Jeff Anderson - Plastic Donuts: Giving That Delights the Heart of the Father

Praise for
Plastic Donuts

Jeff Andersons insightful book gives us a fresh perspective on what it means to please God through our giving. Read it to gain refreshment for your soul and a challenge to grow more generous.

C HUCK B ENTLEY , CEO of Crown
Financial Ministries

This is a fresh and worthy call to kingdom building through a life marked by generosity. The Plastic Donuts message is desperately needed in our lives and churches today.

G ORDON M AC D ONALD , chancellor
of Denver Seminary

The Plastic Donut illustration helped me focus for the first time on my Fathers reaction to my giving. This understanding is transformational.

H OWARD D AYTON , founder and CEO
of Compassfinances Gods way

Jeff Anderson walks the walk of surrendered stewardship.

R ON B LUE , founding director
of Kingdom Advisors

Our gifts to God matter. He desires that we give because of what he wants for us, not from us. I challenged my congregation to read this outstanding book.

R ANDY P OPE , pastor of Perimeter Church,
Duluth, Georgia

Plastic Donuts is a paradigm-shifting powerhouse.

P ATRICK J OHNSON , chief architect of GenerousChurch

An investment of two hours can forever change the way you think, teach, and practice giving. Plastic Donuts will bring you to the heart of God and show you a new way to enjoy Him forever.

D R . R OGER P ATTERSON , senior pastor of West
University Baptist and Crosspoint Church, Houston, Texas

Plastic Donuts is a fresh approach to living and giving. The concepts help readers move beyond legalism to see God as a loving Father who desires to bless His children.

M ICKEY R APIER , directional leader at Fellowship Bible Church Northwest Arkansas, Rogers, Arkansas

Jeff Anderson provides a fresh, biblical look at giving. I found myself eagerly turning the next page to discover what God had for me to consider personally.

T ODD H ARPER , president of Generous Giving

P LASTIC D ONUTS
P UBLISHED BY M ULTNOMAH B OOKS
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica Inc.TM Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. Scripture quotations marked ( AMP ) are taken from The Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked ( ESV ) are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( NASB ) are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org). Scripture quotations marked ( NKJV ) are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( NLT ) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Italics in Scripture quotations reflect the authors added emphasis.

Details in some anecdotes and stories have been changed to protect the identities of the persons involved.

eISBN: 978-1-60142-529-4

Copyright 2012, 2013 by Jeff Anderson
Previously published by Acceptable Gift Inc. in 2012.

Cover design and photo by Faceout Studio, Charles Brock

Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.

M ULTNOMAH and its mountain colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.

The Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the Library of Congress.

v3.1

To Autumn Joy.
You are Gods special gift to your
mother and me, and the one God
would use to teach me about the
Fathers perspective.

I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.

A POSTLE P AUL , P HILIPPIANS 4:18

Contents

Plastic Donuts. Theyre everywhere, but few things are more misunderstood. When they do come up in conversation, it feels awkward, even confusing. Its like somethings missing.

Did you know the first murder in recorded history followed some hard feelings between two brothers over Plastic Donuts? That could explain why we hear so many dos and donts centered on the subject. The problem is, the rules contradict one another. Thats a real tragedy for all of us, because these simple Donuts can bring such joy and delight to the heart of God.

They show up in the stories of some of the biggest events in history. A man named Noah gave them after being stranded on an ark. God responded with a rainbow in the sky.

Another man, named Solomon, gave some Donuts, and God visited him in a dream.

A fellow named Cornelius gave them and received a visit from an angel.

Make no mistake. This is important stuff.

Im Jeff Anderson, and Ill start by sharing a story about a Plastic Donut that was given to me. It was a gift that changed me forever.

For years I had been trying to understand more about giving, and more about God. I had wrestled with the issues, debated, stayed up late to study, even lost sleep. I was given a Plastic Donut just in time, and it opened my eyes to giving from Gods perspective.

If youll stick with me (its a short book, right?), I trust youll enjoy the experience. I hope you will learn new things about God. And I hope you will look deeply into yourselfwhere you will be reminded of the power of a Fathers love and the power of your gifts.

With all the different messages spelling out the rules of giving, wouldnt it be great to finally get some clarity and peace about this issue? Ill make you a promise. When you start to see giving from Gods perspective, the lights will come on. Youll see that you really can feel good about your gifts.

And it gets back to a Plastic Donut. A simple, easily dismissed token of love holds the secret to getting your mind and your heart on the same page. Isnt that what youve been looking for?

R ELAX

Im not a professional fund-raiser, and this isnt a book about pressure or guilt. Rather its a message about the power of gifts, the way we give, and who we give to.

The Plastic Donut can open your eyes to God in a way that clears up questions and dispels anxiety. What youll experience brings enormous freedom. Youll feel the weight of uncertainty being lifted from your shoulders, and youll be challenged by what you learn about your gifts.