Giving: January 28, 2014

TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY JANUARY 28, 2014.

GIVING

DEFINITION:

To hand to someone; to convey or transmit; to assign or contribute; to be warm and open in one’s relationship with others; to bestow voluntarily and without expecting compensation.

SCRIPTURE:

A generous man will himself be blessed for he shares his food with the poor. Proverbs 22:9.

It is more blessed to give then to receive. Acts 20:35

Give and it shall be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. Luke 6:38.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Each of us has three things that God has given us that we in turn can give back to Him. They are our time, out talent and our resources. We have a responsibility to give a portion of these things that God has blessed us with back to Him.

There are many verses in the gospels that are recorded as the words of Jesus that talk about giving, especially to the poor. Over the years God has continually reminded us and opened doors for us to give of our time, our talent and our resources to help the poor. Our children have lived in this kind of environment and watched our actions and words and today they have developed the same commitment.

Down through the years we have found that we could never out give God. We were taught as children to give at least 10% cheerfully of our time, talent and resources back to the Lord. We put this into practice in our life and we found joy in giving. It is clearly stated in the Bible that we have a responsibility as believers in Jesus to give to those who are in need and hurting. When we did this, God always supplied all of our needs over and above what we gave to Him.

It was important to us to teach and train our children this same Biblical principle as they were growing up. The scripture is also very clear as to the responsibility of parents to give to their children. As parents we need to give of our time, teaching and loving our children. Most parents do not practice this and then wonder why their children went wrong. Money does not buy what children need most. Children need love and nurturing from their parents.

God blesses those who give. It is important for a person to get their priorities in proper order. Most people want to get their “THINGS” first and then they will reach out to God, family, children and those that are hurting. But in this order it seems to very rarely happen. We learned that when we first gave to God, our tithe and our time and talent then He would bless us in such a way that we had our “THINGS” and all that we needed. Our children were well fed and had what they needed. God not only provided all that we and our children needed but He enabled us to reach out to help others in need.

When we give sparingly, we will reap sparingly. This is a Biblical principle that one must learn. Some people give just enough to get by or to make a good impression. Others just do enough to satisfy their own conscience. But the Biblical principle is that when we give bountifully we will reap bountifully.

In the verse above from Acts, which is the only direct quote from Jesus earthly ministry recorded outside the gospels, we are told that there is greater blessing in giving than in receiving. This does not mean being blessed with more material goods. It means spiritual blessings. When we give we become more like Jesus who gave to all and receives from no one. As we grow more like Jesus we are drawn into a closer fellowship with Him and we will see Him at work in our lives. God wants to bless us and bless us abundantly.

How many times have you given a lot and then experienced the joy that comes from that giving? The scripture tells us in Matthew 6:3-4 that we are not to let our left hand know what our right hand does. In other words, do not give for recognition or glory. Give unto the Lord and He will bless you abundantly.

 The verse we have written above from Luke reminds us that God will bless us with the same measure that we give to Him. What a wonderful promise. ONE CANNOT OUT GIVE GOD.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Mark 16:15.

And Jesus said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

PRAYER:

Give me a new spirit of giving. Thank You for the great gift You gave me by dying on the cross paying the penalty for my sins. Help me to give back to You a large portion of the talent, time and resources that You have blessed me with so abundantly.