One thing I'll bet no one in this room has ever heard in church is: "We don't need any more money." So, you may have been surprised to hear a Bible passage in which people are told, "Stop bringing your offerings! We have more than enough!" The book of Exodus tells us this happened soon after Moses came down from Mt. Sinai the second time bearing the Ten Commandments and the promise of a new covenant between God and the Israelite people. Part of God's instructions was that the people should build a tabernacle for their worship. The people were so energized by word of their new relationship with God that they brought an overflowing amount of material and money to build the tabernacle-so much, that Moses had to tell them, "Stop! We can't use any more." So, reluctantly, the people were restrained in their generosity.

This story is not as hard to believe in these days since September 11th as it would have been before, for our national tragedy has evoked a number of stories of overflowing generosity. Last week's newspaper reported that so much blood was donated in those early days that some of it may not get used before its expiration date. Around $10,000 has been given by this congregation for disaster relief, reflecting the generous outpouring of money from the nation as a whole. People have wanted to give generously because they have felt a need to show solidarity with those who have suffered and with one another. We have wanted to contribute something positive to our world in the face of such human brutality. But unfortunately, many ongoing charitable causes have seen their contributions sharply reduced in the wake of all this disaster giving. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could be as generous in our local communities and our churches and in our support of other worthy causes as we have been in our disaster response! What if our sense of overflowing generosity was not just a response to crisis but a basic part of our lifestyle? Friends, this is more than an idealistic dream. It is a real possibility our faith puts before us, not only for the potential benefit of God's work but for our own fulfillment and joy, as well.

A number of biblical stories bear witness to this kind of overflowing generosity. There was the woman who anointed Jesus with costly ointment a few days before his crucifixion-to the consternation of onlookers who saw it as a foolish waste. We recall the father of the prodigal son who so lavished his resources on the errant son when he returned home. And in today's reading from II Corinthians, Paul tells how the Macedonian Christians, in hard times, overflowed in their giving for Paul's relief-offering for the Jerusalem church. Indeed, he says, they gave even beyond their means and begged for the privilege of sharing in this ministry. You see, this is not just a matter of dutifully putting something in the plate when it is passed. It is a full-hearted opening of one's resources to the cause at hand. It is a generosity of spirit that leads to giving freely out of what one has. It is giving out of joy and desire rather than reluctance and caution. And the giver finds blessing in it rather than depletion or pain.

Yet, by our world's standards this kind of giving behavior often seems strange and imprudent. It sounds too idealistic and reckless, in regard to one's own self-interests. Why would one give so freely? And what benefit is there in doing so?

The first motivation for generous giving is a compelling cause. We become aware of something that matters enough to us that we want to be a part of it. Going beyond recent events, we in this congregation generously supported our youth in their Appalachia Service Project last summer. We did so because we believed in them and in the work they were undertaking, and so we chose to help make that venture possible. For many of you, over the past 15 years the Upward Bound House project has been another cause that evoked your generous response, because you believed in it and were moved to help it come into being.

Secondly, generous giving can be an expression of love. Now, especially as the holiday season approaches, I am wary of the idea that you prove your love for others by how much you spend on them. It's too easy to get into trouble with that one, and spending cannot prove love. But it may well be an expression of love. The prodigal's father and the woman who anointed Jesus were prodigal in their spending because of how much they loved their respective beloveds. And so may we be if we allow our love to open our purse strings.

Finally, our giving may overflow as we recognize and give reign to our need to give. We humans have a basic need to invest ourselves in something larger than ourselves, for our sakes apart from the causes we support. We need to contribute to the good of our world in order to validate and find meaning in our lives. Some of us seek public validation by leaving a monument in the form of a building or scholarship fund or other naming. But whether we do or not, the internal need to contribute is real; the often very substantial anonymous gifts that many causes attract bear witness to that.

It's important to add here that generous giving has to do with our skills and energy-our spiritual gifts-as well as our material resources. Our giving may overflow in the time and effort and creativity we invest, as well as in the money we give. The spiritual gifts we've emphasized the past four weeks are another facet of the stewardship of all of life. The story is told that in a mission church in the country of Chad in Africa, a woman had no money to put into the offering plate one Sunday. So, instead, when the plate came to her, she put it on the floor and actually stepped into it, as a symbol of offering all that she had and was. The truth is that our whole being has a need to be invested in causes beyond ourselves, and as I suggested two weeks ago, we may feel that need even more intensely in the face of the recent threats to our values. More than ever it matters that we're on the side of good in our world.

So, the bottom line for overflowing generosity is not that we're so selfless, because most of us are not, but because we find treasure in giving-a treasure of inner meaning and validation and joy that we can't find anywhere else. This is the treasure Jesus spoke of when he told the rich young man to go and sell everything and give it to the poor in order to find treasure in heaven.

Now, perhaps at this point you're thinking: "Having such a generous spirit is well and good. But if it truly is a matter of the heart, why preach about it?" Why did Paul try to preach to the Corinthians about being so generous? If our hearts are moved to care, then the giving will happen. But preaching by itself is not likely to inspire that inner caring in us. I fully agree with that. But I believe also that if we do not open our minds and hearts to reach for causes that we can care about and believe in, if we don't open ourselves to love, and if we fail to pay attention to our own need to invest ourselves in a greater good, then we do not have much chance of growing hearts that care. We may then conclude that only investing in ourselves will give us the meaning and happiness we want. In short, we may well not know what we're missing, and so we shut ourselves off from the needs around us that might point the way. If we've never had the experience of being moved to overflowing generosity, we may be reluctant to risk facing the perceived threats to our self-interest.

So, as Paul admonishes the Corinthian church, he is also saying to us: "Open yourself to the possibility of finding treasure beyond what you know. Don't get stuck on being so prudent and careful. Stretch yourself, risk reaching out to care, allow yourself to give until it feels good. Let your heart move your checkbook, not the other way around. Don't settle for only token investment in the causes you believe in, but give an amount commensurate with their meaning to you. Give your spirit room to overflow with generosity-and then see if you don't find a level of meaning and satisfaction and joy beyond what you have ever known before."

Now friends, one reason I warm to this subject is because I know how much I need to hear this message for myself. I confess that my nature is to be careful more than spontaneous, and my tendency is to give what seems "adequate" rather than any outpouring of generosity. And especially as I have observed the joy and satisfaction that others seem to find in giving from the heart, I sense I have cheated myself out of some of the rewards that I could be enjoying. So this year I made a decision to at least double the giving portion of my budget, and to allow myself the freedom of giving as my heart moves me. And I think it's working. How satisfying it is to say to myself, "That's a cause I really believe in, and I'm going to write a check that expresses my belief, in terms of the resources I have." When the scripture says that God loves a cheerful giver, I think it means one who gives with joy because he or she finds such satisfaction in so doing.

Some day I hope my joy in giving will approach that of a woman I heard about named "Jonesy." Jonesy was a poor but faithful member of a poor rural church in Appalachia. One day, as her pastor was calling on her, she happened to mention that her hot water heater had given out and she'd had to order a new one, even though she could hardly afford it. Now, it just so happened that a couple of days later the church's hot water heater gave out, and the trustees were in great consternation because there simply wasn't any money to buy a new one. Church dinners were a very important ministry in a poor rural area like that, and hot water was essential for hygiene. A day later, as the pastor was passing through the kitchen, he noticed a miracle had occurred: a new hot water heater had been installed. Well, it didn't take him long to put two and two together. He marched over to Jonesy's house and said to her, "Jonesy, you can't afford to give the church a hot water heater! You need that for yourself!" With a contented smile on her face, she replied, "No, pastor. I've got a stove for heating, and I've got the warmth of the sun by day, and God's love around me all the time. What do I need a hot water heater for?" There was no doubt she'd found a far greater satisfaction in giving away her hot water heater than she ever would have found keeping for herself.

Well, friends, giving from the heart will probably not mean any of us giving away our hot water heaters. But it will mean giving with a greater sense of abandon than many of us are used to, trusting in God's mercies and allowing our generosity to flow as it will. God's work in this church needs this kind of generosity; our projected deficit this year is $163,000, and that's a gap we are able to cover if we are moved to. Indeed, we are able to do far more than that. But even more important, is covering the spiritual gap of missing out on the deeper levels of meaning and joy that God wants us to have. God's promise is that as we sow bountifully, we shall also reap bountifully. And that, friends, is one of the best investments we will ever make.