Blessed to give...

About a year ago, I read a letter written in the front of the Desiring God catalog. (A great ministry you should check out if you’ve never heard of it).

The letter was titled “Blessed to give.” And it was signed, “Eager to give everything good I have away…”

These words have stuck with me ever since I read them for the first time. Maybe they stuck with me because that is such a contrast to our human nature. We want to keep the good things, or at least a piece of them, to ourselves, right? And even if we decide the right thing to do is give them away, are we eager to give them away?

Maybe the words stuck with me because since I have read them, I have continued to be challenged by the heart reflected in those words: “I am eager to give away everything good I have.”

There are countless opportunities to give of physical gifts and material gifts (food, money, etc) here in Namibia because the need is so great. It is a rare day to not be asked for money while walking down the street. Sometimes these gifts are given out of guilt. Sometimes these gifts are given out of pity. Sometimes gifts cannot be given. And sometimes, gifts are given in JOY.

Followers of Christ are called us to be this kind of giver…the kind that gives and is blessed by the joy that comes when we give ourselves (time, love, money) away.

Not only that, but there is an abundance of opportunities (and this is true no matter where you are in the world) to give the most important kind of gift - the gift of sharing Christ, of sharing the love you have to offer because you have been loved by Him first. This gift, if given genuinely, is impossible to be given out of guilt or pity. The nature of the gift demands that it be given in JOY...

If we really believe in the goodness of this gift, if our hearts grasp the awesomeness of what we have through the gift of salvation, the gift of Christ, then we will be eager to give it away. And all other good things that flow from this ONE all-encompassing gift of a relationship with Christ, we will hold less dear. We will have less of a need to hold onto them with all our grasp, and we will be eager to give them away too.

And God has continued to prove this to me in the opportunities He has brought my way to give-- that in giving of the good things I have (and more specifically, the BEST thing I have), I have been so blessed. Joy is doubled when it is shared.

Oh how I long to have a heart that always says "I am eager to give everything good I have away." So God, give me an ever-increasing understanding of this gift that you have given me-- the gift of your Son, of salvation, of hope and joy in relationship with YOU. Let me be bursting with passion to give this news away. The rest of the good things I have PALE in comparison to this gift, and so let me be eager to give them away too.

I am amazed at the way God has given great things to me through all of you: encouragement, joy, friendships, the support to be where I am now. I'm so grateful for these gifts, and working hard to give them away to those I come in contact with here.

Christmas is coming... so my prayer is that we become more eager than ever to give...especially the most important gift of the good news of the gospel.

God, you are the ULTIMATE giver. Thank you for being eager to give to us...for giving us your Son.