Author
Allison Fallon tells a story about her brother who was riding his bike to
church one Sunday morning. As he
approached an intersection, a student driver in the car ahead of him turned her
left turn signal light on and then made a right turn right in front of him. Allison’s brother crashed into the side of
the car and was sent flying across the hood and onto the ground on the other
side.
A crowd
quickly gathered. Some of the people
asked “Are you okay?” or “Does anything hurt?”
Others, though, were angry and started yelling at the driver for making
such a stupid and dangerous mistake.
Allison’s
brother looked up and asked, “What is the driver’s name?” The driving instructor
told him that her name was “Candace”. Bloodied
and scraped up, he made his way toward the car.
He found the driver sitting in her seat sobbing uncontrollably. He
leaned in the window and said, “Candace, it is okay. Accidents happen. Mistakes are how we learn”.
When
most people think about the word “generous”, they think about giving money to
someone. However, Biblical generosity is a much bigger topic. In fact, it is the ability to give people what
they need whether they deserve it or not.
Jesus outlines
this sort of generosity in Luke 6 when he says, “If you love those who love
you, what credit is that to you? … And if you do good to those who are good to
you, what credit is that to you? … [I say] Love your enemies, do good to them…
Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High… Be
merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (selected verses from 27-36).
By
choosing to react generously, Allison’s brother changed the ending of his bike
accident story. What could have been
terrible became beautiful. A bad
experience turned into a graceful one and that made all the difference to
everyone involved.
Now you
may be thinking, “If I treat people better than they deserve to be treated, they
will take advantage of me!” That may be
true. However, you may also make things
better for everyone involved, including yourself.
Proverbs
11:25 says, “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be
refreshed”.
A
generous spirit can change the story.
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