BY: AUSTIN GUTWEIN
G
iving. The word “giving” many times is thought of as action that we do once. We think of how we “gave” our tithes or how we are “giving” our time. While all of these things are an action, I believe that giving is much more than just that. Giving is truly a lifestyle. We must live a life of giving. When we do this, we will see us, as followers of Christ, making more of an impact in the world. But, first we must understand what it means to live a life of giving.
What is a life of giving? I believe that Mark 10:45 says it best: 45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus, God in the flesh, did not come to be served but to serve. If that was Jesus’ view on a life of service, shouldn’t it be ours? What we also see in this verse is the word “give.” Jesus gave His entire life for us. Jesus’ purpose for coming to this Earth was for us. If Jesus’ reason for coming to this Earth was for us shouldn’t we live a life of service too. A life of giving is a life of service and being focused on serving others. How can we give? When we look at Jesus’ life, we see something right away with who He was with. He was serving and caring for the “least of these.” Jesus was healing the sick, ministering to the oppressed, and letting the little children come to Him.
because a teenage girl in America decided to use her talent to give to others.) Giving is what we are called to do as followers of Christ. We can follow the example of Jesus and truly live a life of giving. We can do this by acting on God’s opportunities and by proactively seeking ways to serve. Let us change the world for Christ. Let us be His hands and feet to the world. Let us start giving. AUSTIN GUTWEIN is a college freshman, author and founder of Hoops of Hope, Austin started what is now known as the worlds largest Free-Throw marathon. Austin’s Hoops of Hope has raised more than $2.5M to help orphan children in Africa. Austin also serves as Co-Chair of Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s Youth Council. As a highly sought after speaker, Austin has spoken and shared his heart in venues around the world. In 2009, Austin was selected into the Caring Hall of Fame as one of the top 10 most caring Americans.
Excerpted with permission from Live to Give by Austin Gutwin (Thomas Nelson) which released August 2012. Download 3 chapters for free at www.austingutwein.com.
A life of giving is a daily act of being willing to let God use you in any and every situation. We need to be ready for those moments when God calls on us to act. Then we need to act. It doesn’t mean everything we do has to be serving, but we always need to be ready for when God gives us the opportunity. We also need to be proactively searching out ways to give towards others. Someone once told me about how all of us can be giving in our time, treasure, and talent. That has stuck with me ever since. Why? We all have those three things, some more than others in areas; but, we can all give of those things. For example, you can give your free Saturday to spend time with the church youth group, or supporting a local charity with your money, or using your talent of knitting to make blankets for Africa. (That last example really happened by the way. Now, 30 moms in Africa have warm blankets to wrap around their children austingutwein.com
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