I found this quote recently: "Generosity is what keeps the things I own from owning me."

It was written by a pastor in Seattle, Eugene Cho. I follow him on Twitter and with this quote came a link where you could buy him a birthday present. Only not for himself. It's a program that enables you to give quickly, easily, to alleviate extreme poverty. And he's not the only one doing this sort of thing. More and more of my friends, family, my own kids, are redirecting gift giving to go directly to the support of those in extreme need.

I've been reflecting on this development, and listening to others talk about it. I'm intrigued on so many levels. I think it's a choice for our own health, as the quote above reflects. We need to give, to unload our "stuff" or we will be owned by it. Let's face it, even when we give much of it away, the consumeristic culture in which we live continues to shout, and whisper, its narrative to us that we need more, and our hearts believe it by and large. But when we give our resources away, we counter this tyranny, and this is good.

I think it's also an insight into the human heart. We may be predisposed to hoarding our resources, some of us more than others. Fear, past experiences, the need to feel in control, love of comfort (my personal favorite) .... any number of things may fuel that predisposition. But, we also want to give, and I believe to things that are making a difference in the lives of others directly. In my vocation as a pastor I've met some of the most generous people on earth. Because the ministries I've been part of are "conversion prone" I've also seen what giving does to a person when they invest their resources in their local church for the first time. They report flashes of self discovery of how attached to status, things, and money they had become, and how people had been driven to the margins of their lives. They report renewed trust in God's love for them, and His promise to provide. But more than anything I hear the word "freedom" from them. Giving had brought them liberation, and sometimes they didn't know exactly how to describe it. But chains had fallen off and they knew it.

I do you no favors as a pastor by not asking you to give (or asking myself to give for that matter). With our turnover (60% of City Churchers have been here less than 2 years, 24% of City Churchers move from San Francisco each year), each budget year is a perilous journey because we are envisioning a whole new set of people who we hope will see City Church as a primary place of generosity. So our task is to clearly communicate what you are giving to and how through those gifts lives are being changed. So we'll continue to increase our communication and transparency so you will feel safe and sure about how those dollars are spent. You can learn more our finance page >

So yes we need you to give. But here's the thing: you need you to give. Freedom awaits.