Growing in Grace Through Giving

When we plant a garden, we don't expect instant results. Seeds need time, nutrients, and care to grow. Tending the soil, we allow the seed to flourish. Our generosity works the same way. It's a spiritual practice of tending the soil of our hearts. God's love grows deeper roots within us with each act of giving.

Look at how God has blessed our ministry this year: one child baptized, five students confirmed, eight saints laid to rest, 139 families fed monthly, 60 neighbors sharing meals each day, 100 quilts sent around the world, transformative housing justice work, Alleluia and bible studies ongoing, another powerful visit to Kirangare, and Christ proclaimed 52 weeks a year. Each of these started as a small seed of compassion, nourished by your faithful giving.

But generosity isn't just about what we give – it's about *who we become*. As we give, we mirror God's abundant grace. And as we mirror God's grace, something remarkable happens. Our faith strengthens. Our perspective shifts from scarcity to abundance. We begin to see ourselves not as owners, but as stewards of God's blessings. We become more and more like that good soil that produces 30-, 60-, 100-times what was sown. This kind of harvest is much richer than any shallow rate of return on investment. We're talking about lives changed in love.

As costs rise and change swirls around us, it's natural to feel uncertain. Yet Ecclesiastes reminds us that seasons of change are part of God's design. Just as autumn's falling leaves nourish the soil that births next spring's growth, your generosity today plants seeds of hope for tomorrow – in all of the ministries mentioned above and in ways we've yet to imagine.

Every gift, no matter the size, carries the potential for transformation. As you prayerfully consider your estimate of giving for 2025, remember: we're not just funding a budget. We're cultivating God's garden of grace, where every seed of generosity blooms into new possibilities for ministry and mission.

Thanks be to God,

Pastor Clark

P. S. For more, visit ziondavenport.org/stewardship