I have a friend who is a great example of giving. One time while attending a church event together, on our walk from the car to the meeting, she asked four different people if she could assist them in some way. Meanwhile, I was thinking things like, “did I remember my pen?” and “I hope I get a good seat.” It was an eye opening experience for me, for sure. My friend had developed an attitude of giving that permeated her actions. I want to be like that. But how do we develop a strong attitude of giving?
The first step in doing that is having our needs met. We cannot give anything if we have nothing to give. God promises to meet our needs in Philippians 4:19. And when our needs are met, we are free to give. When we trust that God is the source of our supply, we can be unincumbered in our giving. Like I’ve heard it said, “You can’t out-give God.” God supplies our needs not only to bless us, but also to enable us to give!
To be clear, there may be times when our needs are great, and it is necessary for us to focus on ourselves. There is nothing wrong with that. It is not selfish to take care of ourselves when we need to, and it doesn’t change our attitude of giving. In fact at these times, we may find it difficult to accept help from others because we still want to be the givers. But just as we must be meek to receive from God, we also must be meek and allow others to give and get blessed.
The next step in developing an attitude of giving is to recognize what we have to give. Of course, the greatest thing that we can give is God’s Word. For God’s Word provides people with all the information that they need to be saved and made whole. And being saved opens the doors to all the resources of a loving Heavenly Father. However, there are many other important things that we can give as well. Things like – our kindness, our wisdom, our time, our energy, our hospitality, our pluralities. Sometimes, we may limit our thinking by the idea that giving is just giving presents. While giving presents is a wonderful thing, the attitude of giving is so much more. It is putting others before ourselves, (which isn’t hard to do when we know that our needs are met). And it’s being willing to give even if it’s not convenient at the time. It could be offering a shoulder to cry on. It could be lending a helping hand. It could be speaking comforting words. It could be as simple as a smile or touch on the arm. But no matter what we give, the greatest way to give is with love.
Love tenderizes, love energizes, love is the basis of all true giving. God set the example in John 3:16, where it says God so loved – that He gave… God gave His only begotten son because He loved. And it was the greatest act of giving that the world has ever seen because it was the greatest demonstration of love ever exhibited.
Have you ever been blown-away by someone’s thoughtfulness? That’s a sure sign that love was involved. Recently, some friends got together and gave me a precious gift. It was definitely an act of love. And you know what the best part is? They got blessed as much as I did. That is by Godly design. There is joy in giving.
God set up the law of giving and receiving. When we give, we receive. It’s just that simple. It works for saint and sinner alike. Have you ever known someone who spews negatives all the time? They generally receive the same. But when we give out of love, it allows God to open the floodgates of His blessings upon us. We are never poorer for giving. Yet, we don’t give to receive, we give because it pleases God. With Him, the return on our ‘investment’ is unequaled because He loves us that much!
The last step in developing an attitude of giving is – start giving. Look around, the world today is an unhappy place. But we can begin to change that by giving freely from our love-filled hearts, all the remarkable things that God has given to us. Love changes things and love is giving.
Note to my readers: Let’s give to our heart’s content and see what God will do! Thanks for reading!