13 May 2013 by Mindy Oon CM –
As I was flipping through my church magazine and reading the testimonies of church members, one particular testimony stood out. It was probably the one with the least words – just one paragraph. But through the few sentences, I could see how much Batma loves the Lord and His church. A single mother who works in a landfill washing disposal trucks, Batma’s increment was withheld for some reason even though it was due more than a year ago. Batma asked for prayer at the Tamil Outreach and she just siply believed that Jesus would answer her prayer. The next day, she received a letter saying that the increment had been banked into her account. While this is a nice little testimony, what surprised and amazed me most about the testimony was the end of the paragraph. In the last two sentences, Batma said “Initially I wanted to use the money for my personal needs. When I realized the goodness of the Lord, I changed my mind and gave the whole year’s increment for the Tamil Outreach work”.
What a generous heart! Batma who probably doesn’t earn very much, and probably need the money decided to give a whole year’s increment to further the Kingdom of God. Her testimony immediately reminded me of Luke 21:1-4 “As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you”, 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. “
As Christians, we are told that we need to be generous, and that we need to give; whether it be giving out tithes and offerings, or giving to the needy, or just being generous to our friends. But many of us do not realize that giving is a heart issue, and that we need to deal with several things to get to the place where we are able to give like God gives (He gave His son!).
The first thing we have to deal with is with a selfish heart. Deuteronomy 15:7-9 says ‘If anyone is poor among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward them. Rather, be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need. Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near,” so that you do not show ill will toward the needy among your fellow Israelites and give them nothing. They may then appeal to the Lord against you, and you will be found guilty of sin.’
According to these verses, selfishness is sin! We are to give freely without wondering whether or not we will be paid back. God invented giving (Satan certainly did not invent giving! He came up with taking and stealing) so that we would be able to deal with the selfishness and greed in our lives.
The second thing we have to deal with is a grieving heart. Deauteronomy 15:10 says ‘You shall surely give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.’ Isn’t it funny that God uses the word grief when he talks about giving? But how true! How many of us, after giving have had thoughts such as “Oh man… I could have used the money for next month’s bills!” Selfishness attacks us before we give, and grief strikes us after we give. But God says, give, and when we do not grief over what we have given, He will bless everything that you do.
Thirdly, we need to develop a generous heart. Deuteronomy 15:14 says ‘you shall supply him liberally from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your winepress. From what the Lord your God has blessed you with, you shall give to him’ To give liberally means to give generously. The opposite of a selfish heart, a generous heart gives from what God has blessed us with.
And last but not least, we need to develop a grateful heart. Deuteronomy 15:15 says ‘You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this thing today.’ Slaves do not own anything. In fact, other people owned them! When we remember where we came from and how God has redeemed us, we cannot help but be grateful for all that He has done for us. Giving becomes easy when we know what God has done for us.
As Christians, many times we give out of obligation. However, giving is a heart issue and we need to learn and develop a heart that will bring us to a place where we are able to give as God has given us.
Dear Viewers in Christ, if you find this article edifying to you, please share with your friends or loved ones by using the social media plugs (Share, Email to this article). The Lord will surely bless you as you bless others. May the Lord’s peace and love be with you.
References for picture:
http://productimages.c28.com/stl/3/9780758614513.jpg
http://livinghope.ie/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Generous-Living-Title1-940×440.jpg
http://www.girlytwitter.com/source/hand_of_man_giving_heart_to_child.jpg
http://momitforward.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Giving-Charity-Child-Feeding-America.jpg
Dear Viewers in Christ, if you find this article edifying to you, please share with your friends or loved ones by using the social media plugs (Share, Email to this article). The Lord will surely bless you as you bless others. May the Lord’s peace and love be with you.
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