The Joy of Giving
“As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. ‘I tell you the truth,’ he said, ‘this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.’” – Luke 21:1-4
In his book “Leadershift”, Pastor John C. Maxwell tells the following story: “My friend James Crocker, a successful entrepreneur, recently shared a story with me…James and a few of his friends went out on a boat trip to fish for lobsters and had succeeded in gathering a massive catch of 125 lobsters.
When he got home, he had a freezer full of lobsters—more than enough to last him an entire year. The day after James got home, his friend Jeff dropped by the house, and James offered him a lobster. Jeff was delighted. This interaction prompted James to ask himself, Who else do I know who might like to have a lobster? James got so excited by the idea of giving friends lobsters that by the end of the week, he had given away 122 lobsters, leaving only 3 for himself. He had such a great time giving, he didn’t even mind that his supply had dwindled from enough for a year to enough for a meal.
A few days later, James went into his garage and was assaulted by a terrible stench. He followed his nose to the freezer and opened it to find that the electricity had gone out, and his remaining 3 lobsters had spoiled. As he cleaned up the mess, he felt sorry for himself. But then he remembered all the lobsters he had given away, and it gave him great joy. If he hadn’t shared his bounty with others, all of it would have been wasted.”
Ask the Lord to give you wisdom and a generous heart to give to others in need.
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill
“And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.” – 2 Corinthians 8:1-2