Do You Know How To Make Giving Fun?
Good Morning Friends,
Parting with money can be a very troubling experience for those addicted to it. But in the end, you cannot take it with you and neither can I. Getting joy out of making money and even saving it is more readily processed. However, giving money away can be very pleasurable too. Do You Know How To Make Giving Fun?
Scripture: The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. As it is written, “He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us;
2 Corinthians 9:6-11 (NRSV)
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 (NRSV)
Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.
Malachi 3:10 (NRSV)
Message: You have heard it said that we are to be cheerful givers, but did you know that the Greek word for cheerful is hilarós, from which we get our English words hilarious and hilarity. The underlining thought here is that giving to God can and should be fun and maybe even more so when the giving is anonymous and private experience that prompts a collective response. Kind of like the telling of a good joke but better, for we do need to laugh regularly just like we need to give regularly. Sure, this is counter-intuitive, but friends, let’s be honest, the whole Christian life is counter-intuitive. Think about it: Jesus said that he who loses his life for His sake will save it. He also said the first will be last and the last will be first. He likewise said, give and it shall be given unto you. In addition, Paul teaches that we give up our lives to Christ to gain our freedom. Let me give you an historical example of what I mean by counter-intuitive. During WWII, statistician Abraham Wald was asked to help the British decide where to add armor to their bombers. After analyzing the records, he recommended adding more armor to the places where there was no damage! The RAF was initially confused. Wald had data only on the planes that returned to Britain so the bullet holes that Wald saw were all in places where a plane could be hit and still survive. The planes that were shot down were probably hit in different places than those that returned so Wald recommended adding armor to the places where the surviving planes were lucky enough not to have been hit. So too thinking that giving can be fun is counter-intuitive. So, it should not surprise us that one way to have fun in life is to learn generosity. So, let’s look at how we spend our money and what brings us joy and the first thing that comes to my mind is that when our gifts make a difference. Helping things grow and change in a positive way is a fun experience. And if our gifts make a difference for the Kingdom it is even more fun. It can become an adventure in helping the future of Christianity, and that is exciting. And for me when the investment is for the benefit of kids that is even more rewarding. Generally helping make the world a better place is fun work that makes it more like play. Doing missions at home and around the world is personally fulfilling. When you know firsthand how important your giving is and what those gifts make happen, it is enjoyable to have a stake in it financially. We don’t want to give to God with the idea of what we can get from God—kind of like heavenly bribery. On the other hand, the Bible does tell us that generosity brings us great blessings as a motivator for us to give generously. Now these blessings may not necessarily be monetary. But the truth is that giving leads to receiving, whether what we get in return is monetary or other intangible, but more important, blessings.
Pray we are not grudgingly resentful about the idea of becoming more generous, but instead embrace the idea of giving in ways that bring smiles to our faces. Pray we not struggle so much with the idea of God being in charge, but instead laugh at our typical self-willed behavior in the realization that God owns everything. Pray we not struggle with being obedient to the Lord but in this emotional place instead substitute God’s serenity as a way of experiencing God’s sovereignty. Pray our open-handedness with money turns into a bountiful blessing for both the giver and receiver. Pray we realize that when we give it is given back to us eventually. Pray we realize that God is not interested in our money but is interested in what it can do in terms of the health of our hearts and heads when released from being only potential energy. Pray we are obedient in love and discover the joy of life abundant now even more so than in the sweet by and by. Pray this joy of giving overflows from us like a gut-wrenching laugh that brings tears to our eyes. Pray our giving prompts the release of not only physical, but also spiritual antibodies, which strengthens our not only our individual immune system but also our communal ones. Pray our giving be a very pleasant surprise in the lives of the receiver as well as the giver. Pray our giving moves others to give with joy.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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