Bringer of the Blessing

Are we bringing generosity or selfishness to others?

I have a friend who is extremely generous.  She is a true “bringer of the blessing” in my life, and the lives of those around her.  She is generous with her time, her words of encouragement, and her prayers.  As she blesses others with her gifts, God in turn will bless her.  As she waters my life with the living word from the living God, she in turn will be watered.  

This proverb, part of the section we can read together (Proverbs 11:23-27), focuses on the themes of generosity and selfishness.  This is wise counsel on how we choose daily to live.  We can live in the ways of my dear friend, the way of blessing and generosity, or we can live in the way of selfishness and hoarding.  It is a daily choice.

We are advised to choose the way of generosity and blessing – not because we will be blessed in return (though that is certainly a wonderful benefit), but because simply, it is the way of God, the way of the Cross.  You see, it costs my friend something to be as generous as she is with her time, her words, her prayers.  She is denying self when she blesses others, and in a world that is increasingly “self-focused,” my friend’s ways appear almost radical.

We find this Old Testament guideline for life fresh and vibrant in the first century early church.  As we read in Acts 2:44-46: “And all who believed were together and had all things in common. ⁴⁵ And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶ And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts…”   There they were – the early followers of Jesus acting in the very ways detailed in this proverb.  Their hearts were glad and generous, as they sold and shared and ate and worshipped together.  I can easily picture my friend right there with them, experiencing the glorious goodness of God found in community and in generosity.

This week, let’s be intentional about walking in the ways of generosity and bringing the blessing where God places us.