Giving At the Grandparents

I love practicing Giving for a Living when we travel to Kansas City. Why Kansas City? Oh that's where Marilyn and I were raised. Our parents still live there and I never tire of going back to see our parents and to reminisce of the special times when they gave so much to me; to us. I wish we could do it more. The joy of our visits comes full circle to me though when we can give back in a small way; by listening; by smiling; by doing simple acts of service that makes their life easier. Oh, the joy that giving brings!

As the proud son and son-in-law of two terrific sets of parents I marvel at the grace of God to have been so good to me as to allow me to be raised in a God-fearing home and to learn how to give by receiving. Not that I can speak for my bride, but I would guess that she would say that she too marvels each day at the grace of God to have been so good to her for the same.

I guess that's the way our Heavenly Father teaches giving as well. By demonstration first and then confirming his acts of love by instructing us to do t he same; to (as the old campfire song states) to "Pass it On." He tells us we should practice it in his word but it takes on meaning for the Believer when we realize that he demonstrated it first. And we inherit eternal life by believing in his demonstration. "For God so Loved the world that he gave..." John 3;16

Thank you Lord for a heavenly model of selfless giving...and thank you too Lord for terrific earthly models as well. Marilyn and I couldn't be more blessed that to have seen what selfless giving looked like in our parents. For it's in giving that we receive. And in receiving, we are compelled to give again.

Giving Will Always Be Rewarded

"Sometimes we give expecting nothing in return; sometime we do expect a return. Though it seems wrong at first glance, it is actually not wrong to expect a return for our giving. The scriptures support the promise that God will return our giving in due season. Psalm 62:12 says, 'And lovingkindness is yours, O Lord. For You recompense a man according to his work.' Proverbs 24:12 says, 'If you say, 'See, we did not know this,' Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts? And does He not know it who keeps your soul? And will He not render to man according to his work?'

Though it may not come with the timing that we would like, our reward rests in a God who cannot lie; who is watching and keeping track and who will indeed repay our giving according to what is right and just. Ours is to stay humble; hide under the shadow of his wing and trust his faithfulness.

'Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the righteous will live by his faith.' Habakkuk 2:4"

Ah, the freedom of practicing Giving for a Living.

Simple Ways to Give More - Giving for a Living is a Choice

Simple Ways to Give More - Giving for a Living is a Choice:

Giving by guilt is the motivation we're most familiar with. 'Wanna give a dollar to Jerry's kids?' asked the young Taco Bell employee begrudgingly. Guilt. 'Oh yeah, I guess so,' you reply. 'Why not?'
You can feel it can't you? That sense of guilt that momentarily got you doing unnaturally what you know in your heart, ought to come naturally. Oh, it's not that you don't want to help in the fight against Muscular Dystrophy. You believe in the mission; you believe in all of those good things that people are fighting for as long as they are biblical and advance the Kingdom, but if you feel 'guilted into it,' you usually don't find joy in doing it. Yet if we aren't made aware of such needs, how are they to be satisfied?
That's why making a conscious choice to give a generous amount mostly with planned giving and a small amount with joyous spontaneity works for me. I set my heart like a thermostat toward the purposes of God each day. I am reminded of key verses such as Matthew 6:33 which command me to do so but I find peace and joy in the shadow of His will and purpose. And I know that by 'paying it forward' he will receive the glory and praise for whatever happens in my life.
Surely, our freedom to choose is God's greatest gift to us. And fortunately, we have the freedom to choose an attitude of Giving for a Living every single day!"

Simple Ways to Give More - Praise and Worship - A Giver's Recharge

Simple Ways to Give More - Praise and Worship - A Giver's Recharge: "Giving for a Living requires a respite; a recharge; an oasis in the storm of life. Big givers know this because they realize that they couldn't be big givers without regular drinks of refreshment from the Giver of life itself. Corporate worship is not what we do because it's a tradition once a week, it's what we do because we were made for worship and it behooves the giver to receive regularly too.

As you can tell, I believe in this. I never tire of coming together with the saints to give praise to him who is worthy of all my praise and devotion. It's my firm conviction that giving becomes a joy and remains so for the one who spends generous amounts of time recharging their batteries. And since, there is no end to his glory, there is no end to what we can do when we rest in the fountain of life.

Lest we give from an empty cup of bitterness and regret, we must come and partake of him who said, 'He who drinks of me, shall never thirst again.' Interested in practicing giving for a living? Let it begin with receiving his love as you gaze upon his beauty; his holiness; as you bask in his presence."

Giving by Listening

Some people give of themselves by being great listeners. They make themselves available for divine moments that find them sensing a need from another to talk and then probing with just the right question that will elicit a response. Once the response begins to flow, it often becomes a flood and the giving begins. The listener gives themselves away content just to listen; to reflect; lto care with their eyes, their ears, their heart.
So, the reader may ask. Is this really giving for a living? I mean it seems so passive; so unassuming; so easy. Well, it's not hard but I must confess that even though it does seem easy, I'm not very good at it. I always have an agenda and good listeners must lay down their agenda. I have meetings to go to; people to see; things to do. If I want to give by listening, I must reconsider my pace and be intentional about this lost art. For, as is often the case, the most dynamic giving comes from the truly humble. Rightly is it written, 'The meek shall inherit the earth.' When you find a good listener, you will have found a giver of one's personal time in exchange for another's empowerment."

Give Without Keeping Track of the Score

It's better to not keep score. If you itemize the return on your giving, your mind can play tricks on you and you could find yourself feeling that you got a raw deal. Don't keep score because there are too many times when life will seem unfair. Also, you really can't keep score anyway because you don't have all the facts but here's the thing.
There are no raw deals really. That means no pity parties are allowed. It's not about you and me anyway, remember :) . Ultimately, a sovereign God rules the universe and will give to each man according to what he has done, the bible tells us. If we know him and understand him to be good (which he is), then we can know that we'll never get a raw deal with him and we don't have to keep track because he is good...and he is faithful.
Trusting him is what we were meant to do. And it's an ideal lifestyle for the giver because we can be unencumbered by the weight of what seems fair. We don't know all the answers to the why's of life. Anyone who thinks he knows all the answers simply hasn't heard all the questions, yet I take great comfort in knowing that my heavenly Father is a rewarder of one who diligently seeks him and that makes Giving for a Living a pleasure and a joy.

Heavenly Minded for Earthly Good

I am reading a book by Randy Alcorn called "Heaven." In it the author takes exception to the familiar charge levied at Christians that they are "too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good." I won't go into the details of the two arguments here. Clearly, this very website is dedicated to those willing to be of an "earthly good" but I would also agree with the author that perhaps the best way to gain a mindset of bringing good to this earth is to fixate on the beauty of heaven. I would also agree with the author that for too long Christians have avoided the study of heaven believing that it's possibly too lofty a topic to command serious scholarship. Alcorn (and now I too) would disagree.
The bible has much to say about heaven. It gives us a pretty good glimpse of what it will be like and I have to tell you, I like what I see! In fact, I love what I see; so much so that it moves me to practice giving for a living knowing that I can "pay it forward" as I "lay up for myself treasures in heaven" that can't rot nor be lost or stolen (Matthew 6:20)
Check out "Heaven" by Randy Alcorn. But be prepared to let an increase in "heavenly mindedness" lead you to more passionate Giving for a Living.