THE GIFT OF GIVING

STEWARDING THE GIFT OF GIVING TO WIN AS MANY PEOPLE TO JESUS AS POSSIBLE

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Do you have the gift of giving? When I married Sharon, I knew her love language was receiving meaningful gifts from me. I soon found that giving was also one of her core spiritual gifts. She felt God’s call to give well above the tithe, often secretly and generously. I have made many special deliveries, not only of cash but cookies and all kinds of things to neighbors and people in need. I remember personally leading a difficult neighbor to Christ after he received an unexpected plate of chocolate chip cookies from Sharon.

We know that generosity is a responsibility of every Christian, but some, in addition, have the gift of giving as described in Romans 12:8.

“If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously…”

Just as we are all called to worship, some, like Chris Tomlin or Misael Jimenez, have a gift that stirs others to worship. So too, we all are called to be generous, but some have a special faith and anointing to give in ways that lead the Body of Christ in generosity.

Sometimes people downplay the importance of giving or stewarding finances. But the Bible emphasizes its importance and purpose. One in 10 verses in the gospels is about finances. Over 2300 verses in the Bible are about finances and giving. That’s more than the number of verses on faith, Heaven or Hell!

Generosity is not only a virtue but a strategic part of God’s plan for fulfilling the Great Commission. Financial generosity accelerates and helps maximize opportunities to reach people for Jesus. It not only takes vision; it also takes provision to advance the kingdom.

In Luke 16, Jesus tells the parable of the unjust steward. A manager who was about to get fired, shrewdly negotiated deals to reduce the debts of people who owed the owner money. He did it with the intention of minimizing his own loss. Interestingly, the owner commended him for his shrewdness. Jesus goes on to comment that people in the world are often wiser and more diligent in using money to get material returns than God’s people are in using money to get kingdom returns.

In Luke 16:9 (NIV), Jesus says:

“Use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”

My interpretation: Live to make and use money to get an “EROI” (Eternal Return On Investment). Find strategic ways that money can be earned and used to make Heaven bigger and lives better. I especially like to ask people in business, “How much of all you’ve worked and invested is going to end up in Heaven? How much will contribute to people living forever with Jesus?”

My son, Jason helps me lead Heart for the World Foundation, one of Heart for the World’s legacy lanes. We like to think of ourselves as “Mercy-Brokers.” We have partnerships all over the world with “hidden heroes.” These are pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and apostles who are not well known but serve sacrificially with anointing, effectiveness, and integrity among the poorest of the poor. They meet practical needs, plant churches, and lead thousands to Christ. Amazing kingdom investors provide provision that God uses to turn “carnal cash into kingdom currency.”

Who has the gift of generosity

Though all kinds of people have the gift of generosity, I have noticed that many have business acumen. Often, they are entrepreneurs and people who have the capacity to make money and use it wisely. There are many Bible references to “kings and priests” (Revelation 1:6 KJV) and many examples of partnerships formed between them. Their partnerships connected the spiritual and secular to strategically build the kingdom of God. Priests, pastors, evangelists and prophets like Samuel, Elijah, Nathan, or the Apostle Paul would get visions from God, help people know Him and create ministries that advanced God’s work. But others like David, Joseph, or the Wiseman had a special gift to bring provision and support to the vision. These partnerships helped maximize their calling and accelerated God’s work.

When the partnership was done well, multitudes more people would be reached. At the same time, the “kings” because of their faithfulness in giving would be blessed financially, spiritually, and with influence beyond what they could’ve naturally achieved. They would also receive special spiritual and “prophetic” wisdom, counsel, and impartations from the “priests.” It was an incredible “win/win” situation not only for the people but for the glory of God. I’m convinced that God still wants to prioritize these same kinds of partnerships today!

How generosity partnership works

Since the beginning of my ministry, some 50 years ago, I have had the calling of being a visionary evangelist, missionary, and pastor. God has called me to not only reach out in our city but in developing partnerships with hidden heroes around the world. What has been amazing is that as God has given me callings and visions, He has always brought people with the gift of generosity to partner with. Quite often these have been entrepreneurs or professionals deeply involved in the marketplace. Their partnerships have accelerated reaching people not only through financial giving, but often by wisdom and stewardship skills they imparted. Their discernment about ways to maximize opportunities and manage resources allowed for strategic advancement in reaching a harvest for Christ. I am eternally indebted and grateful for these partners.

I am also so aware that when we meet the thousands of people in Heaven that HFTW helped reach, no other investment will compare to the delight off hugging these wonderful people. Jesus very possibly is going to lead them first to greet the hundreds of people with the gift of giving, who financially sowed the seed that resulted in them being there.

Sadly, I’ve known many cases where some of the greatest marketplace givers felt a false sense of guilt or spiritual inferiority because the demands on their lives didn’t allow them to be deeply involved in church or what they thought were more “spiritual” forms of ministry. What they didn’t understand was that their 9 to 5 + hours of work was the ministry. For many, they were giving glory to God, an act of worship, that provided provision for the vision.

I heard of a business leader, Lee Domingue, who shared how, as a church member, he felt guilty not always attending church because of business commitments. Some people believed and made him feel that if you miss church you were going to Hell. After being out of church for a couple of weeks, he returned feeling guilty. When the Pastor approached him, Lee started to apologize for his absence. The Pastor wisely commented, “Lee, you were doing the ministry the Lord has called you to do as much as I was. Using your gifts in the marketplace, in the ways you do, you have had a bigger impact for the Lord than most people could ever imagine!”

Legacy Team Vision

Having seen this in our ministry, we, at HFTW have felt a burden to more strategically build a kingdom partnership between those called to get the vision and sow the seed and those called to provide the seed with the gift of giving. In 2026, we will be launching our Heart for the World Legacy Dream Team. The vision is to invite kingdom entrepreneurs and people with the gift of giving to meet with myself and other pastors to have a voice and relationship in how to raise, wisely use, and steward God’s resources, for the highest kingdom expanding, soul winning potential. We want to use our gifts together in a trusted partnership to see the greatest possible harvest of souls for eternity, in our lifetime. If you’d like more information on the HFTW Legacy Dream Team, please email me at dale@hftwchurch.org.

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