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Are you a selfish giver or a selfless giver? We all give to others whether it is through our time, talents, or resources, but most of us tend to give with an ulterior motive rather than out of sheer love for the other person. II Corinthians 9:7 says, "God loves a cheerful giver" meaning that the Lord is pleased when you are eager to bless the lives of others with what He has given you. After all, everything we have is a gift from God anyway, so we should be as willing to share with others as God is willing to bless us. In fact, Paul writes, "Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously" (II Cor. 9:6). Though giving requires sacrifice on our part, the eternal rewards for being obedient and placing others' needs above our own far surpass any inconvenience we may experience in the present. God promises that as we give to Him and minister to others, that He will "meet all our needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19). God also promises to give us grace to give so that "in all things and at all times having all that we need, we will abound in every good work." (II Cor. 9:8) If God has called us to reach out to another person and help provide for his needs, we can be assured that He will provide every resource we need to draw from so that we will be thoroughly equipped to minister effectively.

We must be careful though that when we give, we do so for the right reason--not out of guilt or obligation, but out of love for God and for the person in need. Giving should always be done when prompted by the Holy Spirit and with a sincere and humble spirit. We often give hoping for some recognition or payback but that attitude does not constitute a truly selfless giver. Christ gave His life for us--a gift which we could never thank Him enough for, nor one for which we could every repay Him. His sole motive for giving of Himself was love. Ephesians 5:1-2 says, "Be imitators of God . . . and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us . . . " We can give without loving but we can never love without giving because love by its very nature is sacrificial.

God promises that as we walk in selfless giving He will provide for all of our needs and bless us abundantly. We must not become discouraged though if our giving is overlooked or underappreciated. Hebrews 5:10 says, "God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them." God has blessings planned for us that are beyond our imagination and that are only available to us as we seek to be "His hands extended" to the world. Ask Him today to make you a selfless giver so you can become just like Jesus.