Giving begins with compassion.
A compassionate heart moves us toward generous giving.
When have you given out of compassion? What situations or people stir your compassion most deeply? How have you experienced someone else’s compassion in a way that changed you?
Throughout Scripture, we see people whose compassion leads them to act generously by caring for their neighbors and strengthening their community. The Good Samaritan tends the wounds of a stranger and pays for his care (Luke 10:29–37). Jesus, moved by compassion for a hungry crowd, multiplies loaves and fishes so that all are fed and satisfied (Mark 6:34–44).
The churches of Macedonia give beyond their means out of compassion for fellow believers in Jerusalem (2 Corinthians 8–9).
In each of these stories, compassion is at the heart of generosity. Yet it is not compassion for its own sake. It flows from a deep awareness of the grace we ourselves have received from God.
When have you been motivated to give because you cared about the welfare of the community? When has the generosity of someone else moved you to give?
As disciples, we give compassionately because God has first been generous with us: in love, mercy, and grace. Our generosity is a response to that gift. By opening our hands and hearts, we reflect Christ’s love, so that others may encounter the compassion and love of God through us.
Who in your community is God calling you to see with compassion right now? How might your generosity allow someone else to experience the compassion of God? What resources (time, skills, money) has God entrusted to you that you can share with others? What small step of generosity can you take this week?
Growing Disciples Bulletin Insert
The September bulletin insert is now ready. These inserts are a starting point and will include an introduction to the monthly theme and an invitation to delve deeper.
Each time an insert is sent out, you will be able to access it as a PDF that is ready to print double-sided. The PDF is for standard letter-size paper and is made so two inserts are on each page. If you have any questions, please contact Rev. Mack Patrick, click here to email them.
To access the PDF insert, please click here.
Serving Resources
Additional resources will be added throughout the year.
- Stewardship To Go
- Church Anew's Stewadship program for churches
- A Spirituality of Fundraising by Henri Nouwen
- Do you serve on your church's stewardship committee or need to raise money for a mission trip or some other faith-based cause? Perhaps the thought of asking people for money intimidates you. It's time to change the way you think about fundraising. Unlike most business/leadership books, A Spirituality of Fundraising is brief and can easily be read in one sitting.
- The Generosity Project
- Association of Christian Fundraising
- ELCA Foundation on Gift Planning
