Living Generously

The other day I was reminding Jeff how we all give money to the church at the end of the year and Westwinds met its goal. I reminded him that I had given my Christmas money to help the church. He knew that was hard for me since I have a dream of taking my family to China to visit Allie’s homeland and I’ve been slowly saving money for our trip – which will probably in 2020!

I shared with Jeff that the other day, I had unexpectedly received a “gift” for the same amount I had given to help the church. Jeff looked at me and said, “You were blessed, Mom.”

Yep at many levels I was blessed but the best blessing was Jeff’s comment. He’s beginning to see and experience how the economy of God works.

Learning to live generously

At the end of 2009 Westwinds Church still needed $4,000 to finish the year in the black.

Obviously there was nothing that my kids “needed” nor “wanted” since we had just had 3 family Christmas celebrations. So I mentioned the church’s need to the kids and then suggested that they give all of their allowance for that week to help the church.

I reminded them of the reason they received an allowance. The idea that Mom and Dad are blessed and we want to bless them so that they can also learn to bless other. I was pleasantly surprised when they both agreed.

We took their money and added what my husband and I were giving and drove over to the church. Jeff addressed the envelope and then figured out what percentage we were giving towards the total amount. It is a good morning.

Learning to live generously

After 3 years of commuting to Toledo, Ohio for work, my husband amazingly found a new job in Jackson, Michigan (the end of September). Note that Jackson, Michigan has the worst of the worst economies in the country. No kidding. Michigan has the highest unemployment rate and Jackson has the highest in Michigan. It was a totally God-thing that my husband “found” this position that was advertised only once in a small local paper. God has been so good to us.
In the midst of this blessing, we have also experienced a 33 percent cut in our household income. The trade off however is a consistent paycheck, not sporadic commission checks, and the best trade off is we eat dinner together as a family every night. Most nights when my daughter prays at dinner time, she thanks God that “Daddy got new work and can eat dinner with us.”
This new job has brought about numerous changes such as parenting jointly, our daily schedule and our finances

Living Generously - a parents example

My parents are givers. From my earliest memories my parents gave to others. I remember each of us kids getting an offering envelope with money to give to church. I remember my mom saying that the first check she wrote each week went to the church.

Today at 83 years old my parents still give 10 percent to the church and more to missionaries they support. They will shop at Goodwill and do without (sometimes even their costly medicine – that’s dangerous) so that they can give to others. The actual dollar amount my parents give off their merger income is pretty insignificant in the big picture of their church. But my parents have always given, and they have given of themselves by serving and helping others. They have opened their home to let people live with them, they visited the sick and shut-ins, they befriended a young boy who committed murder and visited him in jail for 43 years until he was released last May.

My mom and dad both have generous hearts. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion. 2 Cor. 9.11a This verse summarizes my parents life.

Though I wrote this entry several weeks ago, I'm posting it today as a tribute to both of parents, but especially my dad, who passed away January 19, and “journeyed further inward into the loving arms and presence of God our Father.”

Living Generously

Early in the Story of God, a man named Abram is called by God. Genesis 12.1-3 says ¹ The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. ² I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. ³ I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you. Abram (later renamed Abraham) is given much but with the blessing comes a tremendous responsibility, to bless those around him.

This fall I began to give my kids a set amount of money each week. While this may sound like an allowance and technically may be, I have approached it from the Abraham perspective. I told the kids that God has blessed us, Mom and Dad, with good jobs and we want to share that blessing with them.

As part of the Tate family I want them to personally experience the blessings Mom and Dad have received. While I know the kids benefit from our blessings through having a home, food, clothes, etc. I want them to have a portion of the blessing that they have a say about.

Each week I remind the kids why I am giving them money, because God has blessed us, and we want to bless and share with them. Each week I encourage them to think about how they can personally bless someone else. With all that they have received, how will they give to someone else?

I will not lie, as of today when I am writing this, my kids haven’t given their money away to “bless” someone else. They are saving it, which is not bad either. I am laying the foundation to cultivate a generous heart. It is not a one-time teaching, it takes time and effort. There are teachable moments throughout the process.

I want to teach my kids to be generous. My kids as well as I need to cultivate a generous heart and Abraham’s story does that for me. I am blessed so that I can bless others. That blessing is not just a financial, but it includes my possessions and time, opening my home to friends, serving and giving back to the community, etc.

St. Ignatius speaks of holding loosely to whatever comes my way. To not be tied down or possessive of whatever I have received. Mother Teresa says, “I take what He gives, and gives what He takes, with a smile.” Everything received is a gift.

On January 10 in the K6 Experience Studios the kids began to study Psalm 23, helping them grasp that with “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack for nothing, I have everything I need.” When I know and believe that all my needs are being met, I can begin to give and give generously to others because I know that all that I have is a gift from God.

Then on January 17 (yesterday) Dave started a new series called Heart of Gold: The Joy of Living Generously. It’s about helping us grasp what the Bible teaches about finances. Teaching atlases are available at Sound Words and you need to buy one! Seriously, each chapter in the teaching atlas includes a special section called “activities for you and your children.” If you have never bought a teaching atlas, this is the time to do so.(The book is also available on amazon.com, Dr. David McDonald)

Every loving, caring parent teaches their kids the basics competencies of life. Manners -please and thank you; brush their teeth; put things back where you found them; be a good friend, etc. We MUST teach be intentional about teaching our kids the basic spiritual competencies of life: Giving generously, serving, loving others, and looking out for those who need help.

The stars have aligned and the time is right! The K6 Studio and Dave’s teachings are a great segue to teach our kids to live generously.

NOTE: During the Heart of Gold series you can catch stories about families and money on either loritate.blogspot.com or westwindskids.blogspot.com. If you have stories to share please send them to my email.

Shadowing God

Had lunch with a friend the other day and we had a great time catching up on family and work. Then we moved to our favorite topic – what God was doing in our lives. She shared that for Christmas she and her husband were buying one gift for the house that they both would enjoy. Then beyond that she and her husband had to independently “bless someone with a gift” then Christmas morning share that story.

My friend had someone in mind, but was concerned at how this man would receive a gift. I shared the following story of Mother Teresa.

One day Mother Teresa learned that there was a family with eight kids who had not eaten for days. Mother took rice over to the family. When she gave the lady the rice, the mother quietly took her gift of rice, divided it into two portions and excused herself. She went to her neighbor lady next door, who also had eight children who had not eaten for days. Mother Teresa was deeply moved by this lady’s awareness and compassion. One woman was Hindu and the other Muslim. The story goes that Mother Teresa did not immediately rush back with more rice, she waited so that the first lady would receive the full measure of joy that comes from giving to others.

I suggested to my friend that when she gave her gift to the man, that she encouraged him to use what he needed and then if there was extra he could bless someone else.

What could be better than being the person who gets to bless others!

I am blessed to be journeying with people who are shadowing God and help heal the world!

Learn to Notice God

When I was a kid someone taught me where hawks hang out. He showed me that hawks have white bellies in comparison to turkey buzzards, whose bellies were dark. He also pointed out the difference between the birds’ wings. By simply pointing out a few distinct characteristics of a hawk, I’ve been able to identify hawks everywhere.

Along those same lines, someone else taught me to notice where God is active and moving. I have found that the Spirit leads me through various levels of self-awareness. After years of this happening, I identify 4 "steps" for lack of a better word. There's this pattern of observation, reflection, discovery and response and it kinda looks like this.

Observe: notice what you are doing, notice how you are feeling, notice what the Spirit may be telling you. Put into words what you are noticing. (For example: I’m crabby with my kids and husband)

Reflect/examine: what is going on? Why are you feeling this way? Feelings are not good or bad. They just are. Are you normally like this? Do you often feel this way? How might it be connected to another part of your life? Ask the Spirit to show you. (I feel a lot of pressure – work, school, parents. I am really tired. I’ve been crabby with my husband.)

Discover: Are there any connections? How does one part of your life impact another area. Ask the Spirit to guide you. (I’m really mad at my dad and his choices, but I’m taking it out on my husband and kids. I’ve never noticed that before.)

Respond: Do what you need to do. Ask the Spirit to guide your response to this new discovery. What is now required with this new information. Perhaps you share this self discovery with your husband, perhaps you may need to talk to with your dad.
As you begin to repeat this process and live in this type of rhythm, the next time you yell at your kids or husband, you may pause and ask yourself, “what’s going on? What’s the real problem.”

Trust that the Spirit will lead and guide you to the Truth and change you.