2 Corinthians 9:6-7: “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 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.” NIV. “Here’s my point. A stingy sower will reap a meager harvest, but the one who sows from a generous spirit will reap an abundant harvest. Let giving flow from your heart, not from a sense of religious duty. Let it spring up freely from the joy of giving—all because God loves hilarious generosity!”TPT.
Here is something that I think is sadly, hilarious, I can’t count the number of times someone has said to me: ”I can’t give because I can’t be cheerful about it.” You know, I’m not really sure that this scripture is meant to be read through that filter!!
I really like the filter in the Passion Translation much better… ‘hilarious generosity.’ Now there’s a much better thought! Lately when hubby and I have done whatever the Lord asked us to do, we’ve both ended up laughing so hard we cried. Especially when what we’ve needed has come from unexpected places! “I am convinced that my God will fully satisfy every need you have, for I have seen the abundant riches of glory revealed to me through Jesus Christ!” Philippians 4:19 TPT.
If I were to make a list of things that have definitively changed my life—right after unconditional forgiveness—comes generosity. Our God loves generosity. He has been incredibly generous toward each and every one of us, His Grace was costly! Jesus paid in pain and anguish for every time you or I have capriciously decided whether to obey His Word, or not. Living by faith will keep us honest! When there are no more noodles or rice cakes in the cupboard and you are hungry … that’s when you have to decide if you are fasting — or you need to sit with the Holy Spirit and ask Him what He wants you to do next. There is nothing like hunger to increase spirituality!
So how do you become a cheerful giver? GIVE. Just do it. Stop thinking you have to ‘feel like it‘ and give when you have enough, and give more when you don’t! And prayerfully practise loving others! Our giving is an outward sign of an inward attitude toward all of humanity. When I begin to see your need through my own eyes, then I am changing an attitude that is currently thriving in this world today. I think that attitude is ME FIRST. Check it out. Wars have started from subscribing to the theory of ‘me first.’ Meanwhile, ’me first’ kills faith stone dead.
This kind of self-centred theology illustrates to us that we are not trusting God to do what He told us He would do – He promised to provide for us. We probably wouldn’t say that we are not trusting Him out loud – but sadly, that’s what can be hidden, underneath.We need to cultivate trust, believing that He will be faithful to His Word. This is why the bible is so important… it tells us what Almighty God will do … and, more importantly, what He won’t. We can totally miss His incredible generosity toward us, if we decide that it is OK to be stingy – because times are tough. His provision in our day to day lives actively encourages faith, that’s something that thinking or words won’t always do.
The solution to participating in the scripture, ‘God loves a cheerful giver’ is to get cheerful about giving —we can’t afford to avoid it and hope it goes away! Postponing faith activities leads to lukewarmness. Let’s give prayerfully, but slowly stretching our perceived limitations. In other words we don’t need to begin by giving away the house! We can always give our time, or love, or thoughts, or encouragement into someone else’s life, too.
Let’s not avoid the broken! God is our ever-present help in our time of need and we can share that help with the-people-who-don’t-know-Him-yet. Here’s a tip — it is not wise to give the homeless money, instead we’ve learnt to give them vouchers for the supermarket. Many poor souls are out on the street because they have addictions that have exhausted their own resources. We choose to give and we include the odd block of chocolate.Treating people as special, demonstrates God’s own extravagant love for them. We can tell the homeless or the people who are powerless to change themselves, over and over again, that God is good. But a demonstration is worth a thousand words.
Giving cheerfully is cultivated more easily when we begin to see that people we are giving to as if they are Jesus Himself. See HIM in the eyes of the lost, poor and needy.“When did we see You a stranger and invite You in, or needing clothes and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and go to visit You?’The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of Mine, you did for Me.’ Matthew 25:38-40.
Jesus identifies with the poor by calling them His brothers and sisters. Now there’s a great way to live. When the Lord looks at people, He sees His family in need. Love always looks like something. To a person in need it looks like provision, kindness, and a lack of judgment. Even if our society is currently suffering from a fear fever, our ongoing aim is to live our lives cheerfully, at peace with everyone. Bye 👋
