Living Life by Design

Generosity is not just a beautiful character trait that good people have. As Christians, it is at the heart of what our faith is all about. C.S. Lewis defined Christianity as ‘a kind of giving’. God has poured out his generosity to us in Jesus (John 3:16), and we are called to respond in faith and generosity to others. 

Mother Teresa once gave an interview where she was asked, ‘Is it only the affluent who give?’

She replied, ‘No, even the poorest of the poor give. The other day a very poor beggar came up to me and said, “Everyone gives to you and I also want to give you twenty paisa” – which is about two pennies. I thought to myself, what do I do? If I take it he won’t have anything to eat, but if I don’t take it I would hurt him so much. So I took, and he was so happy because he had given to Mother Teresa of Calcutta to help the poor. Giving cleans the heart and helps you get closer to God. You get so much back in return.’

The key to the fullness of the blessing is generosity – ‘the righteous give generously’ (Psalm 37:21).