Reflections: Joe Ryan’s personal journey of generosity

Earlier this month, Joe Ryan joined our team to support givers, advisors, and ministry leaders in Georgia. I recently sat down with him to learn more about his story and how the Lord led him to NCF. As he steps into this new season, Joe reflects on his early experiences and influences that have shaped how he thinks about biblical generosity.

Joe, tell me about your upbringing and who helped shape your beliefs about biblical generosity.

I came to know the Lord as a middle schooler after a friend on my baseball team invited me to attend his church’s youth group. While I wasn’t raised in an overtly faith-affirming family, I still recognize that my parents were loving and generous members of the community, and I would trace my early understanding of generosity back to them.

Throughout my childhood and young adult life, I saw them pour into relationships, volunteer their time, and open their doors in hospitality. My family didn’t have an abundance of financial resources, but when my parents welcomed guests, as they often did, I remember seeing them bring out the best food and snacks, splurging to make others feel welcomed.

As my dad became more successful in business, I witnessed my parents’ financial generosity grow too – making gifts on behalf of our extended family, buying meals for others, and finding other ways to bless people. From an early age, they taught me that being generous isn’t just about money. It’s a lifestyle of living open-handedly with all of our resources.

Did you have an experience that shifted how you approach giving?

A few years after I became a Christian, I went on a mission trip to Tijuana, Mexico. As a middle-class teenager from California, I was completely overwhelmed to see the poverty in parts of that city. We toured a city dump and saw countless people scavenging for anything they could use to better their lives – money, valuable belongings, and even food.

During this tour, I happened to see a U.S. dollar bill blowing by in the wind and picked it up. Even as a kid, I recognized the paradox. With all that I was witnessing, God had literally placed a dollar, an incredible treasure, in my path. At the same moment, a little girl who had been scavenging walked by, and I gave her the dollar without a second thought. I was witnessing an obvious need, and God provided: the dollar, my presence, my awareness and willingness, and the little girl in need.

Almost 35 years later, this experience has remained an anchor in my faith and in how I view resources. I didn’t own that dollar – I don’t own any dollars. God does. And He sets our paths and circumstances to meet the needs of others.

What does generosity look like to you as an adult?

Looking back again, when I was a teenager and young in my faith, I began experimenting with giving through the offering plate at church after a youth leader challenged me to “try to outgive God.” Spoiler alert: You can’t outgive Him. But that challenge helped me develop my mindset toward living open-handedly and finding ways to be generous.

Later, when I got my first adult job with a paycheck, I remember struggling with whether to give pre-tax or post-tax. My mentor rhetorically asked, “Do you want to be blessed on the gross or the net?”

I’ve learned that when you give of yourself and your resources – sometimes more than you thought you could – you begin to see how God uses those gifts to overflow His blessings.

Now that I have my own kids, I’ve tried my best to share these experiences and learnings from my mentors with them. When they were young, my wife, Miriam, and I had three words for them that we wanted them to embrace: courage, kindness, and compassion. The goal was for them to aim to pour out their lives for others, using all of what God entrusted to them – their finances, time, gifts, and expertise.

What causes are important to you today?

I love the local church. Prior to NCF, I served as a pastor for 30 years, and my wife is still on pastoral staff. I see the value that a thriving local church can bring to a community. My previous church had local and international partners, and it was natural to give my time and financial gifts to them and see the impact they were making.

There’s also a ministry that’s close to my heart. It provides academic and spiritual care for a predominantly Latino community in the area. In serving with them, I noticed that none of the kids were participating in youth baseball, a game close to my heart. That didn’t seem right to me, so I helped launch a sports ministry that has baseball camps in the spring and summer. Along with the other volunteers, we use baseball as a way to pour into them.

How did you come to NCF?

January of this year marked 30 consecutive years of ministry, and I’d started to wonder what God had next for me. I’ve loved pastoral ministry and the opportunity to develop deep relationships with people. Joining the NCF team gives me the opportunity to continue developing relationships with generous Christians in a new environment.

Even though I’m out of a formal pastoral ministry role, I still desire to make Jesus visible. When I read NCF’s vision, “Every person reached and restored through the love of Christ,” I knew this was a place where I could continue living out that desire.

Joe looks forward to connecting with givers in Georgia and helping them experience generosity as a shared journey. You can reach him at jryan@ncfgiving.comopens in a new tab.