Give It Away!

May 15, 2008

By Jerry Scott

In 1977, I met Tom Johnson, one of the most giving people I have ever known.

I was trying to balance a call to ministry with the imperative of putting food on the table for our little family of three. My backbreaking job required every waking hour, six days a week, leaving me little time to do what I believed God wanted me to do.

Tom came by our home one day and said, “Come with me.” We went to his place of employment and into the boss’s office together. “Jerry is a great guy,” Tom said to his boss, “and I know he can do my job. I quit, hire him!” He gave me his job, which paid better and demanded fewer hours, so I could pursue my calling.

That wasn’t the last time Tom blessed me. And the best part was that he did it all for Jesus — not for himself, not to buy my friendship, not with any strings attached. He believed that people are “blessed so they can be a blessing.”

There are people who add life to every situation in which they find themselves, and there are people who leave everybody around them deflated and discouraged. Which kind of person are you?

Proverbs offers this wisdom: “One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed” (Proverbs 11:24,25, NIV).

“When you help someone out,” Jesus taught, “don’t think about how it looks. Just do it — quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out” (Matthew 6:3,4, The Message) A person who practices his “generosity” while putting out press releases is just serving himself. His “gift” smells of self-interest.

Jesus taught that the real value of someone’s gift isn’t tied to its monetary value. “While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins. ‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus said, ‘this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has” (Luke 21:1-4, NLT).

An attitude of generosity allows God to bless us. “Give, and you will receive,” Jesus said. “Your gift will return to you in full — pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back” (Luke 6:38). Jesus was not suggesting we give in order to get. He was telling us God isn’t likely to trust us with more if we are hoarding what we already have.

God is your resource. His love is unlimited. Let Him love you extravagantly. Receive His grace in abundance. Then, pray He will help you to let His generosity overflow through you to others in need. Indeed it is “more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). Go bless your world with life gifts today.

— Jerry D. Scott is senior pastor at Washington (N.J.) Assembly of God.