Generous With Story

June 13, 2020

DAILY READING

Matthew 5:16

FIELD NOTES

This week, we’re going to dive deeply into the next Fruit of the Spirit: goodness. To set it apart, we’ll be framing it as generosity. Imagining together one distinct way we can exhibit generosity – or goodness – in our lives. To be truly generous, we have to slow ourselves down, pay close attention to ourselves and those around us and the leading of God’s Spirit. 

This is a tough one. It’s going to make you uncomfortable. Because it calls on you to be vulnerable and open. Every member of every United Methodist Church has committed to faithfully participate in the church’s ministries by their prayers, their presence, their gifts, their service, and their witness. (You’ll notice these influences the days of generosity this week…prayers, time, stuff, curiosity, story. Gratitude was a bonus!) Your witness is not your best interpretation of the gospel. Your witness is your best interpretation of your life transformed by the gospel. Your witness is your story. Your witness is the times God comforted you and challenged you and shaped you and called you. Your witness is the times you questioned and doubted and failed and stumbled. Your story could be the one that makes Jesus real for someone else. Tell your story! Be generous with your truth! Even the ugly parts. It could change someone’s life and open their heart to God. 

QUESTIONS FOR THE FIELD

• Why is it important for you to be generous with your story?
• How will you be generous with your story? (Either do something today or create a plan for the future and put it on your calendar) 

PRAYER GUIDE

God, I’m scared. Nervous to tell my story. Afraid I’ll mess up. But I know you call me to share and to witness. So God, make me more afraid of silence than I am of failing. Give me courage to tell my story. Amen.

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT CHALLENGE

For the duration of our sermon series, we are offering daily prompts for applying the wisdom from the scriptures to our everyday lives. Each week focuses on how we can encourage those around us and bear fruit! This week we are focusing on the fruit of goodness.

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”

Matthew 6:26

Who can you share your story with today? How has God used your story to share his love with the world?

To learn more about the Fruit of the Spirit challenge, click here.