2024 21 Day Fast Devotional — Day 15: Generosity Brings Life
“Trust in your money and down you go! But the godly flourish like leaves in spring.” – Proverbs 11:28 (NLT)
It’s hard to imagine this time of year, but springtime will eventually come around. And with it, the signs of new seasons and the possibilities of the days ahead. Snow was melting, birds were chirping, and leaves were beginning to bud on trees all around. The world will begin to feel warm and full of life!
The writer of this Proverb uses the imagery of budding leaves in spring to remind us of the relationship we should have with our financial resources. Our finances are a gift and blessing from the King of the universe. The Lord of hosts, the One who created the seasons, the birds, and the trees is the same God who provides for you and me. But God does not bless and provide for us just to hold on to our resources. No, He provides for us to give generously and with faith. That is the way that life continues for us and others. Just as those spring leaves are a sign of the fruit, shade, and warm season to come, the Lord will bring provision, protection, multiplication, and life from the outflow of a generous heart. Generosity brings life.
Billy Graham once said, “There’s nothing wrong with men possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess men”. Some of us may try to “hold on” to resources, putting our ultimate trust and reliance in our financial standing – sometimes even masking it as “just trying to make it through”. But as this Proverb says, that is not a Kingdom mindset. Putting our ultimate trust in our money only leads to dryness, decay, and downfall – much like the trees look in winter.
The Kingdom mindset with our resources should be that of a generous, grateful, and faith-filled heart with the trust that God’s ultimate provision will come. A generous heart brings life and the possibility of so much blessing and fruitfulness. When we live a generous life, it is a lifestyle that is backed by a grateful heart posture and faith-filled mindset. A belief that ultimate provision comes from the Heavenly Father and the endless possibilities of God’s life-giving nature.
Prayer and Reflection:
Where does your trust ultimately land – with your finances or the One who provided those finances? Do you view giving as an act of forced obedience or an act of generous worship that has the potential of a flourishing life and blessing for you and others? In what ways are you not ultimately trusting the Lord with your natural provision and holding back the abundant life God wants to give you? Ask the Lord to soften your heart and open your eyes to the life-giving nature of having a generous heart.