Giving Day 3 - Cheerfully

2 Corinthians 9:6-11
Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ⁹As it is written:
"He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever."^a]">[a] ¹⁰Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

When we give, it is a heart issue. We should not DO it for something in return. However, we should EXPECT something in return because God is faithful. The difference between the two thought processes is that when we DO it for something in return we usually are motivated by what we have in mind to receive. We already know what we are getting. When we expect something in return, we understand that we are giving because we are honoring our God, we do it in the name of our Father, for his glory. Believing in his promises and being faithful to His word, we know there is something in return. We just don't limit God by already having in mind what that something is, when we are getting it, or how it will be given. We just know that we can expect it. By not limiting God in our own little imagination, we open up the opportunity for God to teach us, to grow us spiritually and to pour out blessing we would have never imagined. It makes a huge difference when we give cheerfully.

I think of two occasions that provide wonderful examples for this verse:

My daughter, Hayley, loves to bargain. She and most any other pre-teen on the face of this Earth wants to know what they are getting out of doing something. On occasion, she doesn't ask and that is when I want to bless her abundantly. The times she goes right to what I have asked her to do or give, with a happy heart, I am blessed and I pour out that blessing on her in return.

When Dale and I started to go to church, God began working in my heart to tithe. I am a penny pincher, so imagine how hard that was. We own a business and made a good income, but that was our money, not the churches. Until he showed us that he is truly in control. I won't get into it, that is a different story, another time, but at first I was not cheerful when I gave. It showed. But as my heart softened, I realized it wasn't mine to give anyway, it is all his. As we began to prayerfully decide what to tithe, we began to trust God more and now, I know that he does provide and he is blessed when I do it because I am happy to do it, not wanting something in return, just expecting that there will be blessings poured out.

A good friend of ours who is a pretty new Christ follower said that he wants to give everything he can because he wants to see where God is going to bless him, he wants to see if he can out give God!!!! How awesome is that. He realizes of course that Christ gave the ultimate gift to us, but just the very thought that God is our friend, we are in a relationship with him, just like our other relationships, it is always nice to try to out give a friend.

Dear Lord,
I love that you can be blessed when I give cheerfully. I love the thought of blessing you. Especially because I know you have already blessed me so much. Help me to be able to teach this to my children, the act of cheerful giving. How blessed we are when we realize it is not ours in the first place, frees us up from wanting to hoard it all. Especially when You teach us a lesson on what is yours, not ours. Thank you, Lord for loving me and giving me the opportunity to bless you. Amen.