Let’s be cheerful givers

LET’S be cheerful givers as much as we can, because

according to St. Paul, God loves them. In whatever we do or give, we

should do so without sadness or compulsion, he said. (cfr  2 Cor

9,6-7) Things have to be done freely. “Freely you have received,

freely you have to give,” Christ said. (Mt 10,8)

            We have to learn to be generous and to give not only

things but our very own selves as gifts to others. St. Paul reassures

us that if we sow sparingly we will also reap sparingly. But if we sow

bountifully, we will also reap bountifully.

            This logic echoes what Christ himself said: “Give, and it

will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together

and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure

you use, it will be measured to you.” (Lk 6,38)

            And again, “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or

sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake

will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.”

(Mt 19,29)

            Let’s not be afraid to give ourselves to others as

generously as possible, without counting the cost. God cannot be

outdone in generosity, one saint said, with the abundant spiritual

fruit of his work as proof to that assertion.

            And let’s be generous without expecting any return for

others, not even some acknowledgment from them. Christ himself

practically told this to us when he said: “Take care not to perform

your righteous deeds in order that people may see them. Otherwise, you

will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.” (Mt 6,1)

            That’s right. We have to learn how to pass unnoticed while

doing a lot of good. We have to do battle with the present obsession

many people have of wanting to be seen and praised and honored.

            This will help us to have purity of intention in our good

deeds and to avoid being corrupted by worldly allurements. This will

help us to stay focused on our eternal destination which is heaven and

to avoid getting stranded in some worldly thing or place.

            When we are cheerful in our self-giving, it can only mean

that we are doing things really out of love for God and for others.

And we can have focus, eagerness and perseverance in the performance

of good things.

            This does not mean that we would avoid suffering

completely. We will always have it one way or another. But when we are

cheerful, we will always get some measure of relief. The awareness

itself that we are doing things out of love for God and for others

will always have a way of filling our heart with joy and peace.

            This generous and cheerful spirit does not contradict the

requirements of prudence, understood as prudence of the spirit and not

prudence of the flesh or worldly prudence.

            Though we may appear to be a failure according to worldly

standards, let’s be convinced that being a cheerful giver as

envisioned by St. Paul is worth all the effort.