3 Mindsets That Move Us

This Is What We Do — Three Generosity Mindsets

Scripture References

Primary text

• Luke 10:33
• Malachi 3:10
• Mark 12

Other references

• Isaiah 32:8
• John 3:16

Overview

Most of us assume we’re generous because we occasionally give, yet national statistics reveal we part with less than 2 % of our income. Pastor Craig showed that true generosity is bigger than sporadic giving; it is a mindset that reflects God’s own heart. He unpacked three progressive mindsets—spontaneous, strategic, and sacrificial—illustrated by the Good Samaritan, the tithe, and the widow’s two coins. Moving through these levels turns isolated gifts into a life that blesses people, honors God, and can literally change the world.

Context

The message landed in the holiday season—credit-card bills rising, expenses piling up, and cultural pressure to spend more on ourselves. Against that backdrop, the pastor confronted the gap between what we feel (“I’m generous”) and what we actually do.

Main Points

1. Spontaneous Giving — Compassion in the Moment

• Giving is an action; generosity is an identity.
• Most people give this way: an unplanned response to a visible need.
• Examples: disaster relief links, a coworker’s burned-down house, a friend who just lost a job.
• Story: The Samaritan (Luke 10) stopped, bandaged wounds, funded lodging, and promised more—purely because he “happened to see” the beaten man.
• Strength: honors God and meets real needs right now.
• Limitation: if you only give when you feel moved, you’ll skip giving when you don’t feel it.

2. Strategic Giving — Planning by Conviction

• Prayerful, intentional, and budgeted; generosity becomes lifestyle, not impulse.
• The tithe (Malachi 3:10) trains us: returning 10 % (maaser) is planned obedience, declaring God first.
• Perspective shift: 10 % feels tiny on a Black-Friday sale but huge as a tip—worth is in the eye of the planner.
• Story: 18-year-old member started with a tithe and adds 1 % every year; now gives 14 % divided among tithe, YouVersion, new campuses, missions, and a “blessing fund.”
• Pastor Craig & Amy’s annual plan: tithe, offerings to YouVersion, new locations, Branch 15, six sponsored children, shared and personal blessing funds.
• Isaiah 32:8 — “Generous people plan to do what is generous and stand firm in their generosity.”

3. Sacrificial Giving — Love That Costs

• Goes beyond comfort; love gives even when it hurts (John 3:16).
• Story: Widow in the temple (Mark 12) placed two tiny coins—“everything she had.” Jesus commended her without stopping her.
• Personal encounter: 18-year-old waiter secretly paid for the Groeschels’ dinner—likely two nights’ wages—telling the pastor, “Don’t rob me of this blessing.”
• Principle: love that costs nothing changes nothing; sacrificial gifts require faith, touch God’s heart, and transform lives.

4. “This Is What We Do” — Collective Impact

• From day one, Life.Church went all-in: selling possessions to start, inviting anyone in need to take from the first offering.
• Strategic initiatives: all sermons and curricula given away free; Church Online Platform offered to 40,000 churches; YouVersion Bible App on over a billion devices; partnerships with 165 ministries tackling poverty, trafficking, abuse recovery, Bible translation, and more.
• Motto: big enough to impact the world, small enough to care for the one.

Key Truths

• Generosity begins with mindset, not bank balance.
• Spontaneous giving meets immediate needs; strategic giving shapes everyday life; sacrificial giving changes the world.
• The tithe is the starting line, not the finish line, of generosity.
• Love is measured by what we are willing to give up.
• The church is a community of contributors, not consumers.

Response

• Audit your recent giving: which mindset dominates, and what’s your next step?
• Draft or update a generosity plan that starts with the tithe and allocates prayer-driven offerings.
• Establish a “blessing fund” so you’re ready for spontaneous needs.
• Ask God where He is calling you to give sacrificially and obey in faith.
• Share stories of impact to encourage others toward irrational generosity.

Closing

Pastor Craig urged every believer to invite the Holy Spirit to deepen generosity—spontaneous, strategic, and sacrificial—mirroring the God who gave everything for us.

“This is what we do.”

Prayer

The pastor asked God to prompt spontaneous kindness, guide strategic plans like the tithe, and awaken the joy of sacrificial giving so that the church reflects the One who “loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son.”

Resources

• YouVersion Bible App
• Church Online Platform
• Branch 15 ministry