‘Give until it heals’
“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, The world and those who dwell therein. . .”
I can still remember a sermon titled “GIVE UNTIL IT HEALS” preached at General Conference 2004 by Bishop Bruce Blake. As he preached this sermon on stewardship, he wore on his feet a gift of handmade moccasins presented to him as he attended the funeral of a beloved pastor in the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference. Family members gave gifts to all those attending the funeral. The sermon reflected the tradition shared by many Native people known as the “give-away.”
Ray Buckley, author of The Give-Away, published by Abingdon Press in 1999, elucidates this tradition. He said in an interview, “what matters is not what someone has but what the person is able to give away to others. It is not the value of the gift, but the giving itself that is culturally relevant. Giving a gift that may not have significant monetary worth, but has significant spiritual or personal value is a sign of a giving heart.”
I want to help cultivate giving hearts and extravagant generosity in our Virginia Conference. We saw a sign and foretaste of what this looks like at Annual Conference 2007 in
After seeing a video which powerfully shared the need, and hearing testimony of what a difference the net makes in preventing malaria, the audience erupted with a giving spirit, a joyful desire to want to give, to be part of a community that could truly make a difference in saving lives. As a pastor now serving as a bishop, I had never experienced people literally throwing money at me for any reason, much less for such a noble goal as the Nets campaign. It was glorious, and we were all caught up in the joy of giving and seeing those gifts quickly multiplied. We had nothing in it ourselves, just totally gave away ourselves for God’s desire for us to make a difference in malaria-infested regions of God’s world.
Too many times in our churches, we communicate messages that imply “Give Until It Hurts.” I pray that we can live into Bishop Blake’s gracious invitation to GIVE UNTIL IT HEALS. . . it is then that we are part of God’s healing of the earth and all who dwell therein — PRAISE THE LORD! Grace and Peace,
Charlene Kammerer |