Givers and Takers (Use Things, Love People)

30 Day Church Challenge:  Day 14
Read pgs 76-79, 30 DCC Guidebook

"A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed."  Proverbs 11:25

"Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them."  Jesus, John 7:38

Today's devotional reading just laid it on the line, beautifully:  "It is quite simple, really.  God cannot give more to those whose hands are already full."

Our view of the Sea of Galilee, trip to Tiberias, Israel, 2008.

It is the tale of two lakes that Jesus knew well.  One was green and blue, full of life.  The other, brown and salty, was absolutely dead.   The Sea of Galilee, Jesus home, was a "giver."  Fed by fresh sources and natural springs, it flows and constantly refreshes itself, and all those whose lives are sustained by it.  I've seen it in person, and it truly is a beautiful place of life.

The other sea is a "taker."  Many, many feet of altitude below Jerusalem, and below sea level, the Dead Sea receives all of the minerals that the surrounding desert has to offer.  There is no outlet, and the result is a body of water in which nothing at all can live.    It's a great place for a mudbath, but it's not much of a place to go fishing.

Perhaps we are built in the very same way.

The Dead Sea shoreline, caked with deposits of salt.

What is our attitude toward life?

Givers are marked by things like:  noticing the needs of others, helpfulness, and generosity.  They pick up the tab.  They really listen.  They get their hands dirty.  They live with generosity.

Takers experience life differently.  They are oblivious to others' needs.  They ask, "what's in it for me?"  They don't go out of their way and they resent being asked to do so.  They are sensitive to defending their own rights, and they have a terrible habit of loving things and using people.

Which are we?  Most of us are some combination of both.  But if we dare to believe that God is generous.  If we practice gratitude and truly see all that we receive, we can risk opening up and letting the water of our spirits begin to flow.

As we give, our capacity to receive, to love and to be loved, increases in equal or greater measure.

Isn't that amazing?  I think it truly is.

Grace, Peace, and Giving over Taking,
Adam

Today's Small Step:  Listen to your conversations today.  Challenge yourself to be a giver, not a taker.  Listen more than you talk.

Today's Big Idea:  Who are the most giving people that you have known?  What do you think made them that way?  How are we like them or unlike them, and how can we grow to be more giving, like them?