9:1 Now concerning the
ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to
you; 2 for I know your willingness, about which I boast of you to the
Macedonians, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal has stirred up the
majority. 3 Yet I have sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you
should be in vain in this respect, that, as I said, you may be
ready; 4 lest if some Macedonians come with me and find you
unprepared, we (not to mention you!) should be ashamed of this confident
boasting. 5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren
to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand,
which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a
matter of generosity and not as a grudging obligation.
6 But this I
say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows
bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 So let each
one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity;
for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make
all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in
all things, may have an abundance for every good work. 9 As
it is written:“
He has dispersed
abroad,
He has given to the
poor;
His righteousness
endures forever.”
Karma is a principle. A word used to describe cause and
effect in a person's life. Every choice will produce a reciprocal effect. If
you are mean to someone eventually that will come back on you. If you are kind
the same will come back to you sooner or later. Some Christians shy away or
reject the word because it is often associated with eastern mysticism and/or
new age beliefs. What we often fail to realize is that everything that is true
has it's roots in God and we can use these universal truths to build bridges to
people who have some truth but don't know Jesus, Who is the Truth. The
principle of cause and effect is all through the Scriptures. When God presented
the blessings and the curses to Israel it was simply a list of cause and
effect. The Bible says if you cast your bread on the water, after many days you
will find it again. Here Paul said that people who sow sparingly also reap
sparingly and those who sow generously reap a bounty. What does he mean? You
get what you give.
I meet a lot of lonely people but it is no mystery why they
are lonely in many cases. They spent their lives self-absorbed. They didn't
invest in others. Their circle was small and in the end it left them
lonely.
When we lived in Cape Breton there was a family that had a
house fire. They had no insurance. However the family was known and loved by
many for their kindness and generosity. Guess what happened? The community
rallied around them, materials and time were donated, in not long after the
fire they had a brand new house that was better than what they lost and it cost
them next to nothing. When Fort McMurray had their terrible forest fire last
spring I was moved by the generosity of so many to come to their aid. I was
proud of my church organization ADRA for taking such a large and active role. I
was proud of my local churches for their immediate willingness to provide help
and supplies and the entire city of Grande Prairie for being so ready to give.
If you want mercy, be merciful. If you want kindness, be
kind. If you want forgiveness be forgiving. If you hope others will help you in
your time of need, help others when the opportunities present themselves. There
is a joy in serving others you won't find anywhere else. We were designed to
serve, to give, to share, to love. True happiness is found in these things. God
loves a cheerful giver because He loves our happiness. :)
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