What Our Words About Money Teach Our People

Mark Twain once wrote that the difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between a lightning bug and lightning.

Words matter. And sometimes the difference between similar words can be quite profound.

I am increasingly convinced that we have a lightning bug and lightning problem in the church, because we routinely use the words giving, generosity, and stewardship as though they are interchangeable. We preach about giving, but call it generosity. We talk about finances and throw in the word stewardship because Strunk and White convinced our high school English teachers repetitive word choice makes for boring reading.

But words matter, and confusing the definitions of these words weakens our discipleship.

Let me suggest we recapture the significance of the words we use when talking about money in the church.

Giving is an action

Giving is the act of transferring something we possess to someone else.

It is a measurable, observable, action. We give money to our church. We give to missionaries. We give to someone in need. We give our time, resources, and possessions. Scripture makes clear that giving to others is good, and God calls His people to give.

But here is the tricky part - Giving is not necessarily evidence of generosity.

When I make my son give back the toy he took from his sister, I assure you he is not being, feeling, or even aiming for generous in that moment. But he is giving.

A person can give because they have to, out of obligation. They can give out of guilt, fear, or even a desire for recognition. Jesus made this abundantly clear when He contrasted the widow’s offering with the impressive gifts of wealthy people in Mark 12.

The act of giving did not reveal the story of each person’s heart.

When churches focus exclusively on giving, we can unintentionally train people to believe that the objective of financial discipleship is to complete a transaction. We ask people to give and when they do, the mission is accomplished.

But was it?

Generosity is a value

Generosity goes deeper than our actions.

Generosity is a disposition of the heart that delights in using what we have for the good of other people. Generosity is not something we do - it is something we become.

A generous person doesn’t simply respond to an offering appeal. They increasingly see the world through the lens of abundance, opportunity, and blessing. A generous person thinks differently as they grow in generosity.

Instead of asking, “How much do I have to give?” they begin asking, “What could God do with what He has given to me?”

That is a radically different posture, which Paul captures beautifully in 2 Corinthians 9, when he reminds believers that God loves a cheerful giver. Notice that Paul is not celebrating the gift - He was celebrating the disposition of the giver.

God wants to see givers transformed into generous people. C.S. Lewis made a powerful observation in Mere Christianity, when he wrote “I am afraid the only safe route is to give more than we can spare.”

Lewis understood something we often overlook. Generosity necessarily challenges our assumptions about what we should give, what we should keep, and who all this stuff belongs to in the first place, because generosity is the outworking of stewardship.

And stewardship describes a better way of seeing the world.

Stewardship is a Worldview

Stewardship begins with the theological declaration that fundamentally challenges some of the deepest assumptions of our culture: God owns everything.

Christians really believe that. We own nothing. It all belongs to him. Check out Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”

Let that check your heart for a minute. Everything.

Not ten percent.

Everything.

Our homes. Our money. Our businesses. Our skills. Our relationships. Our opportunities. Our next breath. It is all His.

Stewardship is the worldview that recognizes all of life is something entrusted to us by God to be managed according to His purposes. Stewards don’t start by asking, “How much do I have to give?” We begin by praying, “What should I do with your blessings?” One question sees loss from my gathered store, given over a negotiation. The other begins by seeking God’s heart to pass on a blessing.

What Our Language Teaches About Discipleship

This is why mixing our definitions misses the big picture. When we reduce stewardship to one more word we use to ask for money, we lose the opportunity to shepherd a disciple through the lifelong journey of giving over more of themselves to God.

We would never tell someone that being a good Christian is about showing up to a church service. Attendance matters, but no serious pastor would make that reduction. Yet we routinely make that mistake with stewardship.

We reduce a Christian view of the world and everything in it to the act of giving. And we shortchange the greater work God wants to do in our people’s hearts.

Clearer Words, a Fuller Invitation

Giving is an action we practice. Generosity is a value we cultivate. Stewardship is a worldview we embrace.

God wants to use giving to shape hearts for His Glory. And that is a lot more important than spicing up our word choice by ignoring definitions. Twain was right, the right word can be lightning in our hearts, or just another way we bug our people.