Quenching Generosity

Nothing quenches  generosity like forgetting who we are.  The person who thinks it is all about me is not likely to have a generous spirit.  Instead, such a person is more likely to get caught up in the seductive power of accumulation.  When we read the parable known as the parable of the rich fool found in the 12th chapter of Luke, we see a farmer who is successful, but who also takes all the credit for what the land has produced.  When we read the parable and underline every time "I" or "my" appears, we begin to catch a glimpse of what makes the man think of himself as self made and what makes God think of him as a fool.  

The point of the parable is made clear as we hear Jesus saying, "Take care!  Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."  (Luke 12:15).  Allowing ourselves to get caught up in a life of accumulating, a life of having more, and a life of storing up things not really necessary for living is a perversion of life as God intended for us to live it.  When accumulating more takes hold of us, there is little room for generosity because the god of accumulating never lets us feel that we have enough.  If one barn is good, two is better.  If a lot is good, more is better.  There is no end to satisfying such a god.  

According to the Word of God, we are not defined by what we have, but by how we love.  Love requires care for others.  It seeks what is good for another.  At another time Jesus told a rich young man, "...sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and then you will have treasures in heaven..." (Matthew 19:21).  The young man who heard these words walked away because, "he had many possessions."  (Matthew 19:22).  Jesus said it in plainly when he said, "You cannot serve God and wealth." (Matthew 6:24).   God calls us to love Him and others which, of course, we cannot do when our fist is closed tightly around what we mistakenly think of as mine.