The Ripples of Generosity, Unseen - my latest at Patheos

The beauty of the Sacred Scripture is the myriad of layers that are found in every chapter. My column this week at Patheos ponders the coming of the Magi to Bethlehem, and the unexpected blessings I have witnessed, and sometimes received, from modern-day "magi" in our midst... in a kind of unseen ripple effect...

Here's an excerpt:

Generosity is going the distance with big-hearted energy. It powerfully frames the Gospel’s challenge to “love one another (John 13: 34).” 

After all, the call to holiness is supposed to imitate God’s first love for us… “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son…(John 3: 16.)”  

God’s munificence leads us, like Magi-wannabes, toward charity for others. 

Generosity has a rather noble duty attached to it. It is always connected with lifting up another person. It is a chance to serve, bless, or elevate another through the sheer graciousness of giving liberally. To paraphrase Jesus’ later Sermon on the Mount: we go the extra mile. (See Mt 5: 39-41.) 

Generosity is the ability to give with no thought of getting, whether one is giving time, talent, or treasure. Fortunately, in God’s economy, giving without thought of a return is never for nothing. 

People I know have routinely offered their generosity to my family and me. I am so grateful for their unselfish love. Even if they were unable to see into the future to know if it was all going to be worth it, they didn’t stop from giving in the first place. 

The gifts of the Magi remind me of a remarkable potentiality: when we bestow generosity on those beyond our own circles, unseen exponential blessings become possible. There are many people this side of heaven who will never know that they have participated in the largesse of Providence through their own charitable giving.

Read the rest of the column here.  And please consider subscribing to A Word in Season today, and get it delivered right to your RSS reader or email inbox.