The Joy of Giving

While reading Debora M. Coty's wonderful book, Too Loved to Be Lost, I came across an insight that caused me to look with fresh eyes on the matter of giving. For a long time I've believed this truth expressed in Acts 20:35: "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (NKJV). I've also learned, as she points out, that givers are richer for having given.

What I had not really thought about was this: Whenever we give, we are acting as God's representatives--His helpers--in meeting the needs of others. Wow! No wonder we feel such joy. And that joy is there even when we think we've given or done very little. It's there because we've expressed God's lovingkindness to another person. And that joy of having been enabled and entrusted to bless another person lingers long after the giving has taken place.