The More You Sow...

“Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed 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, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written,

‘He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor,
His righteousness endures forever.’

Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God.”
2 Corinthians 9:6-11

Two farmers planted in the spring. One sowed twenty acres of wheat - the other seventy-five acres. When harvest came, guess whose barn was full?

The law of sowing and reaping is God’s fundamental, universal law. And it works just as systematically and resolutely in the spiritual realm as it does in the earthly. If we need love, we must sow loving words and acts in the lives of others. If we are low on friendship, we must become a friend to someone else. That is why giving is God’s only plan for abundant living. “Now this I say, he who sows (gives) sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows (gives) bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Cor. 9:6).

We cannot cling to our money, our time, or our talents - and expect them to increase. They must be put into circulation. Sowing involves death. When we give to others, it means we have to die to something that we want or need. Generous giving is impossible apart from daily dying to self. But as we trust the Lord of the harvest in distributing our goods and dying to self, we can be assured of an abundant return in God’s time. It is God’s way of blessing.

“There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more...” Proverbs 11:24

God’s Formula for Blessing, Part 2

“Now there came a day when Elisha passed over to Shunem, where there was a prominent woman, and she persuaded him to eat food. And so it was, as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat food. She said to her husband, ‘Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God passing by us continually. Please, let us make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.’ One day he came there and turned in to the upper chamber and rested.” 2 Kings 4:8-11

“And he went up and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth and his eyes on his eyes and his hands on his hands, and he stretched himself on him; and the flesh of the child became warm. Then he returned and walked in the house once back and forth, and went up and stretched himself on him; and the lad sneezed seven times and the lad opened his eyes. He called Gehazi and said, ‘Call this Shunammite.’ So he called her. And when she came in to him, he said, ‘Take up your son.’ Then she went in and fell at his feet and bowed herself to the ground, and she took up her son and went out.” 2 Kings 4:34-37

There must have been many days when the prophet Elisha rejoiced in the hospitality ministry of the Shunammite woman. At first she prepared meals for him as he passed by, but then later she and her husband added an upstairs room where he could rest when he was weary. Little did she know that her generosity would lay the groundwork for Elisha to bring her son back from the dead.

As we participate in a lifestyle of selfless giving, we too are preparing the way for God to work His miracles in our lives - be they financial, spiritual, or emotional. Such preparation, however, can begin only as we take on the characteristics of the Shunammite woman.

We must be sensitive to the needs of others. No one told the Shunammite woman to feed and house Elisha. She observed his journeying and knew his needs.

We must be willing to sacrifice if necessary. Giving does not come naturally nor does it come easily. The Shunammite woman had to sacrifice some of their time and plans to accommodate Elisha.

We must have a servant spirit for agape giving to work. A servant is bent of meeting the needs of others.

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” -Jim Elliot

God’s Formula for Blessing

“Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” Luke 6:38

Like the farmer in the Bible who hoarded his grain, the world seeks to accumulate wealth. God’s way is opposed to the world’s ways. With God, the formula for blessing is summed up in one fundamental word - give.

To the logical, earth-bound mind, that is nonsense. How can you gain by giving away what you have? But in God’s eyes giving is the basic principle of true prosperity.

Giving is first and foremost the way to blessing because it declares our allegiance to and dependence upon God as our Source. The person who greedily gathers his goods around him almost always sees his stockpile as his resource. The giving person must look to God.

Also giving is God’s way to success because it imitates God Himself. God is always giving - food, air, goods, love, peace - all that is necessary for life to the fullest. When we give of our time, money, or love, we reflect the image of the One from Whom all blessings flow.

Then giving is God’s plan for our wallet and our walk because it keeps our focus on the needs and problems of others instead of just ourselves. God wants us to look upon the fields of humanity that He longs to bring into His storehouse.

“All that was ever ours is ours forever.” -Amy Carmichael

God’s Perspective About Money, Part 2

And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Luke 12:16-21

In her book Discipline, the Glad Surrender Elisabeth Elliot reveals four meaningful lessons to be learned from the discipline of our possessions:

“The first lesson is that all things are given by God...Because God gives us things indirectly by enabling us to make them with our own hands (out of things He has made, of course) or to earn the money to buy them...we are prone to forget that He gave them to us.

...We should be thankful. Thanksgiving requires the recognition of the Source. It implies contentment with what is given, not complain...It excludes covetousness.

...The third lesson is that things can be material for sacrifice. ...The father pours out His blessings on us; we, His creatures, receive them with open hands, give thanks, and lift them up as an offering back to Him...
                   
...This lesson leads naturally to the fourth which is that things are given to us to enjoy for awhile...What is not at all fitting or proper is that we should set our hearts on them. Temporal things must be treated as temporal things - received, given thanks for, offered back but enjoyed.”

“...For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You.” 1 Chronicles 29:14

God’s Perspective About Money

Now He was also saying to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and this manager was reported to him as squandering his possessions. And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the management people will welcome me into their homes.’ And he summoned each one of his master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light. And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into the eternal dwellings. He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you?” Luke 16:1-11

If you’re teaching a teenager to drive, you don’t start him off in a Ferrari. If you’re teaching a youngster about hunting, you don’t give him a twelve-gauge shotgun. Instead you start at a beginner’s level with compatible equipment.

For the Christian, money, plays a similar role. God has much He wants to entrust to us: effective ministry to others, evangelization of the unredeemed, and influential leadership in our families and the body of Christ. However, God is careful to distribute the stewardship of His spiritual treasures to those who have proven faithful in a much more common endeavor - the management of their financial resources.
       
Money is a tool God uses to develop the disciplines of self-control, contentment, and giving. To check your progress in this area, answer the following questions: Do you view money as your rightful recompense or as God’s blessing? Do you seek God’s will and wisdom in your spending, or do your pleasures and preferences rule? Are you giving at least a tenth of your income to God’s work?

As God witnesses your diligence and faithfulness in the use of money, He is eager to bestow far greater riches upon you.

 “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much...” Luke 16:10

More is Caught than Taught

"In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands; just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear." 1 Peter 3:1-6

One of the most significant ways a mother influences her children is the manner in which she relates to her husband. Since the majority of our sons and daughters will grow up to be husbands and wives, their view of marriage is learned primarily in their own household. Thus, a son will discern much about his future wife's role and a daughter her place as a wife from their mothers' example.

Above all, a woman is to be submissive to God. Her personal relationship to Jesus Christ permeates everything she does. As she submits to Christ, her children understand the importance of a godly mother. In addition, a woman should submit willingly to her mate. By coming under the servant-headship of her husband, a woman provides a biblical role model for her children.

A woman should support her husband emotionally and spiritually. She undergirds him in prayer - even when his judgement is questionable. Also a woman must respect her mate. She must express a sense of dignity and honor for her husband - bother verbally and non-verbally. Children are profoundly impacted for godly living when a woman creates and atmosphere of respect, encouragement, and service in their homes.

"...and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband." Eph. 5:33

If You Love Them...

“She made a vow and said, ‘O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor shall never come on his head.’” 1 Samuel 1:11

“Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with a three-year-old bull and one ephah of flour and a jug of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh, although the child was young. Then they slaughtered the bull, and brought the boy to Eli. She said, ‘Oh, my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has given me my petition which I asked of Him. So I have also dedicated him to the Lord; as long as he lives he is dedicated to the Lord.’ And he worshiped the Lord there.”
1 Samuel 1:24-28

A popular expression is “Have you hugged your child today?” Certainly no one would argue with the need for parental affection, but hugging must be done in moderation. Perhaps more than any other trait, overprotectiveness by mothers of their children stands out. Children need love, but they also have an increasing need for independence, responsibility, and personal discipline.

While progressively letting go of our children can be traumatic, it is a vital step for the development of our offspring. Moses’ mother had to release her child before Moses could lead the Israelites of slavery. Hannah had to part with Samuel before he could become Israel’s judge.

Two principles can help the mother who loves her children passionately but who wants God’s best for them. Children are a gift, not a possession. Your sons or daughters are entrusted to you, not owned by you. When we let go of our children, we are giving them back to God. Neither Moses nor Samuel were abandoned; they were, by faith, placed in God’s hands.

Love your child deeply. But remember that possessive love is selfish, while God’s love is always giving and trusting.

“Behold, children are a gift of the Lord...” Psalm 127:3