December 18, 2023 - 2 Corinthians‬ ‭9:7

“Let giving flow from your heart, not from a sense of religious duty. Let it spring up freely from the joy of giving—all because God loves hilarious generosity!” 2 Corinthians 9:7 TPT

Lord, I love the way this translation words this verse. Hilarious generosity - what a great word picture. Lord, we want to be excessively joyous givers. Let giving to others and to you be something that just flows out of us. Make generosity a part of who we are. Not just with money or possessions, but let us freely give of who we are, of our time, of our knowledge, our heart, our resources, etc. Grow giving in us until we get past giving for religious duty, to impress others, or any other reason than it gives us pure joy.

Lord, we don’t want to be greedy with anything that you have given to us. Our lives and everything we have comes from you. Forgive us for the places where greed is a part of us. Help us understand the principles of sowing and reaping. This is how your kingdom works. When we sow, we will reap a harvest.

The boy who gave the loaves and fishes to you gave all he had, knowing that he would go hungry. He wanted to bless you with what he had, even if he went without. What a beautiful heart. Lord, we praise you that you didn’t let him go without. You took his gift and not only made sure he was fed, but you used it to feed thousands of other people. He definitely got back more than he gave. Lord, grow our giving to the point that we would give without hesitation anything that you ask of us. Let us know without a shadow of a doubt that we can trust you to care for us even if we give away every penny we own. Grow our faith in you, Lord.

In Jesus name, amen.