A Disciple

1
A Disciples Generous Response

• Six Principles to Live By
• You have been given the principles of
  generosity, rightly interpreted for a new time.
• Doctrine and Covenants 1627c

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Introduction

• The Presiding Bishoprics new book is offered as
  a formative guide to help us respond faithfully
  to Gods call.
• The book expands on each of the six principles of
  A Disciples Generous Response.
• Included are foundational scriptures, explanation
  as to why each principle is important, and how
  each principle might be incorporated into the
  disciples life.

3
Gods Generosity

• God gives and loves graciously.
• God provides enough and to spare. Doctrine
  and Covenants 1012f
• God shares in abundance good measure, pressed
  down, shaken together, running over. Luke
  638 NRSV
• As disciples, we strive to be generous
  like God.
• We share the good news of Gods great generosity
  through witnessing and sharing of our resources.

4
Stewardship A Response (1 of 2)

• Stewardship is the response of my people to the
  ministry of my Son and is required alike of all
  those who seek to build the kingdom. Doctrine
  and Covenants 1475a
• Our stewardship of time, giftedness, and
  resources is our response to Gods gifts of grace
  and love expressed to us in the life of Jesus
  Christ.

5
Stewardship A Response (2 of 2)

• Our stewardship is a personal response to Gods
  generosity.
• It is also a way to meet the needs of a growing
  church locally and globally. Doctrine and
  Covenants 1545b
• many lives will be lost to you without the
  generous response of disciples who share from
  their own bounty that others may know the joys of
  the kingdom.
  Doctrine and Covenants 1627a

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Stewardship A Holistic Process

• Joseph Smith presented inspired counsel to the
  church in September 1830 stating all things
  unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I
  given unto you a law which was temporal.
  Doctrine and Covenants 289a
• stewardship and discipleship cannot be divided
  and are dependent upon each other.
  Doctrine and Covenants 1627c

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A Disciples Generous Response Guiding Principles
(1 of 2)

• A disciple practices generosity as a spiritual
  discipline in response to Gods grace and love.
• A disciple is faithful in response to Christs
  ministry.
• A disciples financial response, while unique to
  individual circumstances, expresses love of God,
  neighbor, creation, and oneself.

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Guiding Principles (2 of 2)

• A disciple shares generously through tithing so
  that others may experience Gods generosity.
• A disciple saves wisely in order to create a
  better tomorrow for self, family, the churchs
  mission, and the world.
• A disciple spends responsibly as a commitment to
  live in health and harmony with God and the world.

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1. Generosity A Spiritual Discipline

• A disciple practices generosity as a spiritual
  discipline in response to Gods grace and love.
• For God so loved the world that he gave his only
  Son. John 316 NRSV
• All things unto me are spiritual, and not at any
  time have I given unto you a law which was
  temporal. Doctrine and Covenants 289a

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1. Generosity A Spiritual Discipline

• Receive first Gods boundless grace and unending
  love.
• Share because of what we have received.
• Share with a sense of gratitude rather than
  indebtedness.
• Extending our lives in service to others, we
  receive even as we are giving.
• Generosity becomes our nature.

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1. Generosity A Spiritual Discipline

• Reflection
• How do you experience Gods generosity in your
  life?
• Do you agree that receiving Gods grace and love
  is a prerequisite to our generosity? Why or why
  not?
• How do you exercise the spiritual discipline of
  generosity?

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2. Responding Faithfully

• A disciple is faithful in response to
• Christs ministry.
• The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his
  mercies never come to an end they are new every
  morning great is your faithfulness.
  Lamentations 32223 NRSV
• It is expedient that I, the Lord, should make
  every man accountable, as stewards over earthly
  blessings which I have made and prepared for my
  creatures. Doctrine and Covenants
  1012c

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2. Responding Faithfully

• Gods unconditional love for us is expressed in
  the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
• Respond to the ministry of Jesus Christ and build
  communities of joy, hope, love, and peace.
• Respond faithfully with steadfast love and
  commitment to God.
• In response to Christs ministry, we are
  accountable to one another, God, and ourselves.

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2. Responding Faithfully

• Reflection
• What does your spiritual journey include?
• What motivates your behavior to be faithful?

15
3. Our Financial Response

• A disciples financial response, while unique to
  individual circumstances, expresses love of God,
  neighbor, creation, and oneself.
• For where your treasure is, there your heart
  will be also . . . You cannot serve God and
  wealth. Matthew 621, 24 NRSV
• But before you seek for riches, seek for the
  kingdom of God. Jacob 223 RAV

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3. Our Financial Response

• Using our resources to the glory of God aligns
  our hearts with Gods heart.
• Prayerfully set attainable and meaningful
  financial goals.
• Being purposeful in our financial response keeps
  us focused on God, Christ, and the building of
  Gods kingdom.

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3. Our Financial Response

• Reflection
• What other scriptures encourage a disciple to
  focus on God and warn against the potential
  perils of wealth? (See Luke 181830 NRSV, 1
  Timothy 610 NRSV, Alma 13747.)
• Do you agree that discipleship includes your
  wallet? If so, what does this mean for you?
• If someone looked at how you use your finances,
  what would they conclude about where your heart
  is?

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4. Sharing Generously

• A disciple shares generously through tithing so
  that others may experience Gods generosity.
• Therefore they were liberal to all, both old and
  young, both bond and free, both male and female,
  whether out of the church or in the church,
  having no respect to persons as to those who
  stood in need. Alma 146 RAV

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4. Sharing Generously (2 of 2)

• These principles (of generosity) call every
  disciple to tithe faithfully in accordance with
  means and capacity. Doctrine and
  Covenants 1627c

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4. Sharing Generously

• Tithing is a gift of thanksgiving to God in
  response to Gods generous gifts to us.
• Tithing is given before we save or spend from our
  income.
• Our tithing response reflects the call to be in
  the church (Local and World Mission Tithes) and
  the community (Community Tithes).
• Mission Tithes is the larger portion of a
  disciples tithing response.
• Honor what we have received from God by striving
  to share 10 percent or more of our income through
  tithing.

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4. Sharing Generously

• Mission Tithes (1 of 2)
• A disciples response to world and local mission
  that will Let the truths of my gospel be
  proclaimed as widely and as far as the dedication
  of the Saints, especially through the exercise of
  their temporal stewardship will allow.
  Doctrine and Covenants 1539a

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4. Sharing Generously

• Mission Tithes (2 of 2)
• Look to the needs of your own congregations, but
  look also beyond your walls to the far-flung
  places where the church must go.
• Doctrine and Covenants 1627d

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4. Sharing Generously

• Community Tithes
• A disciples response to church-affiliated
  organizations and other charitable nonprofit
  organizations that are in the
  forefrontrecognizing the worth of persons and
  are committed to bringing the ministry of my Son
  to bear on their lives.
• Doctrine and Covenants 1519
• Examples
• Graceland University
• Outreach International
• Community of Christ Historic Sites Foundation
• World Accord
• Other charitable nonprofit organizations

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4. Sharing Generously

• Reflection
• What has been your motivation for giving at the
  various stages of your life child, youth, young
  adult, adult, and mature adult?
• What are Mission Tithes? How much do you hope to
  share in Mission Tithes?
• What are Community Tithes? What agencies will you
  include in your sharing?

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5. Saving Wisely

• A disciple saves wisely in order to create a
  better tomorrow for self, family, the churchs
  mission, and the world.
• You shall love the Lord your God with all your
  heart, and . . . You shall love your neighbor as
  yourself. There is no other commandment greater
  than these. Mark 123031 NRSV
• And whoever does not provide for relatives, and
  especially for family members, has denied the
  faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
  1 Timothy 58 NRSV

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5. Saving Wisely

• Saving is a way we prepare for the future, both
  the expected and the unexpected.
• Saving extends our love, through bequests, to
  friends, family, and the future mission of the
  church.
• One method for increasing savings is to determine
  a sustainable standard of living at current
  income, and then maintain it when income
  increases.

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5. Saving Wisely

• Reflection
• What examples of expected and unexpected
  circumstances might you save for?
• What methods have you found successful for
  saving?
• How will you share your love through your
  savings?

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6. Spending Responsibly

• A disciple spends responsibly as a commitment to
  live in health and harmony with God and the
  world.
• They imparted of their substance, every man
  according to that which he hadThus they
  established the affairs of the church and thus
  they began to have continual peace again.
  Alma 140, 42 RAV
• I know what it is to have little, and I know
  what it is to have plentyI can do all things
  through him who strengthens me.
  Philippians 41213 NRSV

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6. Spending Responsibly

• Living the other five principles motivates us to
  spend responsibly.
• The teachings of Jesus challenge us to make
  lifestyle choices that are often counter to our
  culture.
• We are called to exercise our agency to spend
  responsibly, focusing on meeting our needs and
  wants in moderation.
• Learning the importance of living within our
  means and learning the appropriate use of debt
  helps us become disciples who spend responsibly.

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Guideline
Tithing
Saving
Spending
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Illustration Models
Income Levels
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6. Spending Responsibly

• Reflection
• Do you think that living in a material world
  makes living as a disciple who spends responsibly
  more complex?
• How do you find the right balance between needs
  and wants?
• Do you plan and manage your finances within a
  budget? If so, how has this helped you?

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Continuing the Journey

• A Disciples Generous Response is a whole life
  commitment we choose to make in response to Gods
  wonderful generosity.
• We commit to discipleship that includes all that
  we are and all that we have.
• As we follow Gods leading, there will continue
  to be more to understand and practice in our
  Christian walk.
• Whether we are considering our stewardship of
  resources for the first time or are recommitting
  to a time-honored practice in our ongoing
  discipleship, God will bless our responseand
  guide us in becoming generous disciples.

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Resources now available

• Becoming A Generous Disciple Six Principles to
  Live By (book)
• A Disciples Generous Response (tract)
• Tithing (tract)
• World Mission Tithes (tract)
• available through Herald House at
  1-800-767-8181
• or www.HeraldHouse.org
• Presiding Bishopric Web site www.CofChrist.org/bis
  hop
• Resources (description of resources above,
  including PowerPoint presentations)
• A Disciples Generous Response
• Adult
• Children/youth
• Personal Money Management resource reviews

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Resources available during 2005

• Temple School courses
• Bishops Ministers of Generosity
• Stewardship An Old Path Made New
• A personal, confidential tithing plan

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For More Information

• Please visit the Presiding
• Bishopric Web site at www.CofChrist.org/bishopwr
  ite 1001 West Walnut, Independence, MO 64050 or
  call 1-800-825-2806, ext. 2216.