At 96-years-old, Brian looks back fondly on his life. He’s a man of deep faith and gratitude. 

‘I grew up in a warm, Christian family,’ said Brian. ‘I was very fortunate.’  

Brian’s a proud father of three, grandfather of nine and great-grandfather of 10 with number 11 due any day. He recently sat down with his granddaughter, Jacqui to share what it looks like in their family when the values of gratitude and generosity are passed down through the generations. 

Called To Be Generous 

Brian was married to Barbara for 58 years and, together, they built a life on the principles that Jesus set out for his followers, including his call to be generous. 
 
‘Scripture is full of teaching that God wants us to care for those in need. And I’m struck by the way the early church took that teaching to heart,’ he said. ‘We see that in Acts—their attitude is one of sacrificial generosity.’ 

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. . . For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the salesand put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.’ (Acts 4:32-35) 

For Brian and Barbara, living out this teaching meant becoming Child Sponsors to several children in the Philippines, and Brian still supports four Child Partners through Baptist World Aid today. Moreover, Brian and Barbara’s attitude fed an intergenerational family culture of gratitude and generosity. 

Jacqui remembers it well. 

 ‘Generosity is something that you see more than something you are taught,’ she said. ‘My grandparents have been consistently generous throughout all their life. It’s not that they sat us down and told us what to do with money, but they showed us through lots of little choices that added up to a picture of what it meant to live generously.’ 

Brian and Jacqui raising families of cheerful givers.

A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children. (Proverbs 13:22)

A Counter Cultural Perspective  

Jacqui is thankful for the modelling she received from her family, but also notes the difficulty in putting generosity into practice today.  

‘As a young person in today’s economy, it’s not easy to be generous,’ said Jacqui. ‘There’s a lot of messages in our culture telling us to get as much as we can and keep it for ourselves. But as Christians, we know God gives us resources to share with others, even if that means we’re not as comfortable as possible. And that goes for other forms of generosity too, like giving up our time. It’s meant to be sacrificial.’ 

While it can be challenging to swim against the tide of our times, Brian and Jacqui are living example of the joy that goes hand in hand with embracing a culture of generosity. Brian is delighted to see his great-grandchildren growing up in a family of cheerful givers, following the example set by Jesus. 

I’m proud to be Jacqui’s grandpa and see her living out the Chrisitan faith beautifully,’ said Brian.  

Brian has included a gift in his Will to Baptist World Aid, reflecting his generous heart and desire to leave a positive impact on the world. And he hopes that cheerful giving will continue for generations. 

That’s also Jacqui’s hope.    

‘Pray hard prayers,’ she said. ‘Sometimes we don’t want to be generous, but we can pray that God will soften our hearts so that giving doesn’t feel like a chore, but as the beautiful thing God wants it to be.’ 

‘Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.’ (2 Corinthians 9:7) 

Update: Jacqui’s baby daughter was born in September and named Lucy in honour of her great-grandmother. Praise God!