Generosity Day 11

I never really thought about how the early Christians kept the faith alive and inspired others to not only embrace and live it but pass it on.

I mean, I know that they did, as we would not be here today, writing about the Faith.

Today’s reading is interesting because it credits the generosity of the early Christians as the vehicle which propelled the faith through the centuries.

I wonder, is it really that simple? It must be because here we are!!!!

This reflection made me think about not only the word generosity but the many ways which we either are or are not generous.

It is lent and this is just another way to delve deeper into self knowledge and explore and admit things about ourselves. It really is a never-ending cycle.

When I think about what to be generous with, I immediately come up with time, talent and treasure. But when I really think about it, there is so much more. For instance, how generous am I with my love, understanding, patience, tolerance and forgiveness.

These can keep me pondering for a while.

I like my alone time, probably because I do not get a lot of it. So when my husband lost his office space and had to work from home, it was a big adjustment. I remember being upset because he was not on the same schedule I was, our routines were not syncing. When it was time for the little ones to take a nap and me to get some down time, he was ready for lunch. I have to be honest a lot of disagreements occurred because neither of us wanted to be generous with our time.

Today Time is a commodity, one that is not easily given freely. I think it’s because of the instantaneous society we live in and can technologically speaking be available 24/7/365. That being said, our time is very precious to us and organizations that rely heavily on volunteers are hurting. How can I be more generous with my time?

Talent, who and why would we be stingy with our talent? This reminds me of the Bible story about the master and the coins. The servants were to watch over these coins. Remember what happened to the one who buried his coin. The master, took his away and gave it to the one who had more and the one who had little, even what he had been taken away. Is our use or nonuse of our talents like this story? Are we generous with our talents?

Treasure, every time we see this word, we think money, at least I do, but what if treasure encompassed more than just money? If we look at all the gifts, grace and mercy that God has given us as our treasure. Would that change how generous we would be with it?

Things to ponder.

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