No Strings Attached

^{Author’s Note: For the past nine months, I have been consumed with the vision of planting a church in downtown Denver. This vision has called me and my family to a life of travel, a part-time job, and constant change. As the owner of SI, I have felt detached from the site I started almost three years ago. I appreciate the crew that has pinch-hit for me. For the next week, I’d like to update you on what God has been showing me over the past nine months. I will do so by publishing some articles that I wrote for our prayer partners.}

For the past four years, I’ve been involved in an addictions recovery program. I have spoken with dozens of pastors about the need to reach out to the addicted in their communities. One of the biggest hurdles in getting a church to reach out to this population is the fact that it is messy ministry. Most pastors I know are already busy enough. Now, I’m trying to convince them to add to their workload with a lot more messy life situations than they already have. For some reason, I like messy situations. Perhaps because I was one. In the last year, I asked God to bring to me individuals whom the evangelical church sees as the messiest—homosexuals. And God did. After the first guy came through our doors, I shared the story with a pastor whose church was interested in recovery ministry. He said to me, “I wouldn’t waste my time with those guys. I don’t think they can really change.” Wow! I was speechless. I wanted to share with him a passage out of 1 Corinthians that showed a church that helped male prostitutes change their lives, but I thought better of it. That pastor told me a lot about his church, but perhaps most disturbing is what he told me about his attitude toward ministry. The underlying philosophy was that his church would only help people who could really change and become fully functioning members of his church. In other words, “I’ll help you if I think you can really change and come to my church. If not, tough luck.”

You may be as disturbed by this story as I was; however it is not really that uncommon. You and I can be just as cold and calculating with our giving—whether it be time, talent, or treasure. Before we get self-righteous, we should realize that upon birth, we were wired to give so we can get something back. I used to pour the “sugar” on my mom if I wanted to stay out late with friends. Much of my dating life was structured around selfish “love”—write a letter, buy flowers, say nice things so my fiancée would think I was the greatest guy in the world! And yes, I’m still plagued with selfishness. My wife grows suspicious if she sees me doing dishes after dinner. I must be after something because soapsuds are not my usual after-dinner companions.

In fact, this selfish giving is so ingrained in us that when we give and don’t get anything in return, we can become resentful and bitter. How many times have I heard church members bemoan the fact that they have invited people over to dinner but have never had the favor returned? Their complaining really shows me that they were giving out of a heart that wants something back for their “free gift.” When I took training in nonprofit fund-raising, I was told that when businesses donate to the cause, they want something back. We call it “recognition opportunities.” They will donate if they can get their name up in lights. But this type of thinking hits close to my heart. In church planting, I find myself wanting to give my time to those who could become part of our church downtown. On the surface, this thinking almost sounds logical; but at its core, it is pagan thinking.

How does one break this pattern? Look to the example of Christ. Gaze upon Him, and the Holy Spirit will transform your selfish heart. Christ said in Luke, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just” (14:12-14). Christ was condemning the attitude where giving is done just for a tangible reward. His life example shows us that He lived with an attitude that gave to needy people, even if they just followed Him for the bread and fish. Even when people took advantage of Him, He gave. You can break this cycle of selfish charity by hiding this text in your heart and obeying it. Look for ways to give to people who can’t possibly pay you back. Give money to the poor. Give time to the person who may never change. James 1:27 tells us that pure religion helps kids without dads and women who no longer have a man to provide for them. Chances are, most of the time and energy poured into those people will never be repaid. Providence is helping an orphanage in India that works with handicapped kids. I decided to get involved because the couple helping to raise support have given their lives to a cause halfway around the world to kids they will never see. That’s Jesus ministry. I met a man recently at a seminar who has started a ministry to help widows fix their cars. Since 2004, he has provided 524 services for 233 different families and widows—all for free. That’s Jesus-style giving. Religion that is impure sees these people as a drain on the ministry. Christlike churches see this as the true test of where their heart is.

At Providence, we are in a position of financial need. Starting a church takes all kinds of money. However, at the outset, we made the decision to give away at least ten percent of our income to people in need, even now—even when it’s really tough to let anything go. I know that if we do not start this way, we will always find good reasons to hang on to the money. And we want to give it away to people who can’t pay us back, people who may never attend our church. Church planters are notorious for trying anything and everything to pack their church. While traveling this summer, I heard of a church planter who sends a $5 Starbucks card to everyone who visits his church. Yuck! Super yuck! That’s pagan giving! I like what Warren Wiersbe says. “Our modern world is very competitive, and it is easy for God’s people to become more concerned about profit and loss than they are about sacrifice and service. ‘What will I get out of it?’ may easily become life’s most important question (Matt. 19:27).” Somehow, when we just give money away, satanic thinking melts away, and the love of Christ overtakes us.

When we live in a state of giving as described by Christ, He promises that it will result in great happiness in our lives. Haven’t you experienced this blessing yourself? The feeling you get after receiving a gift versus giving one is incomparable. When you give to get, you will always be disappointed. Yet when you give expecting nothing back, the blessed love of God fills the soul. The Bible says this type of giving will result not only in a blessed life; God will make sure every kind deed is repaid. When God says He’ll make giving worth our while, what does that look like? It’s far beyond anything we could ask or think. So this month, give your resources away to someone who could never pay you back and see how true “giving living” will change your life.

Jason Janz, SharperIron site publisher, is planting Providence Bible Church in downtown Denver. Formerly, he served as an assistant pastor at Red Rocks Baptist Church (Morrison, CO). He has a bachelor’s degree in Bible and is currently finishing a master’s degree in theology. He has been married to Jennifer for 10 years, and they have four boys. His interests include pastoring, reading, and wrestling with his boys. He likes SI because of how it helps serve pastors and church leaders.

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