2 Corinthians 8
2 Corinthians 8 & 9 reflect the first stewardship campaign in the early church. There is a famine in Jerusalem. Paul has agreed to raise an offering from the other churches to offer support to the church in Jerusalem. The Corinth church had previously committed to give to this offering. Time has passed and they have done nothing. These two chapters are Paul's encouragement to them to give.
The first encouragement he gives them is the generosity of the Macedonian church. "Their trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts... What explains it was that they had given themselves unreservedly to God and to us." (The Message) What is fascinating for us to hear is that people were "incredibly happy, though desperately poor." As Americans we struggle to conceive how someone can be desperately poor and happy. We associate wealth and happiness, poverty and despair. The other part of his statement is they gave because they had given themselves "unreservedly to God and us."
Two questions for you to consider today. To you connect wealth to happiness? Have you given yourself unreservedly to God?
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This passage and Ken's comments reminds me of stories from church members who have been on a mission trip to Kenya. From what we are told, those people are incredibly happy and yet desperately poor. A comment that I will never forget from one of our members is that "They (those in the church in Meru)have what I want, and I have what they need." She went on to explain about their joy - which is what we all want; she has the money and "things" that they need - many times for survival. It sounds as if that is true for many of us!
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