Giving Challenge #5: Aligning Your Giving With Who You Are
Identity, Purpose and Endurance
This week’s conversation with Heather Johnston reminds us that giving often says more about who we are becoming than about what we are trying to fix.
So this week’s Giving Challenge is not about choosing a new cause or increasing a donation.
It’s about clarity.
The Challenge
Take a few quiet minutes and reflect on your giving. What motivates you to give? .
Ask yourself:
What part of my identity shows up most clearly in my giving?
Am I giving because of pressure or purpose?
Is my giving shaped by headlines, or by values that endure beyond them?
Where have I been consistent, even when it would have been easier to step away?
Am I giving to influence outcomes, or to faithfully fill my personal role?
Beyond Me
When giving is aligned with identity, it assumes additional meaning.
When it’s aligned with purpose, it expands.
And when it’s aligned with something larger than ourselves, it can stand the test of time.
When you focus on your purpose, you end up seeing well beyond yourself.