"Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it..." 1 Peter 4:7-11 MSG
What does it really mean to be a generous person? Is it by giving a lot of things to others, while hoarding the rest that seem more precious to us?
As we give, we must also be careful to recognize the possessions that are seeds and the ones that are bread. What's the difference?
Seed is meant to be sown. It has the ability to produce.
Bread is meant to be eaten. It is the produce.
What happens most of the time is we eat both the seed and bread. Or we give out very little seed and wonder why our harvest isn't large.
God likes to meet us at our current level and then take us up from there. If you've grown to be a Sower, you'll get more seed to sow. If yours is consumption, He'll give you more bread.
The anchor scripture is simply a call to action to be generous with whatever you've been given, whether seed or bread.
He gives us bread for today and seeds for tomorrow. As you eat today and sow tomorrow, remember others.
What does it mean to be generous through work?
I believe the work we do is a potent channel for being generous with what God has placed inside of us.
Work is a conversion mechanism that transforms the raw, intangible assets in us, into witty inventions through a refining process.
This conversion isn't confined to one organisation, but anything you lay your hands on, in any environment.
Through work, we produce more seeds for tomorrow and more bread for today. The more you work with what God has given you, the more generous you become.
"To reach my full potential, there are other gifts I can explore outside of what I currently do. These gifts include..."
Just make a list. There's no pressure to start exploring everything now. Some gifts already find expression through the work you currently do. Some others are pending until you reach a level of maturity.
Being aware of what you've been blessed with will show you just what you're capable of. Can you see it yet?