"Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." (2 Corinthians 9:6–7, ESV)
This verse may not be a 'Christmas' verse, but it does speak to generosity that God loves to see in His children. He loves a cheerful giver! During the Christmas season, families and friends join together in the tradition of giving gifts to one another, to churches, and to missions work! However, you and I both know that many times we give without focus, reason, thought, and even give beyond what we should, which could cause them financial hardship due to various unwise decisions around their giving.
Today, we would like to tackle 8 things that a good steward would NEVER do around Christmas. Some of our points will go beyond the Christmas season, so this episode may help you beyond this season and help you reset your finances and decisions for the upcoming year!
8 Things Good Stewards Never Do During Christmas
So, with this in mind, let’s dive in and get thinking about how we can become an even better, and more generous “cheerful giver” to those that we love for the glory of God's Kingdom! (Listen to the episode for more information on each point).
- Good stewards don't use gifts to buy love (replace love).
- Good stewards don't have every Christmas brought to you by Amazon.
- Good stewards don't put off giving year end gifts to the last minute.
- Good stewards don't pay for Christmas with their tax refund.
- Good stewards are not guilt tripped into giving money to any and/or every charity.
- Good stewards don't pay for Christmas in the new year (taking loans out).
- Good stewards don't wait to buy Christmas gifts until Christmas time.
- Good stewards don't spend more than their Christmas gifting budget.
Conclusion // Stewardship Application
Goal - Becoming a wise steward of all that the Lord has put into your hands is what this is all about. We, according to Scripture, are to be generous givers. But, we are also to be WISE with our gifting. Part of being wise is budgeting and giving according to your convictions (not just to any group or organization).
Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. (1 Corinthians 4:2, ESV)
And, as we stated in the beginning of this episode, it is good that we give what we decided in our heart, not under compulsion, but doing it cheerfully! What we decided in our heart would be a good parallel to making a “giving budget!" It is wise to deciding ahead of time what gifts you would like to give to others. Also, consider including giving a generous gift to your local church. If your church has an annual Christmas or Easter offering, build that into your giving budget so there are no surprises! If it is too late in this year to implement some or many of the things that we talked about in this episode, consider setting up these parameters for the upcoming year!
Next Steps
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