To Freely Give this Christmas...Continued from page 1

So, I prayed about it. I asked the Lord to help me in my own every day application so that I can let my right hand freely give without my left hand interfering. (Matthew 6:3) His answer came in a variety of ways, ranging from the passengers in First Class to the Rescue Mission’s radiothon. 

At the Rescue Mission, the homeless and helpless had nothing to offer and only one thing to give. They were asked to give their commitment to follow the program and to listen to those who freely gave of themselves to help them. I couldn’t help but compare this program and the homeless to the Lord and myself. The only difference between me and the person on the street is the grace of God. From God’s point of view, I am just as poor and wretched as the next person without the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ.

God freely gave to us but it cost His Son, Jesus, everything. We were freely able to receive at someone else’s expense - Jesus’. All that He asks of us is our commitment to follow in His ways by listening to His instruction.

Part of His instruction has to do with our need to freely give to others as the Lord has freely given to us. He expects us to have the same heart towards others that we know God has toward us. Mercy triumphing over judgment. (James 2:13)  The basic motivation for our every action needs to be rooted and grounded in love. Our first thought needs to be our willingness to act in love in whatever way the Lord leads. Love is not footloose and fancy free – it is deliberate and obedient to the Spirit’s leading. There is a discernment involved (as I learned from the Rescue Mission).

When I give to others to appease my guilt or to feel good, my giving becomes all about me; that does not display the love of the Lord. That is when we could end up with more guilt and doubt. We need discernment to know the difference between pleasing God and appeasing ourselves. Pleasing the Lord through our giving produces the fruit of righteousness, only if done with the proper motive.