This birthday I received a special, unexpected gift. Though it was not a gift given to me in the more traditional sense, it was a gift that revealed the power of love invested by many into my son.
When it comes to school fund raising, my oldest son is a wheeler and dealer. Fund raising companies use “prizes” to motivate and form child salespeople, and for my son, this is the great motivator. So much so that through one of the sales earlier this year, he received about a dozen rubber duck key chains, which he proudly displayed on a lanyard! Who’d have known that rubber ducks could be so motivational?
In this last round of sales, Caleb ended up being top seller for his grade level. As top seller he received some prizes. Last night he shared with me that his most prized reward is a miniature toilet which one can fill with water, then handed to a parent or friend. Upon opening the lid, the toilet squirts water at the innocent victim. A lot of laughs for him. I better warn him not to play this joke on his mother...
The other thing he received was a cash reward. Now my kids are sticklers for money. Their wallets are bulging from allowances and gifts, and every few months my wife and I go into their rooms and transfer funds into their accounts rather than let the money stay there. But Caleb did not save this money, instead he gave it to me.
Now before you go thinking that I was touched by a $13.00 cash gift from my son and wondering if I was off my rocker, I need to share with you that every communion Sunday we receive funds for what we call the “pastor’s discretionary fund.” It is money given above and beyond regular offerings to subsidize our mission program and help those in the local community with food and electricity.
Picture this. I was sitting with my wife catching up on the day, when Caleb walks in and says, “Oh dad, can you put this into the pastor’s discretionary fund?” I responded, “Sure,” and he left the room, leaving me behind reflecting upon the example he set for me. After he left I looked at my wife, and she said, “He wanted to give during the last communion but forgot. That’s money he earned from his sales.”
That was last night, but as I brought that money in this morning and gave it to my secretary for safe keeping, I realized that that was one of the best gifts I could have received for my birthday. It was not given to me or even in my name. It was not a tangible gift, but a gift of love’s expression. Most powerfully, it was a gift that revealed how God has and is working in Caleb’s life.
Though it is hard to believe, Caleb is going through Confirmation right now. That is, he is learning about what it means to be a member of the Church, and that learning will culminate in him deciding if he wants to be a member of the Church. As he goes through this process there are many who are and will model their faith and share themselves with him, but what I see in this act of kindness is that many have already done this.
Part of his willingness to share comes from us and our families, and part of it, I believe, comes simply from the heart God has placed within him, but I also see this blessing as the result of Caleb growing up in churches and among people who witnessed what it means to be a Christ follower. Time after time he has seen examples of faithful giving, and he has learned that, when we give, we are blessed as well.
In his second letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul writes about what it means to give after the example of God. He says, “Whoever sow sparingly will reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each should give what is decided in the heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, but God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9: 6-7)
It’s interesting how such a passage is received, because for many, when one begins to talk about giving in the church, they immediately shut down or close their hearts and ears, and yet Paul is speaking about more than just giving money. Paul is actually talking less about a way of giving but mostly about a way of living. Paul is telling them, and us, that this is the way to truly live, for when we live as those who give, we receive far more than we share.
As I receive this gift for my birthday, it has become a reminder to me of my need to be a cheerful giver. That, as I enter this new year, when the reluctance comes and I want to hold on and hoard, I can remember Caleb’s example and respond by God’s grace and by Christ’s example. I am reminded that indeed, God wants me to receive the fullness of life, and that gift is given to me, when I am freed to give to others.
How “cheerful” are you in your giving? What kind of life is God calling you to live (or should I say "give")?
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Amen.
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