The Cheerful Giver

“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.” 2 Corinthians 9:6-7

Some years ago a little girl walked into an ice cream store and inquired about the price of an ice cream sundae.

“Fifty cents,” replied the waitress.

The little girl carefully opened her fist and counted the coins in her hand. Then she asked, “How much is a plain dish of ice cream?”

The waitress, quite annoyed by the girl, snapped back, “Thirty-five cents!”

“Then I’ll take the plain ice cream, please,” she said as she slowly counted out thirty-five cents and handed it to the waitress.

The waitress took the money, dipped up the ice cream and handed it to the little girl, all without saying a word or issuing so much as a smile. After the little girl left, the waitress went over to clean off the table and was embarrassed to find two nickels and five pennies placed neatly by the bowl.

We could all learn a lesson from that little girl. How many of us would have chosen to purchase the plain ice cream rather than the ice cream sundae in order to have enough money for a tip. When I was a little boy buying ice cream at Yate’s Drug store on the court square in Philiadelphia it never even occurred to me to give a tip.

Our Stewardship campaign this year at Minor Memorial is attempting to teach each of us about God’s attitude toward giving. Every time I study what the bible says about giving I am reminded that no subject is more important to my spiritual health. From time to time I hear complaints that we shouldn’t be talking about money in the church. We should, some insist, stay on spiritual subjects. But Jesus talked about money more than almost anything else.

Of course, the church is not in the fund-raising business. It really isn’t about the needs of the church. It’s about what we need to do to be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. And we simply cannot be a faithful disciple without a generous heart.The bible makes this point repeatedly. Some form of the word “give” is found in scripture over 1500 times.

Over and over in the scripture God promises to bless those who use their time, talent, and treasure to bless others. Many verses could be quoted to make this important point but perhaps the best is Jesus’ simple statement found in Luke 6:38. “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” Don’t miss God’s blessings. Be a cheerful giver!