September 5: GRACE

See it:

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. I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.  
2 Corinthians 8:7-9 (NIV)

Obey it:

People who have consciously savored the experience of God’s grace understand three things:

1. They understand the connection between grace and generosity. Before anything else, we must realize that such a connection does exist. Many Christians do not understand this concept. A saved person is a generous person. If I’m drowning and someone saves me, how do I respond to that gesture? If I’m dying of heart failure and someone donates his or her heart to save my life, how do I react? The clear answer is with generosity.

2. They understand that generosity is evidence of their salvation. Generosity doesn’t buy our salvation. It is evidence of our salvation. The more clearly we visualize the sacrifice of Jesus, the wider we will open our hands to help others. As Jesus opened His hands on the cross and blessed the whole world by giving up His life, we, His followers, open our hands and bless our world, as we give with selfless generosity.

3. They understand the implication of being generous. Today’s text tells us that when Jesus gave, our situation improved. This is the implication of giving. Other people do better. Other people progress. Other people change. Other people are saved. What better reward than to change the life of another person?

Share it:
1. Give someone a fruit basket.
2. Leave a good book in a public place with a note.
3. Donate books to your local library.

My prayer today:
Lord, thank You for saving me. I could never repay it, but I will extend to others the same grace that You extended to me. Amen.

Season of Service