"In the measure you give you shall receive, and more besides" (Mk 4:24). The Lord promises that we will never out-give Him. If we give bountifully, we will harvest more than we sow and receive more than we give. Then we are to give generously again and receive even more, spiritually and materially. After a few rounds of giving and then receiving more, we have significantly greater spiritual and material resources than before our rounds of giving and receiving. This may not always be obvious because spiritual resources are not visible and quantifiable as are material resources. Nonetheless, after repeated givings in the spirit of the Gospel, we definitely have much more to give (see Lk 8:18; 19:26).
The Lord calls us to give not only bountifully but totally to Him. He commands us to love Him with all our heart, all our soul, all our strength, and all our mind (Lk 10:27). This command to give all to Him may seem unreasonable until we focus on Jesus' death on the cross. At the foot of the cross, we see the command to give all to Jesus as a privilege of love, not as a burden. We give all to the Lord. Then we find that not only are our resources transformed, we are transformed. We are no longer our old selves of selfishness; we are new creations in the love of Jesus. Therefore, accept the grace to give all to Jesus.
| PRAYER: | Father, may I get into Your spirit of giving. |
| PROMISE: | "The man who loves his life loses it, while the man who hates his life in this world preserves it to life eternal." –Jn 12:25 |
| PRAISE: | St. Lawrence, an ordained deacon, was martyred on August 10, 258. Lawrence, along with the Apostles Peter and Paul, is a patron of the city of Rome. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College