Are you a cheerful giver?

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Do you like to give?  One of the 5 Love Languages is giving (if you’re not familiar with the 5 Love Languages, Dr. Gary Chapman published the idea that humans have five ways that they show and receive love; one of those is in giving gifts). I confess that giving is not my love language, but it is my daughter’s – she enjoys giving personalized, intentional gifts.

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I prefer to save my money – I grew up in a home where our money was tight (my dad once sewed together the good legs of two pairs of pants that had a tear in each leg so that he could have one good pair).  And I’ve worked for most of my life - working with a lawn business in Dallas in the heat of the summer, painting houses, laying carpet, etc., until I moved on to restaurant work in college. Then, I’ve worked in the Army for the last couple of decades. I feel like I’ve earned what I have. As a result, I don’t like to share my money.

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Did you notice how many times I referred to me, or to my money, in the previous paragraph? (I count 12 times). How different would it be if I looked at it with a Kingdom focus? It might read like this: I think God calls me to save the money He has blessed me with. I grew up in a home where God had not chosen to bless us with wealth.  And I’ve be blessed to be able to do hard physical labor - working with a lawn business in Dallas in the heat of the summer, painting houses, laying carpet, etc., until God planted me in restaurant work in college. Then, God called me to work with the Army for the last couple of decades. I feel like God has blessed me with so much! I know I should delight in sharing God’s money with others.

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Do you see the difference? In one, I focus on my money; in the other, I recognize that all that I have comes from God – whether it’s health, wealth, relationships, a profession, a house, and more.

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In Romans 11:36, Paul wrote that all things are from God, and in James 1:17, James wrote that every good and perfect gift is from above, and in I Chronicles 29:14, David says that all things come from God. I know that everything I have is from God. From my physical and mental abilities to the health that I have, from my job to my house to my family and friends – all of it comes from God. Everything I have is because God has chosen to lavish it upon me in some measure. He’s chosen to give more to some people, but there are billions of people in the world, and plenty in Alaska, who have not been blessed with what I have.  

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So why am I reluctant to give it back to Him? Or at least, why don’t I do it cheerfully, as opposed to out of some measure of obligation?  

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In today’s passage from Romans 15, Paul wrote that he planned to go to Jerusalem, and that the churches in Macedonia and Achaia (both churches in Greece) had generously given gifts for the poor in Jerusalem. Not only had they given gifts, but they were pleased to give! Referring to the gift of the Macedonians, Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 8:2-4, “In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people.”

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The richer church in Achaia also gave. Paul wrote pointedly to them that “each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:6-8).  In the end, both the richer church and the poorer church gave generously, and they were pleased to give!

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By giving, I can help people who need things more than I do, I can help further God’s Kingdom now, and I can obey God by giving. What could be more pleasing than that?

Dear God, thank You for many blessings, both those I see and those I do not. Help me to be a cheerful giver, and to give back to You as You have given to me. Amen.