Generosity: A Gift from God

This month's newspaper column....

           The story is told of Alfred Nobel that he was reading the newspaper one day and received quite a shock.  Nobel was a Swedish chemist who made millions of dollars from inventing and selling dynamite.  The headline in the 1888 Newspaper read: “The Merchant of Death is Dead;” it was his obituary!  The newspaper, which had confused him with his brother Ludvig who had died in France, described a person who had gotten rich by helping people kill each other.

            After reading his own obituary, Alfred Nobel realized that the legacy of his life was not what he had hoped and he set out to make a change. He became a generous person sharing his resources to make a positive difference in the world.  You probably recognize the name from the Nobel Prizes (like the Nobel Peace Prize), which Nobel created with a $9 million investment to honor individuals of many professions whose work and efforts have benefited humanity.  Alfred Nobel learned what it meant to become a generous person.

            God blesses you and me so that we can be a blessing to others.  He desires us to be generous people, and when we are, our joy and happiness overflows.  Jesus said in Luke 6:36, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."  (NIV)  There is a spiritual principle here:  When you give, you will be blessed!!   When you give, God will grant you not only what you need, but it will overflow. 

            You and I have been blessed with time, talents, and treasure.  We have been blessed with freedom, education, intellectual abilities, friendships, material possessions, skills, and wisdom.  The mistake we often make is when we use these things just for ourselves.  God has blessed us to be a blessing to others.  When we hoard it all to ourselves, we miss the blessing.  The gift actually becomes a burden!!  God desires us to be generous with all that we possess – “pipelines of sharing” with others. Rather than experiencing joy and happiness by giving, too many of us become stressed out and worked out by debt and the care of “our” material possessions. 

Learn to give.  Learn to become a generous person.  For then you will see that the real gift from God to us is NOT the gift, but what happens when we give the gift.  Generosity:  it’s the true gift from God.

55 and Alive

I give thanks for another year to serve the Lord, enjoy the people he has placed in my life, and dwell in the beauty of His Creation.   From my kids....

GAFCON2 -- All Saints' Cathedral

GAFCON was held at All Saints Cathedral in downtown Nairobi. Serving as the National Cathedral for the Anglican Church of Kenya, All Saints has 13 worship services each Sunday with over 6000 worshippers: 800 children, 500 teenagers, 800 youth, and 4000 adults.  This dynamic congregation offered numbers of its members as volunteers to serve and help us all week.  Not only does this urban campus have a state of the art auditorium which housed our large gatherings, but its historical buildings and beautiful grounds made our visit to Kenya very inspiring.

From the right Transcept during Bishops' Meeting

Children's Choir in the Courtyard

Many of our brothers and sisters are living the reality of this Hymn right now.

How many arches can you count?  I can see 10. 

GAFCON2 - More

Some of our delegates from North America

Here are some of our folks from the Anglican Church in North America who were present in Nairobi this week.

Me with Bishop Clark Lowenfeld, Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast

Bishop Neil Lebhar and his wife, Marcia, Diocese of the Gulf-Atlantic

Bishop John Guernsey, Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic

Bishop Steve Breedlove (PEARUSA) with his wife, Sally, and Allison Beach

Bishop Charlie Masters,  Anglican Network in Canada

John Yates, Rector of the Falls Church

Bishop Don Harvey, Anglican Network in Canada

Bishop Eric Meness, Diocese of San Jaquin and Bishop Bill Atwood, International Diocese

GAFCON - The Bishops' Conference

GAFCON2 has emphasized the Church returning to the priorities of discipleship and mission based on the Great Commission given by Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20.  All throughout the GAFCON meetings this verse has been repeated over and over again.   Even the host of wonderful volunteers sported T-shirts with the verse written out for all to see.

Go, therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. -- Jesus in Matthew 28:19

Amidst the week there were mini-conferences focusing on different areas of interest which attendees could choose to participate such as The Holy Spirit, Witnessing in Your Culture, The Godly Woman, Marriage and Family, and Understanding and Impacting Islam.  I chose to attend one designated for bishops and it focussed on leadership based on an exposition of Hebrews 13.

This was a great time of rethinking leadership and our call to be shepherds of the flock.  We were given an excellent booklet by Bishop Wallace Benn and published by The Latimer Trust entitled, Remember your Leaders.  The bishops were also given the opportunity to share with one another about how they encounter certain issues in their ministries.  It was amazing to me to see that all these bishops from so many diverse cultures and backgrounds were facing so many of the exact same leadership issues with our flocks.

Some thoughts and quotes...

Be on fire!  You become a bishop and you have not led one soul to the Lord.

No one should minister who isn't being ministered to - Michael Green

Everyone thinks of changing humanity, but no one thinks of changing himself -- Leo Toystoy

Not all suffering is bad; not all suffering is guns and machetes

As Anglicans we have deep pockets and short hands -- from a former Archbishop of Cape Town

We are bound by the Lord to make disciples who make other disciples

Good can be the enemy of the best - we lose our priorities; God's priorities

Leadership is not about profits but people
Leadership is not about status but service
Leadership is not about celebrity but character
Leadership is not about cruelty but compassion
Leadership is not about office but a cross
Leadership is not about a monument but a set of footprints

GAFCON - The East African Revival

An underlying theme of our hosts (the Kenyans) here at the Global Anglican Futures Conference is the East African Rival which spread rapidly in the 1930's.  A spontaneous outpouring of the Holy Spirit changed this part of the world as churches were revived and new converts to the Faith began to live out and broadcast the Biblical message. It literally changed the whole culture.

Kenyan Worship Team 

Of course, no revival is the same and they happen when and how God wants one. But we at GAFCON are praying for a fresh outpouring from God of His Holy Spirit to renew the Anglican Communion and reevangelize parts of the world which have departed from the Gospel.  "Will you not revive us again?" reflects the plea of our hearts.

Bishop George Kasangaki of Diocese of Masindi-Kitara, Uganda, Me, and his diocesan Archdeacon 

Each day this week has reflected different themes of the East African revival asking God to do it again in our generation:

* The Cross of Jesus -- the saving work of Jesus on the cross and his power to wash away our sins with emphasizing daily repentance and cleansing the heart through the blood of Jesus.

* Confession and Repentance -- "in the open" with a confidence that the blood of Jesus cleanses from all sin and an intentional effort at putting things right with God and one's neighbor.

* Obedience to the Authority of God's Word -- resisting any modern contention that the Bible was not the inspired Word of God. The Holy Spirit who inspired the Scripture is able to bring these Scriptures alive in our experience as a reliable guide in the life of discipleship.

* Experience of Community - the churches shared a common fellowship and ministry as everyone set out to "Walk in the Light" with each other.

* Personal Evangelism - led by lay missionary teams of Africans who went about spreading the Gospel by telling their own conversion story and trusting in the power of the Holy Spirit for effective ministry.

Revival doesn't begin with the church, it begins when the Holy Spirit convicts me and I bow -- John Senyoni

The Church cannot afford to slumber in today's world - John Senyoni

You cannot have revival with one foot in the culture and one foot in the world - John Senyoni

Revive us again; fill each heart with Thy Love.

May each soul be rekindled, with fire from above.

Hallelujah! Thine the Glory, Hallelujah Amen!

Hallelujah! Thine the Glory, Revive us again.

Bishop of the Diocese of the Great Lakes, Roger Aimes, and his wife, Gretsie

GAFCON - The Suffering Church

One of the important aspects of the Global Anglican Futures Conference is the world-wide perspective one gains, not just of Anglicanism, but of Christianity.  It is most endearing and most challenging.

Those of us in the West may be suffering the disabling of the Christian worldview by the government, the press, the media, and education system, but Christians in other parts of the world are losing their property, their lives, their freedoms, and their families --- just because they are Christians.

We have heard stories from around the globe of intense persecution and immense suffering placed on our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Ben Kwashi, Archbishop of Jos, Nigeria said this:  "We are to so enjoy our sufferings that those who come after us will want to follow Jesus."

Archbishop Ben Kwashi

Dr. Patrick Sookhdeo and the Barnabus Fund (www.barnabasfund.org) have published this prayer which I commend to you.

A Prayer for the Suffering Church

Almighty and most loving God, 
   the Father of all mercies and God of all consolation,
   whose compassion never fails,
   save Your persecuted people.

As they pass through the waters adversity,
may the rivers not overwhelm them.

As they walk through the fires of affliction,
may the flames not consume them.

Give them:
  Your aid, for they are needy;
  Your strength, for they are helpless;
  Your hope, for they are in despair;
  Your deliverance, for they are in danger.

O God,
  Make them firm in their faith,
  Make them joyful though hope,
  Fill them with your love,
  Protect them from the wiles of the devil
    and the conspiracies of men.

So that, passing through the waters of adversity,
They may come at last to the land of everlasting life,
There to reign with you forever. 

In the Name of the All-Powerful and Triune God, 
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Amen.