freed up as we are dedicated to walking in forgiveness and compassion. Here are words of Jesus from Luke chapter 6:
36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
37 "Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."
Unforgiveness and bitterness can close our hearts and desensitize our spirits to the needs of people around us - when we turn inward and become self-absorbed, we inhibit how God wants to flow through us. Because we know Christ, we have access to a charitable spirit, to see with His eyes and to possess His heart. We can develop a desire to minister to the needs of people in a self-sacrificing way - and there are opportunities all around us. He is in us, and it is within us to reflect His love.
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We recognize that, as we dedicate every area of our lives, including our finances, to the Lord, that He will provide direction regarding how to be good stewards of what He has given, and we can trust Him as He opens up doors of opportunity to be charitable for His glory. 2nd Corinthians 9 says:
10 Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness,
11 while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.
The beginning of the school year can provide some opportunities to be charitable, to look outside ourselves, and to show the love of Christ to students. Churches can be involved in a variety of efforts, from tutoring to providing school supplies. For years, the ministry of Tony Evans has had a program in which churches adopt schools. And, the ministry of Moms in Touch, now called Moms in Prayer, has been involved in praying for schools.
In Kansas, a local church has decided to make an investment in the kids of the community, underwriting the costs of school supplies for every single student in grades K through 5. According to a story on the Christian Headlines website: "Parkview Mennonite Church in Hillsboro, Kansas, will cover the costs of every child enrolled in Hillsboro Elementary School...grades K through fifth grade this year." That's $410 per student.
The article relates that:
The idea came about after local resident and churchgoer, Tami Driggers, spotted a Facebook post which featured a story of a church supplying a local school with much-needed educational resources. “After leaving the store and being in a bit of a shock over how much supplies cost for my kids, I realized what a blessing it would be if a church could do that for Hillsboro,” Driggers told Hillsboro Free Press. “Then I thought ‘why not Parkview?’”Another organizer, Linda Dyck, said, "A lot of times nowadays, moms and dads work just to make ends meet. It’s hard,” and added, “Then with school, you’ve got clothes, glasses, shoes, food and then hundreds of dollars of schools supplies to think of. So I think that Parkview as a Church should be a blessing to people.”
Church leadership got on board and it was settled; the investment would be made. The article points out: "the ladies behind the gift are hoping it will serve as a reminder to Christians everywhere that they should count it a privilege to be able to actively invest in their local communities." Dyck adds, "We are doing this for people we don’t even know. We just want to help, and we don’t want anything in return.”
I thought of a story I had seen on television out of Arkansas recently when you had a local attorney who serves as the president of the local school board. According to Money.com, she spent $21,000 on shoes that were on sale at a shoe store going out of business - her intent was to donate over a thousand pairs of shoes to kids in need and the remainder to adults. The news accounts I have seen do not mention a spiritual element, but the generosity of this mom can certainly be inspiring - and challenging.
A number of concepts we can think about today as we consider how we as individual Christians and perhaps churches can minister to the students and their schools in our communities. The type of ministry can be physical, in terms of resources, or perhaps relational, through tutoring or sponsoring some sort of after-school program, such as a Child Evangelism Fellowship Good News Club. Or, it may be a matter of praying for a school. For instance, this Sunday, the Coffee Baptist Women on Mission, from the Coffee Baptist Association, with be having its annual prayer walk starting at 4:00 at schools throughout the county, including Elba and Enterprise.
We can certainly evaluate the resources that God has given to us - and perhaps even consider how He might want to stretch us to fulfill His intentions. This Arkansas mom had not only the means but there was a way for her to maximize her investment because the prices were low. The Kansas ladies went out and looked for bargains - and had fun doing it. We can look for ways in which God may provide from the budgetary side, increasing income or reducing expenses, keeping in mind that we can be good stewards of what He has provided.
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