Christians often overlook generosity. It's time to grow in our faith by cultivating a generous attitude and lifestyle. Learn how to do just that in our four-part series at Fusion Christian Church: The Generous Life. In Part 1, Pastor Zac teaches about the idolatry of greed and how Christians can avoid it.

Greed turns what we have into what we worship.

Greed is a pernicious evil that keeps our focus on earth instead of on heaven. This distracts us from the things of God, which matter more than anything else. By placing material things at the center of our lives instead of Christ, we lock ourselves out of heaven. God has willed that his people be generous, and choosing greed over generosity indicates we are not his people.

Start thinking of generosity as a privilege, not a burden.

Too often we view giving as a loathsome obligation rather than an opportunity. This hinders our willingness to be generous. Instead, we should view each chance to be generous as an opportunity to do the will of God. Not only can we do good for others, but generosity changes our own hearts as well. Through generosity, we teach ourselves that everything belongs to God and that we are only stewards of the good things he gives us.

Good intentions become generosity when we follow through.

It is easy to think of ourselves as good people because our intentions are good, but being good requires more than intention. If we are to be good people, we must follow through on good intentions. The same is true of our generosity. If we are ever to become generous people, we must follow through on our intentions to be generous. Generosity is not an accident; it requires intentionality. How can you take steps to be a more generous person this week?