“Each one must give
as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God
loves a cheerful giver” 2 Corinthians 9:7
The visual that comes to mind when thinking of a cheerful
giver is a person that “gives” with a smile.
That person could be giving money, time, help, food, or whatever it is
but it is done with a big grin. I’m sure
we can all think of times we have given with a cheerful heart and then there
are times we do something because we “have” to do it. Yet, the concept of a cheerful giver must be
something of value to consider as it was addressed scripturally. With that in mind, there are a few avenues I
would like to contemplate about a cheerful giver.
The first thought that probably came to mind is the aspect
of tithing. Tithing is our way to give
back to the Lord for all that He has blessed us with. When you write that check do you write it
with a big smile on your face or is it a “have” to? When the plate passes in front of you at
church do you put your money in the plate and thank the Lord because He has
provided you with so much or do you simply put it in the plate because the Lord
“said so”?
Ponder the “time” you have with the Lord for a moment. The Lord wants to have a relationship with us
and that relationship is nourished through prayer, bible study and reading
scripture. The Lord is eagerly waiting
for us but are we eagerly “giving” of our time to the Lord? Do we cheerfully open our bible and pray
because we want to spend time with Christ or do we pray and open our bible
because He “said so”?
What about all those things the Lord has asked us to
do? The Lord has provided each and every
one of us with gifts and talents and He wants us to use them to honor Him. It is truly a blessing to be given gifts and
talents; yet, it requires us to do something.
Do we joyfully use those gifts and talents or do we feel obligated to
use them because they were given to us?
I don’t know about you, but I feel convicted! A cheerful giver is something more than a
grin; it is an attitude. It is truly
centering our hearts on Christ and focusing our eyes on Him. If you continue in 2 Corinthians it states,
“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all
sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good
work”. Jesus is not a dictator. He doesn’t say give me so you won’t
have. He says because you have freely
given you will be sufficiently taken care of!
That sufficiency has been prevalent throughout my life. My parents taught me from the young age that
Jesus provides for you all the time. We
were not “wealthy” by any stretch of the imagination. Despite the “lack” of generous income my
parents always tithed first and then paid bills. We never went hungry and we always had
enough. I have learned the same lesson
through giving of my time. I am always
busy doing something and it is easy to get in the mode of not having the time
to give to the Lord. Yet, I have learned
when I spend time with Him in word and prayer I have sufficient time to get everything
done. Even with such poignant lessons I
sometimes forget to be a cheerful giver.
We have been given so much and have so many reasons to be
cheerful and to cheerfully give. Share that
joy with the Lord in as many ways as you can express that joy! “Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!”
2 Corinthians 9:15
Cheryl
I'm appreciating your post by reading it through several times. Maybe that's called meditation? I don't know. I'm drawn to the conclusion that Jesus' love is infectious. He gives His all. When I hear of accounts like your parents, who tithe their first fruits, that fruit of faith becomes infectious and exciting. It moves me and draws me to even further appreciate God's gift in Jesus. Marvelous!
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