WATERING OR WITHHOLDING
PROVERBS 11:24-25 NKJV
24 There is one who scatters, yet increases more;
And there is one who withholds more than is right,
But it leads to poverty.
25 The generous soul will be made rich,
And he who waters will also be watered himself.
This will not be a discourse on water rationing during the hot Texas summer. But these verses do shed light on some factors that cause growth and increase.
Our rational thinking works along the lines of holding on to what we have as a way to have more. However, the scriptures offer a different counterintuitive perspective to increase.
The one who scatters increases. This word, scatter, is not the same as scattering your clothes across the room. This Hebrew word carries the idea of distributing. It would not be inappropriate to use the word sowing. The one who sows increases.
But the one who withholds more than is right is on the road to poverty and lack.
The generous soul is made rich. Rich, meaning abundance. And he who waters will be watered.
All of these phrases indicate a mindset that leads to abundance and blessing. The mindset involves making the first move. To sow. To bless. To be generous. To water. Only then do we see increase, abundance, refreshment.
But do not limit this sowing, generous, watering mindset to the financial realm. These principles apply to finances, but they also apply to love, friendship, and acts of service. In effect, we are talking about a giving lifestyle. A generous lifestyle. A life that waters others. This is the life that loves first. That smiles first. That shows kindness first.
However, this is not a groundbreaking lifestyle. This generous way of living has already been modeled for us. This is the nature of our Heavenly Father. This is the nature of our Lord Jesus. This way of living is operating in the spiritual laws that govern the universe and will last for eternity.
So don’t withhold. Keep looking for ways to sow, to be generous, to water. Remember, it will come back your way.