SEPTEMBER 23
SOWING AND REAPING
2 Corinthians 9:6-8
Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart; not grudgingly, or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work. (WEB)
God loves a cheerful giver. The Greek word for 'cheerful' actually means 'hilarious.' God loves someone who gives hilariously! While man looks at the outward appearance, our heavenly Father examines our hearts. He knows if we are giving out of guilt or pressure, and He doesn't want us to give for those reasons. He loves it when we freely give what was freely given to us, simply because we love giving.
May God free us from giving for wrong reasons so that when we offer, we do so with all the right motives. May we realize that every gift we give is a seed. When a farmer plants a seed, he expects a harvest of 30, 60, or 100 times his investment.
When we begin to see all that we have as our seed, then of course we will give joyfully, knowing that each seed will be multiplied many times. Whether our seed is our finances, our time, our possessions, or our gifts, may we all understand that the Kingdom of God is not about buying and selling, but about sowing and reaping. May each of us receive a harvest beyond our wildest expectations as we learn to give joyfully.
Matthew 13:8
Others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. (WEB)
Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart; not grudgingly, or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work. (WEB)
God loves a cheerful giver. The Greek word for 'cheerful' actually means 'hilarious.' God loves someone who gives hilariously! While man looks at the outward appearance, our heavenly Father examines our hearts. He knows if we are giving out of guilt or pressure, and He doesn't want us to give for those reasons. He loves it when we freely give what was freely given to us, simply because we love giving.
May God free us from giving for wrong reasons so that when we offer, we do so with all the right motives. May we realize that every gift we give is a seed. When a farmer plants a seed, he expects a harvest of 30, 60, or 100 times his investment.
When we begin to see all that we have as our seed, then of course we will give joyfully, knowing that each seed will be multiplied many times. Whether our seed is our finances, our time, our possessions, or our gifts, may we all understand that the Kingdom of God is not about buying and selling, but about sowing and reaping. May each of us receive a harvest beyond our wildest expectations as we learn to give joyfully.
Matthew 13:8
Others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. (WEB)