This Christmas I am learning a lot about generosity. We are in the middle of our Christmas series at OneLife called “[re]Gifted” where we are discovering what it means to become givers and redefining the concept of generosity. We called it “[re]Gifted” because of the fact that everything I have to give has already been given to me. That completely shifts my thinking to realize that I’m not really giving my own stuff away, but I’m giving God’s stuff away!

In addition to that, generosity needs to become who I am not something that I do. And when it does, I become more like the Father who gave his only Son and more like the Son who gave his only life; all for me, expecting nothing in return.

Honestly, I can’t really get my mind around that. But what I can get my mind around is that one way to become more like the Father and the Son this Christmas is to model their generosity in my own life. The same is true for our church as a whole. To become more like Him, we should be givers like Him.

That is one reason we are taking up a Christmas offering this Sunday called “The Big [re]Gift”. In 2011 we want to give away more than $30,000 to various needs and missions causes. As I said on Sunday, we could do a lot with that money for our own church and staff. But we would much rather make an impact all around the world. So we are taking a day to give specifically toward these causes, and every penny given will go straight toward this goal.

To see all the different ways this money will be used as we re-give what God has given to us, check out this brochure. And if you would like to give toward this offering as we redefine generosity in our church, you can do so this Sunday during the special offering time or at any of our services in December. Just be sure to use the blue “[re]Gifted” envelope so we know that’s what it is for! Or you can also do it online at any time by going to www.onelifeknox.com/give.

I am so excited to be part of something that is bigger than myself and is making a huge difference all around the world. And I am thankful that God is using it to teach me and to redefine generosity in my life. I truly want generosity to be who I am, not just something I do.

Last Sunday we announced an opportunity for OneLifers to demonstrate the love of Christ by being generous to those who may be “the least of these” in our community.

Partnering with Providence Church, one of the churches that helped to launch OneLife, we are collecting coats and can goods for the Knoxville Area Rescue Ministries. KARM’s mission statement is to seek to rescue the poor and needy of the Knox Area by providing recovery services in Jesus’ name. They do this by providing many services to the homeless of Knoxville. The coats that we collect will be given to those KARM ministers to this winter and the cans of food will be used to provide meals at the ministry center.

Not only does this provide coats and food for the homeless of our city, but it also gives us an opportunity to display generosity. In Matthew 25:40, Jesus said “whatever you did to the least of these, you did to me.” With that in mind, let’s challenge ourselves to be truly generous and help those in need.

So look through those closets, find that coat you only wear once or twice a year, and let’s give it to someone who will wear it every day. Take your family to the grocery store and instead of buying all the snacks and sodas we usually get, spend that money on buying food for someone who may only get that one meal each day. And let’s show our city that the Church truly cares!

The Details on Coats and Cans for KARM: