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Sowers are special to God
Let each one [give] as he has made up his own mind and purposed in his heart, not reluctantly or sorrowfully or under compulsion, for God loves (He takes pleasure in, prizes above other things, and is unwilling to abandon or to do without) a cheerful (joyous, “prompt to do it”) giver [whose heart is in his giving]. (2 Corinthians 9:7 AMP)
There are only a dozen verses and categories where the Bible explicitly showed what or who God loves, and one of them is a cheerful giver.
The Lord already loves us just as we are – His children, His treasured possession. There is nothing in this world that could lessen that, and there is nothing we could ever do to make God love us more than His other children. God’s love is absolute.
But there’s a special action on our part that thrills His heart: Cheerful giving. He is thrilled because with our cheerful giving, He gets to give to us more.
Joyful seed-planters give in faith. They have come to grips that they are not letting go of what little they have, but are actually preparing to receive.
And because they do so in faith, God is pleased. Some pastors put it this way: God’s greatest desire is to be believed.
When we believe God and put our faith in His Words, He is thrilled! And one way to show our faith is in our offerings.
Seed-planters always receive another set of seed for planting.
And [God] Who provides seed for the sower and bread for eating will also provide and multiply your [resources for] sowing and increase the fruits of your righteousness [which manifests itself in active goodness, kindness, and charity]. (2 Corinthians 9:10 AMP)
God initiates it, and He sustains it. It is the Lord who provides seed for sowing. And then, He wants us to have seed storage for Him to fill and increase and expand.
He does all this, not for our avarice and senseless gratification, but for us to be busy in good works. Imagine all the good things we can do in the world if money were no object.
We can feed the poor and hungry. And then we need to transport these goods. So God blesses us with trucks. But it’s overseas, and the airport is destroyed by a calamity. It’s either God blesses us with helicopters or C130s, or we have enough finances to rent one. And it’s all because we want to feed the poor and hungry.
So we really need to plant that seed and receive more from God for planting again.
Seed-planters receive bountiful harvests from God
But remember this—if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only a small crop, but if he plants much, he will reap much. (2 Corinthians 9:6 TLB)
Given the same circumstances among farmers, if they have the same size of field and the same amount of seeds to sow, naturally we would think that their harvest is the same. But if we factor in the pests, and the ruined crops, or a storm, and even the fertilizers used, then we could rationalize a noticeable difference in yield.
The Father wants to give to His children. But the truth is seed-planters receive more than those who do not. And as God prefers to work within the confines of His Laws, so God blesses the work of our hands. The more work we do on our seeds – praying, anticipating and believing, versus planting and forgetting about it – then the Lord will bless the latter than the former. God doesn’t want us to live in the “desert” where we depend on manna. He wants us to toil the ground and reap a bountiful harvest from it.
Seed-planters who are cheerful tickle God’s heart. In return, God always gives them more seed to sow, and more harvest to enjoy the goodness of God.
The next time you drop that offering in the offering box, set your heart on seed-planting, and sow it in God’s work. Sow it in faith and joy, and anticipate the cycle of another seed-planting opportunity and the pleasures of living in your harvest-rewards.
Image courtesy of Lightstock.