Denise Linton
Today's Scripture: “But the servant who had received one thousand coins went off, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money.” Matthew 25:18, GNT
Theme: Even if you think you have very little, that is not an excuse to hide it or waste it.
EASIER WITH A LITTLE THAN A LOT
L. Kraft, head of the Kraft Cheese Corporation, who had given approximately 25% of his enormous income to Christian causes for many years, said, “The only investment I ever made which has paid consistently increasing dividends is the money I have given to the Lord.” The first thing that may come into mind is, “Well, he could afford to be generous; he was very wealthy.” So often, I hear from others that they want to be generous, but they just don’t have enough money, time, or resources. In fact, it’s much easier to learn to be generous and trust God when you have little; the richer you are, the more difficult it can be to let go of “your” money.
IT MIGHT SOUND CRAZY
After I had come to faith in Christ several years ago, I remembered hearing the messages on generosity and giving. I had just been laid off from my job and was struggling to figure out how to make ends meet for my son and myself. The idea of giving from what little I had sounded crazy to me. I felt like the sensible thing to do would be to hide it away, like the servant in Jesus’ parable. I was challenged by a good friend to take steps towards trusting God. I took the challenge and, even though I was fearful of the outcome, I became generous. I could not explain it, but the more I was generous with the little I had, the more financially stable I was. Every month, the bills were paid and there was food on the table. I found that I was happier than when I had a large income and kept it to myself. In fact, I found myself looking for opportunities to be generous.
IT DOESN’T TAKE SCIENCE
Michael Norton, a professor at Harvard Business School, and a group of his colleagues studied the correlation between giving and the level of happiness people experience. They surveyed more than 600 people and assessed how they spent their money. Regardless of income level, those people who spent money on others reported greater happiness, while those who spent more on themselves reported a lower level of happiness. Neuroscience has shown that giving to others triggers the same region in your brain linked to the subjective feeling of happiness.
Coincidence? I think not, considering our Creator’s purposefulness. Not that we needed science and research completed to tell us this: The Bible has described many times how being generous leads to happiness. Paul tells us, “… in remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said ‘it is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35b, NLT).
Make it Personal: What is holding you back from being generous? Are you afraid that you won’t have enough? Start taking steps to trust that God will provide. Become generous even if you think you may not have enough to give away. It may sound crazy. Do it anyway!
Pray: Father, help me to open my heart to trust You with my resources. Give me opportunities to learn to be generous, even when I think I have less than others. Thank You for what I do have to share because You are the ultimate Provider. Amen.
Additional Reading: Acts 20:35; 2 Corinthians 9:7-8