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1 Timothy 6:6-7, 2 Corinthians 9:6-8, A giving heart blesses other, A giving heart pleases God, Are you giving or getting?, Ephesians 4:28-29, Giving, God loves a cheerful giver, Joy of The Lord!, Laugh--Love--Lighten a heart, Laughter is good medicine, Matthew 6:19-21, Proverbs 17:22, Thank YOU God for Laughter
Keep On Laughing??? A Word from THE WORD!!! #24
Another brief post this morning, as I sit here smiling and thanking God for precious friends who make my heart smile, and thank God for love, laughter, and light-hearted ways.
“A merry heart
doeth good
like a medicine:
but a broken spirit
drieth the bones.” Proverbs 17:22
And then there’s a direction that I’m sure will catch you off guard, but I truly believe a giving heart is a merry heart. It’s such a delight to give with open heart and open hands—it almost always makes the giver smile; for being married to a true, godly ‘giver’ has helped me to understand that more than I ever did. It makes me see why Paul wrote what he did—not to get people to “give”, just to “give”, but to bring people to understand that a heart filled with the “joy of The Lord” just spills over onto others in so many ways! Being stingy, grasping, and greedy almost always leads to discontent, sadness and often sorrow over the cost the individual pays for their greed! Thank you, Lord, for teaching me to be willing and delighted to share!
“But this I say,
He which soweth sparingly
shall reap also sparingly;
and he which soweth bountifully
shall reap also bountifully.
7 Every man
according as he purposeth in his heart,
so let him give;
not grudgingly,
or of necessity:
for God loveth a cheerful giver.
8 And God is able to make all grace
abound toward you;
that ye, always having all sufficiency
in all things,
may abound to every good work:” 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
It is very sad that so often we neglect this passage and relegate it to the “giving” sermons; for Paul wasn’t simply speaking of financial giving, but a heart that is sharing whatever God blesses us with! Just as the writer of the Proverb makes the contrast between the joyful, merry heart and the broken one (and the spirit is often broken because of a greedy, clutching heart and life) for a heart full of God’s goodness ought to spill over everywhere it goes!
Paul also encouraged Timothy with a challenge in this regard, and while this isn’t exactly where I intended to go, it seems to be the way God is leading; for it is a sad, greedy, and uncaring world that we seem to be cultivating. God calls us to be different—for true trust and dependence upon God should breed grace, caring and a sharing, giving spirit. We are to labor not just to get, but to be able to share. Not as I’ve often heard in the modern proverb, “Get all you can! Can all you get! And sit on the can!”, or the other popular one, “Me and my four and no more!” May God open our hearts to the joy of laughter, and delight in sharing with others—sharing our hearts, our lives, our resource, our wisdom, and our caring! I can’t tell you how much it means to be sitting here smiling as I’ve been sharing experience and love with some that God sent into our lives—those sent to bless us, and to give us opportunity to smile and laugh in the sharing of God’s love! Go—smile—share—laugh heartily!!! It’s a lot more fun to give than to hoard!!!
“Let him that stole
steal no more:
but rather let him labour,
working with his hands the thing which is good,
that he may have
to give to him that needeth.
29 Let no corrupt communication
proceed out of your mouth,
but that which is good
to the use of edifying,
that it may minister grace
unto the hearers.” Ephesians 4:28-20
Go—gain—share—and laugh your heart out with others!!
“But godliness with contentment
is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world,
and it is certain
we can carry nothing out.” 1 Timothy 6:6-7
And Jesus own commission:
“Lay not up for yourselves
treasures upon earth,
where moth
and rust
doth corrupt,
and where thieves break through
and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven,
where neither moth
nor rust
doth corrupt,
and where thieves do not break through
nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is,
there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:19-21
Let’s go—share–not till it hurts–but till laughter abounds!
Amen!!!