Aug 09, 2018
Give what you have
decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves
a cheerful giver. 2Cor 9:7
God loves givers, so
plan, proportion, and praise God in our giving.
Van Morris of Kentucky tells this story: A
mother gave her child a one-dollar bill and a quarter. "Sweetheart," the mother said,
"you can place either one in the offering plate. It's entirely up to
you." As they were driving home,
the mother asked the daughter what she had decided to give. "Well, at first I was going to give the
dollar," said the daughter. "But the man behind the pulpit said God
loves a cheerful giver, so I felt like I would be much more cheerful if I gave
the quarter instead."
Somehow I think the child missed the point about giving with
a cheerful heart … and maybe we do too.
Too often, we associate cheerful
with happy. Although there is often happiness in a
cheerful heart, that is not the whole meaning.
Being cheerful is about
encouraging or enjoying the success of another.
Greed can make us temporarily happy, but doesn’t create cheer. Cheer is created when we GIVE something for
another – whether that’s money, time, encouragement, appreciation, support,
etc. Holding may help us feel happy for
ourselves, but it is not cheerful.
That’s why Paul reminds us that when we give, it should be
thought out, prepared, and with the desire to cheer another on. When we give for the sake of others, it
pleases God. And SOMEHOW we seem to know
that deep in our soul. Most people DO
realize that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Because when they have given and it met a
need or encouraged a needy person, we actually felt the blessing in our
soul.
If we’re holding back on giving to the Kingdom – we’re
missing out. We miss out on a cheerful
heart. We miss out on some of God’s
blessings upon our life. We miss out on
eternal rewards. And we miss out on
expanding the Kingdom of God. GET THIS: GOD LOVES GIVERS, because God IS a
Giver. That’s who He is, and that’s who
He wants us to be. When we give – we
Cheer God On!
Here’s an exercise to do TODAY (if you delay, you won’t
likely do it!):
1.
Stop and look at your account(s), and discern
what your current plan for giving looks like.
Write down how you give – whether to church, other organizations,
relatives, friends. Consider also the
giving you do to support local fundraisers and shopping center collections.
2.
Review that plan – and consider what God wants
you to do with it. What percentage of
income do you give on a regular basis?
Is that appropriate? Should it be
more? Should it be reallocated?
3.
Make a new plan – consider how you can give to
more of the functions that God is directing.
Look for how God wants you to create CHEER when you give. (Not happiness, but cheer.)
If you’re not cheerful when you give, hit the pause button,
and review your giving. Either you’re
not giving properly, or not giving with the right spirit. Give to create CHEER! Then watch what happens when you obey and
follow through on a plan of consistent giving!
(You will find a cheerFULL heart.)
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