I was in Starbucks the other day buying my usual tall hot chocolate, extra hot, with cream, when I decided to do something a little extraordinary. There were amused faces, surprised voices and bemused smiles…
I’d like to think that I’m a pretty generous person. I like to buy my friends’ coffees when I can and I enjoy being able to be generous with my time when friends need help or church needs people to set up. I’m generous with my DVDs (at the detriment of my ever decreasing DVD collection!).
But what about people who aren’t my friends? What about being generous to people who probably / definitely wont be able to be generous back? In many ways it’s easier to be generous and buy my mates coffee because next time we meet up, they’ll probably buy my coffee. Likewise I’m generous with my time but if I’m really honest, I’m generous when it’s things I enjoy doing or people I enjoy being around. I’m generous with DVDs because they’re likely to give them back after watching the film.
What about the lady behind me in the queue at Starbucks? What if I was generous to her and bought her a coffee? What if each time I buy my hot chocolate, I buy one for the homeless lady that sits at the end of the road? What if I text donate the equivalent of a coffee to Tearfund each time I’m in Starbucks? I will never get that generosity ‘back’ from that person but I have invested in a lifestyle rhythm of lasting change.
The lady behind me in the queue was so shocked that I was buying her coffee for her that she didn’t know what to say. When she asked why, I had a wonderful conversation with her about the world that I’m hoping for and the rhythm of generosity I’m investing in.
Next time I’m in Starbucks I’ll be text donating and ‘buying a coffee’ not for the stranger behind me in the queue but the stranger somewhere else in the world.
Generosity cost Jesus everything. Generosity cost the disciples their lives. True generosity should cost us something, not because we’ll get it back, but because we are part of a different kingdom, with different values and different rhythms.
How are you being generous to people on your campus? How are you investing in a rhythm of generosity that impacts people all over the world?
If you want to change the world, you need to become the kind of person who changes the world. The best generosity will cost us.
You can read more and be part of a community investing in Rhythms of lasting change here.
