So let each one of us give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
2 Corinthians 9:7
Things in our lives tend to claim us. We get attached to things. The more things we get the more attachments we have. There is nothing wrong with having a lot of things. The wrong happens when we grip these things so tightly that we aren't willing to let them go. We get stuck on the accumulation of so much that it becomes and idol and a stumbling block in our lives before God.
There is a solution! Be a Cheerful Giver. St. Francis of Assisi said "It is in giving that we receive." There is a huge difference between giving grudgingly and giving cheerfully. The cheerful giver is the one who is free from the bondage of things. The grudging giver is the one who holds the value of things over the value of people--and is a miserable life.
The word cheerful above is a Greek word hilaros. Sound familiar? It is the word that we get hilarious from. God loves a hilarious giver! That is so cool. How do we become these hilarious givers. First, we recognize what God has given to us. Yesterday, we talked about the generous heart of God--He gave us His Son to pay a debt that we could never pay. Mountains and seas of sins--and He paid the price for our freedom! Praise Him!
Secondly, we recognize that He as given us everything that we have. Every talent, every ability, every dollar--everything belongs to Him. King David said this so perfectly when he said, "But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, and of Your own we have given You. (I Chronicles 29:15) Even the ability to make money comes from God. The hilarious giver is the one who recognizes that God has given so much more than we could ever give to Him.
The heart that is transformed by the love of God is a heart that hears the wonderful words of Jesus, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35). Things are going to pass away. We aren't going to take anything with us. The goal is to lay up treasures in Heaven that will last for eternity. The shift of our perspective from the temporary to the eternal will allow us to "hold loosely" and to give freely what He has so generously given to us.
Blessings to you!
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