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Gary G. Hoag
“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”— 2 Corinthians 9:7
“For Christians seeking a sacred connection, while they can receive the benefit of achieving Christian flourishing and they give to help others, these benefits and goals are in some sense secondary or by-products. The primary focus is on connecting with God and helping him achieve his purposes—God as the sacred divine is central.
Paul’s strong emphasis on giving as a grace of God in 2 Corinthians 8-9 supports the concept of a spiritual function of giving as a means of connecting with and relating to God as central. I argue that for Christians with a deep commitment, this spiritual function of giving holds significant motivational influence and introduces meaningful implications for those teaching in religious contexts.”
Philip A. Eubanks in "Live the Vision Church Culture: An Ethnographic Case Study and Theological Inquiry." PhD diss., Oxford Centre for Mission Studies (2024) 293.
Today is the seventh of seven posts from the doctoral dissertation of my friend, Philip A. Eubanks. Click here to download his dissertation.
I shared some of Philip’s academic findings this week because I want to help you experience a sacred connection with God that can only come from growing in the grace of giving.
If you feel you still have room for growth, meditate on 2 Corinthians 8-9. Philip shared with me personally that those two chapters impacted him deeply in his doctoral journey.
When you read them you discover that giving is fueled by the grace of God. I pray that same grace abounds in your life and in the lives of all those in your church.
As the week draws to a close, I want to point you to a resource to help you nurture your “sacred connection” with God. You find them in the Meditations Library here.
Notice the theme buttons: Community. Hope, Money, Prayer, Service, Simplicity. Wisdom, Work, Generosity, Trust, and Stewardship.
We created them to help you locates posts that match these themes. If one of the themes stands out to you, consider reading some of the posts for your growth.
And check out video shorts related to these themes on the Generosity Monk YouTube channel here.
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