The other night, my thoughts about Giving were rocked.

We have been studying spiritual giftings and the one for this week was giving. Growing up in Christian subculture in America, I have a very specific view of giving. The first thing to come to mind was the love language of gift giving. Gary Chapman names it as one of the 5 love languages.

But our pastor this evening defined giving a bit differently. Giving is the ability and desire to grab onto a vision.

“Huh.” I thought. “I have never thought of it like that.” When you give, you are giving to a vision of the future. A birthday present is a vision of a happy individual with a long life. A gift to building fund is a vision for a structure that will affect the community. And a gift to (say) a missionary in Zambia, is a vision for a thriving global community.

The more I thought about it, the more I LOVE this definition of giving as a spiritual gift and discipline.

You, my wonderful partners, have ALL exercised the spiritual gift of giving my grabbing onto the vision I have been called to here in Zambia to raise up healthy and world-changing youth. Your gifts and prayers are not just gifts and prayers. They are a physical manifestation of holding onto that amazing vision.

So I wanted to thank you for grabbing ahold of the vision with me! Together, we are creating the Kingdom on earth.