Willing Generosity

2 Corinthians 9:1-5   
1 Now concerning the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you; 2 for I know your willingness, about which I boast of you to the Macedonians, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal has stirred up the majority. 3 Yet I have sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this respect, that, as I said, you may be ready; 4 lest if some Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we (not to mention you!) should be ashamed of this confident boasting. 5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity and not as a grudging obligation.

The eagerness to desire and to follow through with the actions in giving to meet needs is worth sounding a trumpet for over others who are so faithful as the Corinthians to the Macedonians here by Paul.  This example inspires and moves others to imitate Christ in others.  Paul also gives good advice to have promised offerings ready before they need to be delivered in case the givers are slow to put it all together.  Then the genuine generosity is seen instead of a frustrated scrambling about that can lead to a grudgingly given gift which was initially intended with joy.  This then can reflect badly in an example of not living up to a promise, so he sent others ahead to assist in collecting the gift.  We can learn from these things to be faithful and purposeful in giving.