South Florida is known for a lot of things…swamps, beaches, Disney World and retirees.  But Idlewild Baptist Church is doing its part to make South Florida known for increasing levels of generosity.

Case in point.  A man in the church (who wishes to remain anonymous) dropped out of school after the eighth grade to go to work.  His prospects for landing a dream job at that point were pretty low.  In fact, anything that would help pay the bills was fair game.  He certainly didn’t sit behind a computer or sing show tunes on a cruise ship.  Life was not easy.

Over the years – through a lot of hard work – he saved a significant amount of money.  But he always remembered where he started.  And he knew that his life could have been better if he would have finished his education.

So, as Idlewild began studying The Genius of Generosity in their Sunday School classes and Small Groups, this man knew how he wanted to invest in God’s kingdom.  Since the lack of education played such an important role in his life, he wanted to give others a unique chance to stay in school.  Further, he wanted to create this possibility as a ministry…through the church.

Before the end of the church-wide study, this gentleman had taken the first steps toward a new vision for his hard earned money.  He initiated a scholarship fund through the church that would serve as both a point of demonstrating God’s love and also a practical hand up for aspiring students.  There were no stipulations on what type of education the students would pursue or where they would go to school.  It was simply an open-handed gesture of generosity that imitated the generosity of God.

Oh…and by the way…this was no small gesture of love.  It was a sacrificial gift of $1,000,000 (one million dollars). 

Obviously this man who worked his way up from the bottom learned an invaluable lesson along the way; following God’s way of generosity is not normal, but it’s a genius way to live.