At First Presbyterian Church we speak of giving not as support for the church but as a building block of discipleship. The implication of this idea is that generosity is learned behavior. To be sure, some people are generous by nature - "He would give you the shirt off his back." But most of us have to discover that generous is something we really want to be and then work to achieve it.
The mile-markers on the Journey to Generosity include:
- Generosity is not a destination; it is an attitude.
- Giving is an aerobic exercise - it's good for the heart.
- The giver is the principal beneficiary of the gift.
- Giving appeals are opportunities to help, not impositions to tolerate.
- Generosity is one of life's great privileges.
- Giving is not budget-making, it is disciple-making.
- Generosity stresses the giver's need to give rather than the church's need to receive.
- The objective of generosity is not increased giving but changed lives.
- Generosity is a core value of Christian faith.
- Generous people are comfortable with saying "No".
- Generosity is less about how much we give and more about how we feel about giving.
- Along with worship, study, prayer, service, and fellowship, generosity "holds us up" on the walk of faith.
The Journey to Generosity, like faith itself, is a life-long endeavor. We don't reach a point at which we "have it'. Rather we "press on toward the goal…to which God has called" us. (Philippians 3:14)
We measure the church budget by the dollars and cents the people give; we measure generosity by the congregation's attitude about giving. Both measures have to be taken.
More importantly, we've created a healthy giving climate in the congregation. We have a new understanding of the purpose and value of material resources and how we use them for the cause of Christ. We have virtually eliminated any discomfort with talking about money. We've cultivated the gracious art of saying "no". We've enjoyed a positive response to conversations about wills and bequests. We still have the annual Stewardship Campaign. But it is no longer seen as a necessary evil. Now the annual appeal is seen as a challenge to stay the course on the Journey to Generosity.