It is a known fact that God loves
a cheerful giver. He loves givers who give with the right attitude and mindset.
When giving, your attitude and mindset matters a lot, not just to the person
you are giving to but to you also, the giver.
Generosity comes in different
forms. Some generosity comes completely unintentional, some are strategically
planned out, some are reluctantly offered, some are manipulative in nature, and
some are also as an act of self-service to gain some attention or advantage.
The biblical form of generosity
is not in any way in the form of any of the above mentioned forms of
generosity. It is given intentionally with a heart full of joy – 2Corinthians
9:7.
For someone to be called a
cheerful giver, it means the person is always
delighted to give, no matter the situation. The person gives, not
grudgingly, but freely, opened-minded and happily. For example: When Paul gives
because he sees Joseph giving, it means Paul is not giving out of cheerfulness,
but because it would reflect poorly on him if he doesn’t give (the names mentioned in the example were merely used for easy
assimilation, we’re sorry if any of our readers bears either of the names).
A cheerful giver would always
remember that giving is the correct and most honorable response to God’s love
and blessings over his life. He gives because he loves God and because he
understands that it is better to give than to receive.
"The Law of Cheerful Generosity is one where the giver is not subjected
to complain and bitterness, rather it is given out from a thankful heart and a
heart full of joy".
John C. Maxwell in one of his
books wrote this on generosity: “How
could God feel in any way drawn towards a Christian who is willing that Heaven
be bankrupted on his behalf then give as little as possible in return? The
answer is, He isn’t drawn to such a person”.
That statement is entirely true.
I know this because as a parent, how would you feel when you give so much to
your first child because he asked of a thing, and in return he refuses to give
to his younger siblings?
I wrote this in one of our
previous posts, “we are supposed to be a channel-way of God’s blessings and not a reservoir of it”. We are blessed
so as to be a blessing to others. Our prayers are answered so that in turn, we
can be the answer to other people’s prayers.
God is a God of love. He gave us
His ONLY son to purchase our salvation out of His love for humanity (you &
I). He also gave us the Holy Spirit as our guide, comforter and teacher out of
His immense love for us. He equally gave us His promise of eternal life with
Him in Heaven. He gave us various other promises in the Holy Bible out of His
abundant love for us. How can we not give back to Him?
As long as we keep sharing and
giving out generously to the needy with faith and great joy in our hearts, God
will keep on supplying our needs – Mark 6: 32-44. At least, God does not
promise to solve all of our problems, but He did promise to supply all of our
needs according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus – Philippians 4:19.
God’s purpose for humanity is
that we serve Him fully and that we generously give to the needy ones in the
process. Whenever we have the opportunity
to give, take it. In fact, look for opportunities to be a blessing to others.
Generous givers always have the knowledge that money isn’t everything. They
know that money cannot give true happiness and satisfactions. They know that
money is simply a means to an end, and not the end itself.
Allow God to use you mightily. God
cannot use people who tightly hold on to material things. Learn to let go of
material things with ease, not reluctantly or grudgingly.
My prayer is that God will soften
every hard heart, and He will bless us with the gift of divine generosity to be
a blessing to the less privileged ones in the society.