Greg Boyle is a Catholic priest who lives in Los Angeles, where he established a ministry with gang members called “Homeboy Industries.” Often, when Greg travels to other cities to speak, he will take a couple of trainees from the ministry with him. On a recent trip, he encouraged the two to go buy gifts for their families to give them on their return. Jose chose a Build a Bear dressed as a nurse, because his significant other is a nurse. He programmed the bear to say, “I love you with all my heart. Come here and give me a kiss.” As they moved through TSA at the airport, the agents would grab the bear and hear, “I love you with all my heart. Come here and give me a kiss.” Many laughed, transforming that necessary but grumpy moment into a more lighthearted few seconds of real human connection.
The apostle Paul wrote that “God loves a cheerful giver.” Generosity practiced well changes the nature of connection both within the giver and in the community receiving the gift. One of the apostle’s long-term projects, even while he was establishing communities of faith, was to collect money from Christians in the regions of Macedonia and Achaia to give to poor Christians in Jerusalem. Surely, the apostle was interested in meeting the emergency needs of those suffering from famine. He also was seeking to further reconciliation between disparate groups, reflection the generosity of Jesus. He believed that generosity moves the giver away from grumpiness to deeply sacred connection.
We’ll talk about this in worship on Sunday, as the sermon is titled, “Coming Full Circle: The Joy of Sacred Generosity.” The sermon flows from II Corinthians 8: 1-9; 9: 6-9, which will be read by Tony Mescher. The Gospel reading that comes from Matthew 6:25-34, will be read by Tom Shafer. The Chancel Choir, accompanied by Ilze Akerbergs, will lead us musically. Patti Wright will offer a stewardship testimony. We’ll sing, pray and have a moment for children. We hope you join us.