant us safe travel, fruitful pheasant hunting, and sweet fellowship.

“The Spirit is the giver of all life, and hence all work, as an expression of human life, draws its energy out of the fullness of the divine Spirit’s energy. When human beings work, they work only because God’s Spirit has given them power and talent to work. Without God’s preserving and sustaining grace, no work would be possible.”

Miroslav Volf in Work in the Spirit: Toward a Theology of Work (New York: Oxford University Press, 1991) 121.

We are wrapping up our Faith and Work meetings this morning in Minneapolis, and then I am heading home. I pray that as a result of these discussions, the attendees see work as a gift from God that is preserved and sustained by Him. When workers live in this reality, work becomes worship and another avenue in which we can each reflect God’s generosity.

“Out of more than a score of great civilizations in human history, modern Western civilization is the very first to have no agreed-on answer to the question of the purpose of life. Thus more ignorance, confusion—and longing—surround this topic now than at almost any time in history.

The trouble is that, as modern people, we have too much to live with and too little to live for. Some feel they have time but not enough money; others feel they have money but not enough time. But for most of us, in the midst of material plenty, we have spiritual poverty.”

Os Guinness in The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2003) 4. This is one of great books that surfaces in the Faith and Work conversations.

Does the picture Guinness paints sound familiar?

This is precisely why we must help people hear “the call” that life is found in a job, its found in Jesus. Then and only then will people get on the pathway that leads to spiritual plenty on which they are transformed into conduits of divine generosity.

Pray for God’s blessings on today’s meetings with 25 EFCA pastors and 25 lay leaders as we explore together the topic of the integration of faith and work.

“God loves a generous giver and He can’t be outdone in generosity. Consider using money as one way of investing in others rather than ourselves—this can be an antidote to the rampant materialism that surrounds us. After all, how can worldly trinkets compare to treasures of heaven?”

Kevin Lowry in Faith at Work: Purpose beyond the Paycheck (Huntington: Our Sunday Visitor, 2012) 29.

Last night I returned home from New Hampshire, and I am off to Minneapolis today to meet with another gathering of pastors to consider faith and work in God’s economy. Thanks for your prayers in this busy season of travel.

At the core of our discussions, many follow the world’s prevailing thinking that the purpose of work is to make money. When followers of Christ integrate their faith and work, work moves beyond merely remuneration (“I work to make money”) to contribution (“I use my gifts to serve others”) and reflection (“I work to glorify God”).

As the year-end shopping and giving seasons enter full swing, let’s do our work not to make money to buy things but focus on glorifying God by serving and investing in others rather than spending on ourselves. Ask God to guide you as to how you should deploy yourself and His resources the year-end.

“Many church leaders fear that releasing congregants to agencies outside the congregation will leave the church itself bereft of the human and financial resources it requires. Leaders must conquer this fear…They will need to grow in trusting that God is able to ensure that all His work—inside and outside the four walls of the church—gets done when leaders are faithful to the equipping mandate he has given them in Ephesians 4:11-12.

Clergy must believe that God will bless them for being open-handed with the talents resident in their congregation. It’s a matter of banking on the promise Ecclesiastes 11:1 offers: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.” This text encourages generosity in the confidence that, by God’s gracious design, it will produce a return blessing.”

Amy Sherman in Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good (Downers Grove: IVP, 2011) 180.

God’s Word calls pastors to equip and deploy their people to do good work, in the places God has planted them to serve with the majority of their time and energy: their jobs. When we do this, there is always the fear on their part: Will the needs of the church be met?

In the conversations on faith and work in God’s economy that are concluding this morning in New Hampshire, I am thankful the pastors have come to embrace “God’s gracious design” to equip and deploy people, all the while trusting God to provide for the needs of the church. Make it so, I pray for each pastor here and all who read this!

“We are not to choose jobs and conduct our work to fulfill ourselves and accrue power, for being called by God to do something is empowering enough. We are to see work as a way of service to God and our neighbor, and so we should both choose and conduct our work in accordance with that purpose.

The question regarding our choice of work is no longer “What will make me the most money and give me the most status?” The question must now be “How, with my existing abilities and opportunities, can I be of greatest service to other people, knowing what I do of God’s will and human need?”

Tim Keller in Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work (New York: Penguin, 2012) 67.

In addition to “What will make me the most money and give me the most status?” I have often heard “What will enable me to give the most money to ministry?” Don’t take a job for that reason either! God will provide the resources for your generosity. Let Him take care of that.

I believe what God desires for each of us is that we to use the gifts He has given us to serve others. In this light, our generosity will flow from our work in whatever field in which we feel called to serve. What matters not to Him is the amount of our giving but our heart. When we are doing what we believe He has wired us to do, it will make it easy to do it in a way that blesses others generously.

Pray for Jenni as she facilitates a spiritual retreat for the staff of the Denver Institute for Faith and Work. Pray for me as well as I teach on the intersection of faith and work in God’s economy today with a group of EFCA pastors at Camp Spofford in NH. Thanks!

“In Ecclesiastes 5:10, Solomon writes, “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.” The man who had it all said that money is “vanity.” Why? Money never satisfies. No matter how much you have, you’ll still want more.

That’s why the abundant life isn’t found in things. It’s found in a relationship with God through Christ. The abundant life has more to do with the fullness that comes from a relationship with God than with anything material. The life Christ gives is so much more than anything the world offers. It’s a relationship with a loving God, who cares for us and takes care of us.”

Joel Bruce in Our Generous God: Discover God’s Generosity to You in Christ (Bloomington: WestBow, 2011) 20-21.

Peter Fiorello and I had a great time at the World Series game last night. One of the MLB slogans we often hear is “I live for this” referring to Major League Baseball. Sadly, many Mets fans went home dejected because “they live for baseball” and the only thing that mattered was “lifting the trophy.” All hopes were dashed with their defeat. Walking out of the park I heard two men say they wanted to go to the tavern to drink it off. They wanted to try to drown their sorrows with more drinking.

Alternatively, something worth living for is a “relationship with a loving God, who cares for us and takes care of us.” Peter added this comment on our drive to the hotel last night through wealthy NYC bedroom communities in Southern CT: “To put it bluntly, most people aren’t generous because they think they have to look out for themselves because no one else will.” Friends, the only way we can live generously is if we live like we we really believe that God cares for us and takes care of us!

Would others say you live like you believe that?

Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

“God knows us so well. In His infinite wisdom He knew that even noble, believing humans would attempt to use Him as a means of getting ahead. Our motive for seeking God is often self-centered. Ideally, He enjoys being sought for the pleasure of His presence. He then delights in allowing the seeker to discover wonderful gains, but, because He knows us so well, He has methods for making the most of our sometimes questionable motives. He allows our greed to lead us on a treasure hunt where we ultimately discover the greatest treasure of all…

We begin to question, “How can I delight myself in the Lord?” We can almost hear Him whisper, “I’m so glad you asked.” As we make ourselves available to delight in God, He slowly revolutionizes our approach to finding fulfillment. those who seek to delight in the Lord will ultimately develop a delightful relationship with Him; however, by the time God makes Himself the seeker’s delight, the once self-seeking treasure hunter has been transformed.”

Beth Moore in “Day Nineteen” of Whispers of Hope: Ten Weeks of Devotional Prayer (Nashville: B & H, 2013).

I love the game of Major League Baseball. When I was growing up, my dream for my life was to be a season ticket holder. Call me crazy but that was one of my aspirations. I remember the day I chose to follow God’s calling into ministry. I thought to myself, “I am willing to give up that dream, Lord.” And I did. The more I “delighted myself in the Lord” the less precious baseball was to me.

Years later I got something from God I never dreamed: access to World Series. The irony is that came to me from my ministry in the life of the (now deceased) founder of the Colorado Rockies. It was like God winked at me and said, “I am enjoying your presence, Gary, now go enjoy a game.”

Long story short. Jesus is my greatest treasure, and because He is a hilariously generous Giver, He gives me gifts to enjoy and share. Yet again, I’ve had the privilege of sharing World Series tickets this year and tonight I will go to my 18th World Series game. I don’t go if I have already been to see the team in their home ballpark, so I gave my Kansas City tickets away this year, but I can’t wait to see the Fall Classic at Mets ballpark tonight.

“Before God becomes satisfied with us, He will take everything of our so-called wealth, until we learn that He is our Source; as the psalmist said, “All my springs are in You” (Psalm 87:7). If the majesty, grace, and power of God are not being exhibited in us, God holds us responsible. “God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you…may have an abundance…” (2 Corinthians 9:8) — then learn to lavish the grace of God on others, generously giving of yourself. Be marked and identified with God’s nature, and His blessing will flow through you all the time.”

Oswald Chambers (1874-1917), Scottish author and pastor, in “The Habit of Recognizing God’s Provision” in My Utmost for His Highest reading for 16 May.

Today I will wrap up my teaching with the CBMC group highlighting ten workers in the New Testament who were known for their work and for their engagement in God’s work. My prayer for them when they head down the mountain is that each person will exhibit God’s generosity through their work.

I’d appreciate your prayers for safe travel too as I head to the East Coast on a late flight tonight.