For the first 14 years of their marriage, Jonathan and Christy tithed to their church and supported friends’ missions trips, but it wasn’t until they read David Platt’s
Radical that they started rethinking their level of giving. After finishing the book, Jonathan felt called to go on a mission trip to India where God confronted his views on generosity and started teaching him what it truly meant to give sacrificially.
When he returned from that initial trip, Jonathan clearly felt God directing him to sell one of his prized (and expensive) possessions in order to donate the money to the orphanage he served in India. Since that trip four years ago, Jonathan has returned each year, bringing his daughter on the second trip and Christy on the third, while continuing to sell personal possessions to help meet the needs of the orphanage.
“The orphanage never asks outright for money, but they fully trust God to provide,” Jonathan said. “We never know how the money will come together, but God continues to meet their needs. It’s incredible to see the faith these children and families in India have because of their complete reliance on God, not on material things like we tend to find our security in.”
In building upon their approach to giving sacrificially together as a family, this year they are using the money set aside for their annual family vacation to instead go to India for Christmas. Jonathan and Christy’s two children were even more excited than for their usual vacation. In fact, instead of receiving their typical Christmas gifts, their children asked to put that money towards gifts for the children at the orphanage.
“We all need to respond to God’s call to give sacrificially, no matter what level of giving,” Christy said. “It’s been incredible to see our children join in giving sacrificially, even in small ways. Teaching them to live sacrificially is truly the best inheritance we can leave them.”
In addition to the annual mission trip, God continues to challenge Jonathan and Christy to expand their sacrificial giving, which has led to one of their biggest steps of faith thus far: selling their home, giving the equity they had accumulated to the orphanage, and moving into an apartment to prepare for what God calls them to next.
“It’s not easy giving up material comfort, but learning to live out the difference in giving versus sacrificially giving is freeing,” Jonathan said. “Our society is always striving to get more things and add to our possessions, but our family has never felt more joy in money than when we give it away.”
Written by Abbey Temple, volunteer writer.The Summit offers a variety of stewardship classes to help equip you to become a faithful steward.Get resources like this one directly into your inbox by signing up for the Stewardship Ministry Digest.