Archive for Giving
Plant Good Seeds!
Posted by: | Comments
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” – Galatians 6:7
Every decision you make, is a seed you’re planting in the ground. You’re either planting good seeds or bad seeds. Even the thoughts that you choose to entertain, are seeds that you’re sowing.
When you wake up in the morning with a heart full of gratitude and thanksgiving, you’re planting a good seed for the entire day. You’re showing the almighty God that despite of the way things seems, you’re grateful for the few things. When you’re grateful for the little things, God will inturn reward you and make you ruler over many things.
When you choose to entertain thoughts that are virtuous, honorable and of a good report, you’re planting a seed for peace, wholeness and joy. On the contrary, when you choose to meditate on things that are depressing, downcast and solemn, you’re planting dark seeds. You’re putting seeds of doom and gloom into the ground.
Remember, whatever you sow is what you’ll reap. If you’re putting seeds of faith into the ground, you’ll reap a harvest of manifestation. If you plant seeds of Read More→
The Gift that Keeps on Giving
Posted by: | CommentsIf you’re like me, the smallest gestures are enough to brighten your day. If someone takes time to simply open a door for me, that’s enough to put a smile on my face.
But too often, we forget that it’s the little things that matter. Day in and day out, we get so busy with the hustle and bustle of the day that we over look the opportunities to extend a helping hand.
Showing random acts of kindness is one of the greatest ways to sow a seed to someone in need. Someone may have an emotional need. They may have a need for time and attention. Whatever the need is, make it a point to show at least one random act of kindness a day. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.
When you show little gestures of love, time and attention, you leave others wanting to do the same to another person in need. And then another wanting to show a kind gesture to another person. It’s a ripple affect. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.
‘The most amazing thing happens in rush hour traffic. When traffic is bumper to bumper, sometimes, the person ahead of you lets a car merge in from the merging lane. When this happens, you then feel compelled to do the same. When you let someone in front of you, then the person behind you feels obligated to do so… and so on and so on.
Why? It’s the gift that keeps on giving. It’s because one person showed a random act of kindness and it created a ripple effect.
Conversely, if no one let anyone in ahead of them, the merging lane Read More→
Maybe You Could be One of the Ones… (Compassion for a Good Cause)
Posted by: | CommentsYou have the ability to bring about a positive change in every area of your life. You can be the catalyst that brings about total change in your environment.
From time to time, we find ourselves putting off certain responsibilities for the next person. But God is looking for us to step outside of the mold. As ambassadors for Christ, He wants us to take initiative. He wants us to step up to the call of duty.
Maybe there was an opportunity to go against the grain. When everyone else is too busy to help someone in need, maybe you could be one of the ones to take time out of your busy schedule and lend a helping hand.
Maybe you could be one of the ones to do what everyone else is not doing. Maybe you have a service to offer. The world might say, “It’s crazy to offer your service for free.” But, I dare you to be bold and courageous. Remember, it’s not about what someone else can do for you, it’s about what you can do for someone else.
.Who knows, someone out may be in desperate need of the service you have to offer, but they may not have the resources to acquire it. My friend, what better opportunity is there to show compassion than this? I believe that God is moved with compassion for us, when we’re moved with compassion for others.
I’m reminded of the story about the Good Samaritan. It tells of a Jewish man who was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho and was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him, and Read More→
3 Ways to Get Good Seed in the Ground Without Spending a Dime
Posted by: | CommentsThere is more than one way to sow a seed into the lives of others. One of the greatest misconceptions we have, is that the only way to sow a seed is through money.
There are many reasons one will sow a seed. One reason is to reap a harvest. Farmers and planters can tell you first hand, that if there is no seed sown, then no harvest can be obtained. Another reason for sowing a seed, is the benefit of knowing that you’ve blessed someone’s life. There is nothing like the good feeling you get after knowing you’ve uplifted another individual.
So here are three ways in which you can get some seed in the ground without spending a dime.
1) Perform random acts of kindness – You should wake up everyday in expectancy and look for opportunities to bless someone. Be prepared. When there’s an opportunity to hold a door open for a stranger, jump on it. When there’s an opportunity to offer a helping hand, do so. If there’s a chance to let someone go ahead of you in traffic, don’t hesitate to perform it. There is great joy in doing these things!
2) Volunteer your time and efforts – Get involved in the community. Place yourself in environments where you can help people in need. Seek opportunities to Read More→
Show Random Acts of Kindness
Posted by: | CommentsDo you find yourself looking for ways to help others? Know today that there is something very liberating about showing random acts of kindness.
Throughout our day to day journey, it’s so easy to get wrapped up in ourselves. It’s easy to do the things that make us happy and make our day go smoother.
But I dare you to look for ways to show love to others. You can make a choice to be a light in a dark world. You can choose to be the Jesus that many have never seen.
In fact, 1 John 4:12 says, “No one has seen God at anytime. But if we love one another, God abides.” So as you can see, God is among us when we show love to each other. 1 John 3:18 urges us to not just say that we love one another but to show it through our actions.
When you seek ways to show love to others, it pleases the Father. And He abides in us when we have a heart of compassion for one another.
The world may not know Him, but they get a pure glimpse of Him through the love that we show. I want to encourage you to look for ways to show random acts of kindness.
You know, I can think back to a time when I was getting a soda out of the vending machine at work. This particular machine malfunctioned and instead of Read More→
Always Count The Costs
Posted by: | CommentsWhen we pray for material things, we often forget that they come with a cost. We forget that God requires a sacrifice for everything.
Sometimes He requires the sacrifice up front, and other times the cost comes after the blessing is given. For instance, in order to reap a harvest, you must sow a seed. It may not always be a seed in the form of money. The Lord may require a sacrifice of praise given unto Him, extra time or extra efforts put into a certain task.
Other times, the good Lord may require us to pay the cost after the blessing is given. In this instance, it may be in the form of maintenance. An example would be, If God blesses you with a house, acres of land, and a shiny new luxury car, you’ll required to keep them up.
My friend, I want to encourage you to always count the cost. It’s not that God doesn’t want you to have the things that you ask, it could be that He’s waiting on the right time to give it to you. That’s why He’ll test you first. He’s trying to see where your faith is- He wants to know that you handle the up-keep that it takes to sustain the blessings that He has in store for you.
Many people want more money, more power, more success or more material things but you should always count the costs. A wise man said, “with great power comes great responsibility.” The scripture also says, “to whom much is given, much is required.”
It may be that your faith level is not at the level of your blessing. In other words, you may not be sowing a big enough seed up front to meet the level that requires your blessing. Whatever you do always count the costs.
In your everyday actions, always count the cost. When you’re tempted to turn left when God says turn right, know that there is a cost for the disobedience. When you sow a seed of love into your neighbor life, you will reap Read More→
What Kind of Fruit Are You Producing?
Posted by: | CommentsIn this day in time, it’s not hard to distinguish the righteous people from the unrighteous. It’s becoming more and more rare to find those who are salt and light.
People should be able to determine if you are a child of the most high God by the fruit that you produce. All around us day in and day out we see fruit that is not of the Lord. People are power hungry. They’re in it for themselves. Everyone is in such a hurry that no one takes out time to lend a helping hand.
The scripture reminds us that you can identify people by the fruit they bear. Matthew 7:17,18 says, “A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit.”
Notice here that there’s no middle ground. In other words, you can’t wake up one day and say I’m going to bring glory to the Father by doing good deeds, then wake up the next day and do the exact opposite. No as God’s disciples, we Read More→
Seek Opportunities to Serve
Posted by: | CommentsDon’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. – Philippians 2:3
I believe something miraculous happens to us when we learn the true art of putting others before ourselves. I believe without a doubt that God is moved by an humble heart.
One prayer that I pray each and everyday is that the good LORD gives me an opportunity to bless someone else. It’s my prayer, each morning when I wake up, that He puts someone in my path that I can help.
There’s a passage in John 13:1-17 where Jesus washed the disciples feet. In this particular passage we have to remember that it’s not about the washing of the feet, it’s about serving others. It’s about humbling ourselves so that we can uplift a brother or sister.
No matter who they are, where they’ve come from, whether rich or poor, young or old, we should look for ways to serve others.
I’m reminded of another passage in Matthew 25:31-46 where Jesus is teaching the disciples. He said when the Son of Man returns, he will separate the people as a shepherd separates his sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. He called the sheep righteous and he cursed the goats.
He uses a great illustration in verses 34-36 as he grants the righteous ones access to his kingdom. He says”…for I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a Read More→
Compassion With A Passion
Posted by: | CommentsIn the fast pace of life it’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the day. Too often we get busy trying to meet deadlines or trying to cross the ‘T’s’ and dot the ‘I’s’ that we forget to look outside of ourselves and consider others in need.
In fact I believe one of the greatest gifts we can give is the gift of compassion. Remember, today as you go along your journey that you have the power to make someone’s day greater.
Sow a seed of sympathy and warmth for someone else. When you’re out and about, place it on your heart to extend kindness to someone. You’ll be surprised at the difference when you add others to the equation.
As we embark on a season of thanksgiving once again, we’ll start to hear all the commercials advertising opportunities to give contributions to local charities, food drives and fund raisers. These are great opportunities to give but wouldn’t it be nice to have this type of compassion on an ongoing basis.
Just because the holidays end doesn’t mean that someone doesn’t need a new pair of shoes. A couple canned-goods at the local Good Will at Thankgiving is great but what about those same people in the Read More→
What Type of Seeds Are You Sowing?
Posted by: | CommentsWhen you see a stranger on the street do you smile and give a kind hello to them or give them the cold shoulder? Are you quick to offer a helping hand for a neighbor or are you quick to mind your own business and go along your own way?
Well I believe that every little seed that you sow, is something that you’ll reap in one way or another. There is no gesture too small enough to make a difference.
You may say, “sure I’ll smile at a stranger, but will they smile back?” But just think of each gesture as a selfless way to change someone’s day.
You see, that stranger that you may have sowed into or helped may have not showed the courtesy back to you, but on the inside it could have spoken volumes. To Read More→
