“Genuinely Concerned”
is the theme of the G.O.D. Holiday Campaign, 2022
Each year, a theme and theme verse are selected for the G.O.D. Int’l Holiday Campaign. The campaign is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the nonprofit, and raises support for over 15 programs that are serving communities of need in Nashville and abroad.
The theme is always rooted in scripture, and stands as a reminder that in all things and everything we do, we strive to root every effort - even fundraising! - in the truth of God’s Word.
#GenuinelyConcerned Highlights Philippians 2:20
This year, I had the opportunity to sit with Founder & CEO of G.O.D. Int’l, Gregg Garner, as he shared with me some of the story behind the selection of the G.O.D. Int’l Holiday Campaign, “Genuinely Concerned” and the associated passage, Philippians 2:19-21. I hope that you enjoy and are blessed by the opportunity to reflect further on what it means to be #GenuinelyConcerned.
Philippians 2:19-21: “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”
Q: What is some of the surrounding context that prompts this communication from the Apostle Paul?
A: Part of the context of this passage is that there is a lot of press that is out on Paul - he feels some of the press to be very painful, but he knows that there are people who are praying for him. He says that it is their prayers that will actually lead to his deliverance - he knows that. Then he gives us, right before this what we know as the Carmen Christi (or sometimes we just call it the Philippian hymn), and in there the Christology has Jesus obedient even until death, and death on a cross - a very shameful, cursed way to die.
Paul himself is feeling a lot of shame, and has hinted in the first chapter that he’d rather give up and die, because he knows that it would be better to be with God than to keep suffering in this way.
Verse 19 is really interesting because he communicates his hope in Jesus by having this ambassador, Timothy, go to the Philippians and he says, “So that I too may be cheered by news of you...” He is anticipating that when Timothy does go to the community in Philippi, that he would return. It’s very hopeful, because everybody needs that thing to look forward to, that helps them get through whatever they are suffering through.
Q: What kind of example do you think Paul is hoping to draw out for the community looking at Timothy, in this passage?
A: Verse 20 is like a parentheses - “For I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.” And for him to say that there is nobody like this guy… that is a real sobering statement. On the one hand, he is dying - he is suffering, doesn’t know how long he is going to have… but he is glad that he has Timothy. He’s glad that Timothy could be characterized by genuine concern for the welfare of others.
So when I think about that, and how - because I think for all of us Paul the Apostle should be a role model - he even put that out there, “Imitate me as I imitate Jesus” - so it’s like - for me he is one of my role models, and when I see him looking at somebody whom he has such hope in Jesus for, that the guy is concerned for the welfare of these people, that is like the criteria he is looking for in a stand-out person. Someone who is genuinely concerned for the welfare of others.
Which, the adjective to be genuinely concerned, shows that people have concern, a word he uses in chapter one with respect to pretense. They are concerned about pretense. This is genuine, it is contrasting. Not only do I look at Paul and go, “I want to find people with genuine concern for the welfare of others, but I want to be a person with genuine concern with the welfare of others.”
So then I ask myself - “What does genuine concern look for?” Verse 21 helps because you learn what inauthentic concern is. It is when someone is seeking out their own interest. Which is part of the Philippian Hymn, so you can see the connections. The authentic, genuinely concerned person is a person like Jesus - not one self-interested.
Q: For us - here, today, and as we look to the holidays and this holiday season, what is a good way that we can think about this theme of Genuinely Concerned as we make decisions and do life?
A: Genuine concern actually has you reading the cause page stories and thinking about the plight of being in that person’s shoes. And what a difference it would make if someone could give concern over to that.
He says - the contrast would be the interest of Jesus… “But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.”
He’s getting motivated - there’s some hope in even talking about Timothy. The progression of his hope expands from “he may be able to come back and visit me” to “I’m going to come and visit you guys - all because this guy has genuine concern for the welfare and is interested in Jesus’s cause.
I genuinely believe that in our ministry, if everyone can get concerned with Jesus’ interest, our hope multiplies. We stop having hopes like, “I just hope I can get out of debt one day” and we begin to hope, “I hope to get out of debt but I also hope to make more to give.” I also hope that, not only am I going to be able to give but I hope that I am going to be present to see for myself what it was I was able to give toward. The hope multiplies, but you don’t get there without being a genuinely concerned person for the welfare of others - outside of your own interest.
I think that people would even agree in the secular world that that is the spirit of the season. To be a person that is genuinely concerned with the welfare of those who, without help, couldn’t manage for themselves. I want to be like that. I want to put aside my own interests and really serve the Lord and think about the hard things - the challenging work of saving lives.
The Genuinely Concerned Holiday Campaign Kicks off on Giving Tuesday, November 29, 2022
Thank you to Mr. Garner for taking the time to expound upon this year’s theme. To learn more about our causes and to give in support, join us on Giving Tuesday as we shed light on communities of need around the world and share how you can join us in being #GenuinelyConcerned.
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