James Galloway comments

If your view on generosity is from a perspective of 'it's what we do' you'll always struggle to give. A paradigm shift needs to occur so that we can 'be' generous.

The Bible is laden with this subject simply because we align ourselves with the very nature of God when we give. The quintessential word in John 3:16 is that God 'gave' his one & only son.

When we give we begin to see the nature of God outworked in our lives. When we pray 'your Kingdom come' we must understand that the dominion of the King is manifest through His people. Us.

We've got to get a fresh perspective on this subject of generosity. If you have an issue with giving then it is simply something you do rather than an outworking of who you are.

Generosity isn't a biblical formula to get rich either. It is a biblical lifestyle choice.

One of my favourite scriptures is Proverbs 11:24 that tells us, 'The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.' (TM)

If you want breakthrough in your world then allow the DNA of God to invade you & let generosity overflow. Your world will increase in a phenomenal way. The awesome church that I am privileged to lead (Bethel City Church) is growing at an unprecedented rate including seeing people make decisions to follow Jesus every week for the last 64 consecutive weeks.

People say it's because of the great music or the intelligent lighting or the immense amount of prayer that occurs. What people don't realise is that our First Fruits offering was in excess of £75,000. Our people are generous & our world is getting bigger.

2 Corinthians 9:6 says, 'Remember: A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop.' (TM) Listen, you're the most valuable thing that you have got. You're worth investing in. You invest in yourself by giving to others.

Choose to release yourself into your world. Make a decision to engage with people at a Whole 'Nother Level (WNL) and you'll begin to live at a WNL!

It's really easy to be effective at reaching your city when the realisation that (Proverbs 22:9) 'Generous hands are blessed hands' (TM). You are God's intended agent of change for your community. If you think from a 'generous is something I do' mindset, you will always struggle with not enough resource, volunteers or time.

When you give yourself to your city, you'll be amazed at the blessing your hands can be. My encouragement to you would be this: Give yourself.

Generosity isn't giving from the resource we possess, it's a heart thing. Your Pastor really, really doesn't want your money. He wants you! Your Pastor wants your heart to resonate with the vision of the House. If your Pastor gets you then he gets far more than anything your wallet can give.

One last thing about generosity. Honestly, it's fun.