On most Sunday morning, whenever the collection plate was passed by for offering, I MUST remind myself that: what’s mine is not mine, really, all that I have belongs to God. I learned that when we place our contribution in the collection plate, we are not giving to God; we are just taking our hands off what truly belongs to Him, namely, everything.
Roy B. Zuck records a story in his book The Speaker’s Quote Book (Kregel Publications, pg. 212):
One night a preacher was making an appeal for funds and he invited the congregation to bring their gifts and lay them on the altar. The response was large, and soon the aisles were filled with people, bringing up their offerings.
Soon a little girl came slowly toward the front. She was lame and walked with a crutch. At the altar she pulled a little ring from her finger and laid it with the other gifts. Adjusting her crutch, she went back to her seat. After the meeting, the preacher said to her,
“My dear, I saw the thing you did tonight. It was beautiful but, you know, the response of the people tonight has been large, and we find we have some money left over, so we don’t need your ring and I have brought it back to you.”
The little girl looked up with rebuke in her eyes, and said,
“I didn’t give that ring to you.”
Too often we forget that the offerings of the Lord’s people are not made to man but to God.
Question: If everything in the world belongs to God, why we need to give to Him? I have 5 pages of Calibri font size 12, A4 paper article on reasons why we need to do so, but here what I think the main reason is – it is a practice of spiritual discipline to change your heart from stinginess to selflessness. Both your eyes and heart, instead of focusing on self, now are focusing on the Giver of Life, the Treasure that is worthy of all things, Jesus Christ. When you give ‘cheerfully’ (2 Corinthians 9:7), you, are saying to the world that your treasure is not here on earth, but on heaven above.
The Master said, “Whenever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21NLT)
THINK BIG What’s yours is not yours; really, all belongs to God.
START SMALL Learn to give cheerfully, not reluctantly or in respond to pressure,
GO DEEP You’ll soon discover that as your give freely,
your heart change from stinginess to selflessness… and that pleases the Lord.
your heart change from stinginess to selflessness… and that pleases the Lord.
This remind me of my mum.
ReplyDeleteLong time ago when she was young and life was hard, and my parents did't have enough cash. One day in church after the sermon, the people are passing the offering sack around and my mum did't had cash at that time so she pull out a gold ring given from her mother and put in the offering sack. People think that someone had mistakenly drop their ring inside the sack :)
Until now, God has blessed our family abundantly and we had more than enough ^.^
Oh wow! What a great true story! :)
DeleteYour mom understand that; 'All things belongs to God." Blessed mother and remembering daugther :) May the Lord, abundantly bless your family with generous heart. In reflection of Him Who Give, to others.