Numbers 29:39 “…In addition to what you vow and your freewill offerings….”
God is an extravagant giver. In our quest to reflect his image, it’s hard to overestimate the importance of giving. Not only does generosity help others “see” God, but it has the added benefit of heightening our own awareness of his benevolence.
I once had a student in my Public Speaking class who, for his demonstration speech, showed us how to use his most precious possession….his massive memory holding, high tech computer. But more interesting to me than how the computer worked was how he got it. He told the class he had been saving and saving until he had accumulated almost enough for the purchase. Then at church one night he heard a missionary speak. Convicted about the needs presented, he felt the Lord tell him to give all the money he had painstakingly set aside—over $800—to the missionary. So he relinquished the cash as well as his dream….and started the saving process all over again.
A few weeks later I ran into a former student at Barnes & Noble. Now enrolled in a nursing program, I knew she was planning to soon leave for a medical mission trip. When I asked how her fund-raising was coming along, she cheerfully replied, “I still have a long way to go….” Immediately I thought of the computer speech. I opened my wallet and gave her all I had. It was only $20, a small measure of sacrifice, but I was spurred to give because of my Public Speaking student’s testimony. I had been given a “glimpse” of God’s generous nature and it made me want to give in turn.
So if I could encourage you today….. give, give, give. Don’t confine yourself to tithes and offerings. Let the Lord’s generous nature flow through you so that as the world sees your good works they will give glory to the Father.
Like the commercial says, “What’s in your wallet?”