2 Corinthians 9:5-7 -- On a Matter of Bounty

"Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."
2 Corinthians 9:5-7


I love the idea here of giving from a mental position of abundance rather than worrying about how the treasure is divided. I think about the widow's mite, journeys to the promised land, and the parable of the talents, and I can't help but think that one aspect of faith is committing to go all-in with God. We can't hedge our bets just in case he's not real or he doesn't come through. Faith is committing, not just hoping... it's taking hope and building it into something bigger. That substance and proof out of the intangible, the abundance out of belief. We give not because we have too much--who can really say that? We give because we love, and we know that God will grant us more, if we are wise (in a gospel sense) with what we have, using it to help and lift others.

Maybe another thing we run into is the division that we make between people. If one person asks us for something and we are willing to give, does that change when it is a different person? If we're coming from a mental position of abundance, we probably don't have to save all of our resources for only a small group of people... we can learn to give without begrudging anyone.

Now, I'm not saying that this is easy, or that we should give up healthy boundaries and just give away everything we have and are as we are asked for it... unless it is God asking. However, I think Christ lived closer to that ideal than he did the "collect all of the things" one, and that we should probably skew our own behavior in the same direction. God tells us that if we pay tithing that he will pour out a blessing and "there shall not be room enough to receive it" (3 Nephi 24:10). That's a position of abundance. :)

Today, let's work on our faith and our attitudes, and be more willing to give "as a matter of bounty." :)