July 15, 2026
Dear Church of the Open Bible,
Few moments make me prouder as a father than when my kids choose to be generous with others. When they were younger, their default was snatching up and clinging to a precious toy, rather than offering it to their playmate. But occasionally, they choose the latter, and my heart would fill with pride. I see it these days, when they offer to buy their sibling a Slurpee on a hot day, or share a gift card they received with friends.
Scripture talks a lot about generosity and shows it in the actions of those trusting God. Perhaps the clearest example of this is in 2 Corinthians 9, where Paul is encouraging the church in Corinth to be generous towards their brothers and sisters in Jerusalem. It’s in this chapter that we find the statement, “for God loves a cheerful giver” (9:7b). But cheerful givers are thankful recipients. The last sentence of the chapter shows us this by stating, “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (9:15). God loves a cheerful giver because God is a cheerful giver.
A few weeks ago, someone who has known about our church for many years asked me a question, “What is it that makes COB so generous? Other churches seem so tight when it comes to giving. What makes giving so easy for you?” I thought about it for a moment and said that we don’t have a specific strategy when it comes to giving. Rather, it’s the slow but steady realization of how much we’ve been given in Christ. How could we not be generous?
Through the evidence of this service they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing with them and with everyone. - 2 Corinthians 9:13
We do not serve a stingy God. Living out our confession of the gospel of Christ will result in generosity to God’s glory. That generosity might look like mowing a lawn, visiting for an hour, or sharing a Slurpee. Be generous today, for God has been generous to you!
In Him,
Pastor Jeremy