Summer Allen: No statistical differences

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Summer Allen: No statistical differences

Therefore show these men the proof of your love and the reason for our pride in you, so that the churches can see it. 2 Corinthian 8:24

“Are religious people more generous than non-religious people? Do people of one religion tend to be more generous than others? Several studies have sought to answer these questions, with somewhat disparate results.

A study of nearly 30,000 people across 50 communities in the United States found that religious people were 25 percent more likely to donate money to a charity than were secular people, and a 1998 study of giving across the American population, focused predominantly on different Christian traditions, found that self-identified nonreligious people gave less money to organizations who help the poor.

This study also found that more frequent church attendance and the degree of importance that people assigned to their religious beliefs were associated with increased giving, while how religious one’s family was during childhood was not.

For the participants in this study, being religious appeared to have more of an effect on giving than did belonging to a particular religious tradition; the “other religious” group—which lumped together Jews, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and other religious identities—actually gave the most in this study, although small numbers in this group prevented a more detailed analysis of which denominations were responsible for this high level of giving.

In contrast, another study using data about income and religious identity for a cross-section of Americans found that there were not statistical differences in giving to charities that support basic human needs across Christian denominational identities and nonaffiliated families.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

The Apostle Paul urged God’s people demonstrate proof of their love. On this Lord’s day from Czechia, I want to proclaim the same thing to Christians around the world.

As the data appears disparate or mixed, it seems that our collective Christian behavior has left the jury deliberating whether or not we are more generous than others.

The part that stung was hearing that “Jews, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and other religious identities—actually gave the most in this study” when we would hope that would have been the Christians.

Rather than push back or refer to a different study that gives us the results we want to hear, let’s take this one on the chin and resolve to do our part to move the needle. Let’s give in statistically different ways.

The people I am meeting in Europe will likely help underwrite efforts to activate a peer accountability movement here. But that’s not the case in most of the world. At GTP need your help to go and teach and train in those places.

If you have given to GTP, I want to challenge you today to take the step to set up monthly giving. If you live in America, use this portal. And if you live overseas use the Visa or PayPal options on this page.

Thanks in advance for your monthly partnership which demonstrates proof of your love and to sends a message to our global staff that you want to help set up accountability structures and grow generosity in every nation.

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Summer Allen: Across Generations

Hear this, you elders; listen, all who live in the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your days or in the days of your ancestors? Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. Joel 1:1-3

“Interestingly, results from a more recent study examining charitable giving by young adults in the United States found evidence that some aspects of marital giving decisions may be changing across generations. This survey found that the average amounts given by young single men and young couples is lower now than it was four decades ago, whereas the amount given by young single women is about the same. It also found that for couples where the man made the giving decisions, the average amounts of giving were lower among GenX/Millennial couples than among pre-Boomer couples but were higher among couples where women influenced giving decisions.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

This study reports that across generations giving has changed more among men than women. As I stated previously, rather than make generalizations and point fingers, we must each ask ourselves, like the Prophet Joel, questions like this one: What we are telling to our children and our children’s children about generosity?

Thanks for your prayers for me as I have strategic discussions with influential workers in Eastern Europe about multiplying faithful stewards and helping ministries follow standards with peer accountability. I am resting in Czechia this weekend at the home of my friend, Milan Hluchy, in Vranov, north of Brno (pictured above).

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Summer Allen: Data, Decisions, Donations and Depressed

But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving. 2 Corinthians 8:7

“If men and women have such different opinions and tastes when it comes to giving to charity, how do heterosexual married couples make giving decisions? A study using self-reported data collected from 3,572 American households found that single men and women displayed their generosity differently.

Men’s giving was more sensitive to income and tax incentives, and they tended to give more money to fewer charities, whereas women tended to give less money to a greater variety of charities. When it came to married people, donations varied depending on who was making the giving decisions.

In households where one spouse took on the responsibility, the decisions tended to mirror that spouse’s expected preferences and influences. However, in households where husbands and wives made joint decisions, these decisions more closely resembled the husband’s expected preferences. Joint decision-making also depressed the overall amount of money donated by an estimated six percent.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

Thanks to all those who have expressed gratitude for this interesting research.

All glory to God for guiding me to look at recent studies. Also thanks for all those who prayed for a great “Leaders Dinner” last night in Sliač, Slovakia (pictured above). It could not have gone better. A peer accountability movement is taking shape in Eastern Europe.

The data about giving decisions with couples grips us.

Men go deeper in their giving, while women spread donations more widely. And yet, ouch! It’s sad to hear that when men lead the decision making process the results get depressed rather than driven upward.

Instead of drawing any personal conclusions or point fingers, please consider your situation.

Do you give with your head or your heart? How can your spouse strengthen your giving deeper and/or wider? What year over year impact do you want to see? Why aim together at growing in the grace of giving?

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Summer Allen: Gender

While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.” Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” Matthew 26:6-13

“Researchers have reported several gender differences when it comes to generosity, although the findings have been inconsistent. While many survey studies have reported that women volunteer more and give more money to charity, the magnitude of these differences varies and is often not very big, and some studies have found evidence of men being more generous than women.

Beside surveys, lab experiments are another way to look at gender differences in giving, although here too there have been inconsistent results. Experiments with “public goods games”— where people can choose to contribute money to a central pot and the money is then multiplied by a factor and divided among all participants—have reported both that all-male groups are more generous and that all-female groups are more generous…

One study did not find any significant differences between male and female players, while another reported that women gave, on average, twice as much to their anonymous partner as men gave. However, one particular modification of the dictator game did discover an interesting gender-specific difference in giving. In this version of the dictator game, players were given a number of tokens that they could divide between themselves and another player, as per usual. However, in different rounds of the game, the payoff for the tokens differed so that in some rounds one token would be worth more when kept and in other rounds it would be worth more when given to the other player.

When summed across the different rounds, men and women gave the same amount of money on average; both genders were equally altruistic. However, individual men were more likely to be perfectly selfish or perfectly selfless, while women tended to be more egalitarian across the board. And when zooming in on how men and women behaved during the different rounds, a clear difference emerged: Men gave more when giving was cheaper (i.e., when a token was worth more when given away), women gave more when giving was more costly (i.e., when a token was worth more when kept).”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

I arrived safely in Vienna, Austria. When this posts I will be on the road from Bratislava to Sliač, Slovakia, with Gabriel Hakulín. I met up with him in Bratislava by the Danube this morning (where I shot the header photo). We attend a huge dinner tonight (about 200 people) at which I will connect with influential Christians in Slovakia.

After reading this study while waiting for my international flight, my mind immediately went to Matthew 26. Consider the scene. The disciples (men) think about the money being used to serve the poor (giving more when giving is cheaper) and the unnamed generous woman gives the costly gift.

What are the implications of this? They are too many to list so I will share some thoughts that come to mind at first.

Men tend to think about giving money to solve problems and women tend to think about giving as linked to their values and showing love to those in need. Men tend to think look out for themselves (hence, giving more when giving is cheaper) and women tend to think about the needs of others (hence, giving more when giving is costly).

I think the key here is for the male and female genders to work together and appreciate each others differences.

To all the men out there, let us as God to rid us of our “perfectly selfish ways” and make us “perfectly selfless” people who don’t just try to solve problems but also aim to show love while honoring the willingness and wiring of your wife to sacrifice. If, like me, you think your wife is the most selfless and generous person on the planet, thank her.

That’s me. Thanks Jenni. you are the best, most loving and generous wife in the world to me!

And women, keep giving when giving is “more costly” and honor the “problem solving” bent of your husband. He means well when exercising this trait for your marriage and family. And if you see “perfectly selfless” traits in your husband. Affirm him and stand with him as he’s going against the “perfectly selfish” flow.

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Summer Allen: Engage Youth

Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Deuteronomy 11:19

“Another study of 682 adolescents found evidence for a bidirectional relationship between prosocial values and high-cost prosocial behaviors, such as volunteering—in other words, engaging in those behaviors seemed to nurture prosocial values, just as prosocial values seemed to promote those behaviors.

This suggests to the authors that “it may be particularly important to engage teens in high-cost prosocial behavior in an attempt to further promote moral identity via personal values.”

Studies of adult volunteers have also found that people who volunteer place more importance on prosocial values than non-volunteers do. Appealing to people’s morality can also encourage generosity. One study found that just adding the sentence, “Note that he relies on you” increased giving in a game.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

Don’t miss what the Torah and the research are saying to us today.

We need to teach our children at home and give them opportunities outside the home to serve others in “prosocial” Christian ways. When we do this, it benefits those we serve. It also increases the probability that they will live out Christian values.

And for everyone we communicate with intentionality.

The statement “note that he relies on you” implies that each of us is part of something bigger and those of us with influence can teach people to be alert to serve others in need. Whether it’s with youth or adults, engaging in service causes us to live out our values and grow in generosity.

Think of ways to involve others, youth or adults, in what you are doing.

Get involved with me in Europe right now. When this email posts I will be somewhere between Denver and Munich, and then I will connect to Vienna. I have strategic meetings in Slovakia, Czechia, Poland, and Austria, including a huge dinner with 150-200 of the top Christian workers of Slovakia on 7 September 2023. That’s why the back to back international trips.

Reply if you want my trip schedule to see the trip aims and items for prayer.

With Gabriel Hakulín, GTP Regional Facilitator for Europe, I am engaging key people who will meet in 2024 to discuss the formation of a peer accountability group (like ECFA in USA) for Eastern Europe. These are some really important meetings and I rely on you to help me attend them. Please click here to make a gift to GTP today. Thanks.

I appreciate your prayers for safe travel, sufficient provision, and protection for my wife and family back home.

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Summer Allen: Humility

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. Mark 10:45

“A study with participants from six countries looked at how a number of different properties, including personality factors, related to the frequency with which people reported giving and receiving help. It found that high levels of certain personality factors—guilt, extraversion, and religiosity—were correlated with measures of altruism in people across the different countries, whereas shame was negatively correlated with altruism. In addition, humility was a consistent and robust predictor of generosity” in three different experiments.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

I arrived safely home, changed out my suitcase, and head to Eastern Europe tonight. I have a humble, generous, and supportive wife. I need to attend a strategic dinner to attend in Slovakia on Thursday along with some other important meetings to advance peer accountability in Eastern Europe.

The international research shows that humility represents “a consistent and robust predictor of generosity.” Think about it. When we cultivate humility, we demonstrate that we understand that we exist not to be served but to serve a purpose bigger than ourselves.

But what can we do to cultivate humility and, in so doing, generosity? Focus on listening to God and others. Be content and grateful for what you have. Ask for help when you need it. Take a posture of service regardless of your position of power. Walk closely with Jesus. Start with that list.

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Summer Allen: Awe

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth. Psalm 19:1-6

“Feelings of awe, defined as the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends one’s understanding of the world, can also increase generosity.

In one study, participants who watched awe-inspiring videos reported greater willingness to volunteer their time to help others—among a host of other positive effects—when compared with participants who watched videos that induced other emotions.

Another study found that participants who took photos of nature scenes that they found inspiring, and later wrote a description of those feelings, reported feeling kinder, more helpful, and more connected to others than did participants who took photos of human-built environments or who did not take any photos.

And yet another study asked some participants to stand among towering eucalyptus trees and look up for one minute, while other participants simply looked up at a building for one minute. Those who looked at the trees experienced more awe—and also picked up more pens for a researcher who “accidentally” spilled them on the ground.

Thus, besides the benefits that come from experiencing wonder at the world, encouraging people to feel awe may have the added benefit of leading those people to behave more generously.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

Imagine the timing. I did not plan this.

I read this on Sunday morning before heading off to preach and then before our afternoon activity. The GTP Colombia team wanted to take us to Catedral De Sal Zipaquira or in English, the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá, to do the Stations of the Cross underground in the salt mines (see photo of the salt cross cathedral).

Getting out of the city (and traffic) of Bogotá provided relief for us and a refreshing time to worship and praise God for all He did for us on the cross, and also all He did to activate a peer accountability movement in Colombia this week. That’s right, a group will form called “Orden” meaning “Order.”

It’s in the Colombia seal to promote “Freedom and Order” and inspired by 1 Corinthians 14:40, “but all things should be done decently and in order.” The verse implies “do things with standards and in order.” We stand in awe of God for how He brought that together. Reply for a copy of the trip report to read all about it.

Anyway, on the last day they took us to this place. It inspired awe in us and motivates us to pursue the vision of spreading generosity and accountability all across Colombia and the world for God’s glory.

When this posts I will be somewhere in the air between Bogotá and Houston arriving on the night flight and getting home late morning. Paula and Carla, my fellow team members return to Guatemala City on Monday afternoon. Thanks for your prayers for safe travel for all of us.

We are good because Jesus takes care of everything.

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Summer Allen: Gratitude

But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 1 Samuel 12:24

“Feelings of gratitude also appear to motivate generosity, regardless of whether one is receiving or giving the thanks. In one study, students who provided helpful comments on another student’s cover letter were significantly more likely to help a second student with their cover letter if they had received a brief thank you note from the first student; another study found that people who were thanked after pledging to give money in the future were less likely to renege on their decision to give. Yet another study found that people induced to feel gratitude to someone who provided them with assistance later spent more time helping that person and a stranger than did people who had not experienced gratitude.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

God has been good to us in Colombia. The vision for a peer accountability group (like ECFA in USA) to help grow stewards who follow standards and build sustainable ministries has been born.

The group will be called “Orden.” It means “order” in English. It’s in the Colombia seal to promote “freedom and order” and inspired by 1 Corinthians 14:40, “but all things should be done decently and in order.” The verse implies “do things with standards and in order.”

In response to all God has done here, I have gratitude. As our research continues, it seems that gratitude inspires greater generosity. We would anticipate this and the research backs it.

So, what’s that mean for us today? Let’s express gratitude (it costs us nothing) wherever we go. As we do, we can be confident that it just might inspire those around us to grow in generosity. I’m thinking our work here in Colombia will inspire people to grow in this area. I pray you do too.

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Summer Allen: Compassion training

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Colossians 3:12

“One of the most studied psychological motivations for generosity is empathy… Related to empathy is compassion—caring for and wanting to help those in need—and research suggests that feelings of compassion can also lead people to behave generously… Interventions designed to increase a person’s sense of compassion can also increase their propensity to engage in prosocial behaviors. One study found that participants who had engaged in short-term compassion training were more helpful…and another study found that compassion training increased the amount of money participants gave.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

The “Stations of Generosity” training went well in Bogotá, Colombia. Today Paula, Carla, and I will coach a group of ministry workers on the use of GTP templates. Each one has completed our diagnostic tool with the vision of building local capacity.

Committed, receptive, and attentive would describe the workers we have served. Committed to our Lord Jesus Christ, receptive to teaching, training, and coaching, and attentive to applying what they learned and sharing it with others.

Our audience has ranged from the Evangelical Alliance for Colombia to pastors and ministry worker and missionaries and servants who work in the Amazon or with indigenous groups in South America. Great people thankful for biblical and practical help.

Part of what drives my service is compassion. It was my word for the year a few years back. My word this year is gratitude, and I am so grateful for this research. If you study compassion training you focus on topics like the themes in this verse from the Apostle Paul.

So, again, the findings affirm the biblical teaching which calls us to put on five things. Read the list. Are any missing in your life. God train us put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience so that we might serve as your generous disciples who help and give more.

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Summer Allen: Social noise and other-regarding strategies

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Mark 7:12

“Generosity also seems to carry benefits when interactions between people do not go as planned because of unexpected circumstances (what is termed “social noise”). For example, imagine this scenario: Your friend did not respond to your email because of a problem with his internet connection. Because you did not know of the problem, you may think your friend is ignoring you, which may lead you to delay responding to the next email from your friend as a form of reciprocation. One study found that generosity can help overcome the detrimental effects caused by this type of “noise” in social dilemmas.

The study found that rather than responding to someone’s actions with strict reciprocity in “tit-for-tat” fashion, behaving slightly more generously than that person’s last action leads to more overall cooperation. This suggests that adding a small generosity buffer and giving someone the benefit of the doubt may lead to more cooperation and stronger relationships. However, the paper also highlights how deferring to increased generosity can sometimes be problematic—say, in a situation where two friends end up buying each other more and more expensive gifts even when neither party actually wants to spend that much.

A follow-up study with different experimental paradigms confirmed and extended the findings from this study. In fact, results from the second study showed that “even when there was no noise, the other-regarding strategies elicited equal or even greater cooperation levels (in case of a generous strategy) than did tit-for-tat.” According to the researchers, these results suggest that “the power of generosity is underestimated in the extant literature, especially in its ability to maintain or build trust, which is essential for coping with noise.”

Summer Allen in “The Science of Generosity” White Paper produced by the Greater Good Science Center.

I really resonated with this research on social noise. Life happens. It’s complicated. We intend to reply to a message, and something happens. Recently our internet was out for two days. It seemed like two years.

And yet, the research proves that if we extend grace to others and engage “other-regarding strategies,” they will likely extend grace to us. This helps strengthens our social interaction and exhibits our Christian faith.

Our onsite teaching on “Stewardship and Standards” went phenomenal in Bogotá, Colombia, yesterday (pictured above). Today, we train trainers to replicate “Stations of Generosity.” Keep praying for us as there’s lots of social noise.

We anticipated 60 people today and about 50 came. “Social noise” or stuff in life kept about 10 away. They messaged and sent regrets. Of course, we responded graciously and let them know where to find the information they missed.

How might you engage “other-regarding strategies” in your social interaction to exhibit generosity? Let’s resolve to extend the amount of grace to others as we want God to extend to us.

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