GIVING FREELY OR HOLDING BACK
Proverbs 11:24-25 CSB
24 One person gives freely,
yet gains more;
another withholds what is right,
only to become poor.
25 A generous person will be enriched,
and the one who gives a drink of water
will receive water.
There is a principle that God established in the earth of sowing and reaping, seed time and harvest. We can see that principle in our verses for today.
The idea of giving freely pertains to more than just money. Our minds can often turn to money when we read these verses, but the sowing principle applies to all areas of life. We can give freely of our time, our attention, and our love and see gains in all those areas. Or we can hold back and hold on to our lives and have them diminish. The people who are generous are the ones who see their lives enriched, but the tighter we hold on, the more we lose.
A good friend of mine is a Christian psychologist. He has been a sounding board for me for over twenty years. He is an author of numerous books. He had a practice for years and was on the staff of a large church. He has worked with corporate America and military leadership. His experience in working with all kinds of people is extensive. One of the ways he helped people who were dealing with depression falls in line with our two verses for today.
In most cases, the people who came to him looking for answers for their depression were given an assignment. He would point out the nursing home across from his practice and tell them to go volunteer before coming back to him for more counseling. The people who took the assignment were amazed at how just volunteering was helpful in overcoming their depression. Giving of yourself enriches you while holding back can cause you to be deficient.
One of the major challenges facing our nation is loneliness. Some have labeled loneliness one of our nation’s biggest health concerns. But God has answers. Giving freely of yourself is an answer. One of our church members is 90 and he still goes to bless nursing homes on a regular basis even though he is older than many of the residents. He has been doing this for close to 20 years, and I am convinced it has enriched his life. He is full of life, especially for someone who is 90! He is an inspiration to me!
When Joy and I inherited a floundering singles group at Lakewood we used this principle to inject life into the group. We took the group to nursing homes and homes for people struggling with addictions. The purpose was to be a blessing, but it also changed the culture, and the group began to thrive. Part of our church culture at The Ark is the value that we are here to bless. In blessing our community, we have been blessed and enriched ourselves. When we encourage people to serve and give, we are not trying to take from them but rather to have them put one of God’s principles of increase into their lives. This principle works in the financial area but is not limited to finances. We can give our prayers and our love. We can give a listening ear and a helping hand. There are many ways to sow seeds. Galatians says that God is not mocked; whatever a person sows that will they also reap. Jesus said that if we hold onto our lives, we lose them, but if we give our lives away for His sake, we gain them. God’s ways work!
PRAYER
Dear Lord, show me how and where I can sow more seeds this year. I want to be generous with all my life!