Hearts Warmed to Hearts Moved

Jesus is never just talking about money. He is always talking about something that is far more valuable.

Jesus has no words of wisdom for how to balance a budget or structure a church committee. What Jesus does teach about is our hearts. The classic scripture from Luke 12:34 is, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also". We usually read that sentence in one direction: if you want to know what someone loves, look at where their money goes. But the sentence works in reverse too. If you want to change your heart, change where your treasure is going.

Anyone who has been excited to give a gift to a friend, child or grandchild is not excited because God was standing over them with a clipboard checking off good deeds and bad deeds. We are joyful because someone we love is about to open that gift! And, something in us warms with their joy. That heart-warming is what Jesus cares about. Generosity is not a tax on the heart. It is the heart moving toward what it loves.

At Southminster, heart-warming leads to heart-moving! It is the heartfelt meal for a friend after a funeral, the faithful Deacons who arrives early to turn on the lights and start the coffee. It is a child’s comment in Sunday School that they understand the importance of generosity. It is the quiet monthly pledge that goes to keeping the building running and the staff paid. None of these are measured with the same currency, yet each of them are treasure.

Giving From the Heart does not mean finding the right dollar amount or waiting until we feel God’s hand move us. Sometimes we just need to give first, the way we plant bulbs in October, trusting them to bloom in the spring. We set aside a portion today, have faith and continue on, and slowly the heart catches up to the hand. Discipline and delight are not enemies. Discipline is what we do, and delight is why we do it!

So as our Generosity Campaign unfolds over this next month. I invite you to put away the question "How much should I give?" for that is not the question Jesus asks. Instead, Jesus asks us: "Where do you want your heart to live?" The more you want you heart in that warm and trusted place of peace, then you will know what to do. Simply place your treasure there, whether time, talent, or money, and watch what follows! When we plant our gifts with heart-moving faith, we will reap rewards of heart-warming joy!

And isn’t a heart, warmed by a generous God, what we all really want?

Blessings,

Pastor Karl