Today’s #BattleDrill devotional: When it comes to giving, the amount we give isn’t as important as the attitude we have when we’re giving. #salvationarmy #basingstoke #devotional
Read 2 Corinthians 9:1-15. “It’s not what you said, it’s the way that you said it!” Have you ever said that to someone, or had it said to you? When someone says this, it means that the words used don’t matter as much as the attitude that was behind them.
The same is true for God when it comes to giving. The amount we give isn’t as important as the attitude we have when we’re giving. After all, Jesus didn’t commend the rich who were putting large amounts of money into the temple coffers. Instead, he highlighted the poor widow who gave only two small coins. He wasn’t interested in the amount of money, but the attitude in which it was given; he could see into the hearts of the givers.
The rich were giving a tiny proportion from their surplus. It would make no difference to them and their hearts were cold. The widow gave all she had, and she revealed a warm, kind and generous heart as those two small coins dropped into the treasury chest.
God is a cheerful giver. Think about all the things in our lives that he gives because he loves us and wants the best for us. And he is pleased when we give generously and joyfully, because we are created in his image, and the best thing we can do with our lives is to learn to be more like him.
So, let’s be thoughtful in our giving. Let’s examine our giving in our hearts, before God, and then choose to be decisive and cheerful in whatever we choose to give. When we stop to appreciate God’s grace to us, then we will be ready to respond and to give our all, generously and cheerfully.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
oWhy do you give? What do you think are valid motives for giving?
