Proverbs 11:24-26

²⁴ One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. ²⁵ A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. ²⁶ People curse the one who hoards grain, but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell.

Pandesal

During the pandemic when government authorities issued an advisory for everyone to stay home, many individuals experimented in baking bread. Have you ever tried baking “Pandesal?” Do you like to bake “pandesal” or just eat?

Several years ago, someone sold delicious “Pandesal.” And one satisfied costumer asked the seller, “How did you make this delicious “pandesal?” “It’s a secret” she said seriously. There’s a time when baking “pandesal” was a secret.

These days, ingredients added in commercial foods aren’t secret anymore. Consumers should be warned of ingredients in the food that may possibly trigger allergies. Nevertheless, the percentage of ingredients in particular food and the process of how they manufacture or made the food could be secretive.

In the field of competition, it is not advisable to reveal your secret unless required by law. In the battlefield, enemies are advantageous if they uncover the secret operation of their enemies. While we (as believers) are expected to face spiritual battle, we should reveal and not very secretive of our faith in Christ.

Christ had warned in Luke 8:16-18, ¹⁶No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. ¹⁷ For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. ¹⁸ Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.”

Our mission purpose is to testify of transformation that Christ performed in our life. Our choices, decisions, behavior and attitude should be practical proofs of God’s grace. And many preachers warned against materialism or prosperity, why? Not everyone is gifted on how to manage wealth as practice of faith in God.

Nobody disagree that it is better to be prosperous than to be poor, right? It is much better to be generous rather than begging or waiting for dole outs. Had not the Scripture revealed how to avoid poverty and so to gain more wealth?

1.  Gain

²⁴ One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.

When it says, “Gives freely” it is also literally translated as “scatter.”  What particularly is the difference between giving freely and scatter? To give freely can be hand out of gifts with intentional purpose; you want to make sure that your gift would be worthwhile; you want recipient to benefit and not waste away the gifts. You won’t appreciate recipients to waste what you give them, will you?

In comparison, the idea of “scatter” can be mindless giving. It is not about throwing away along the road. It is more anonymous giving. It is secretive giving.

You do not need to know if recipients use your gifts wisely or prodigally. Some people give because they expect recipients to remember them, and they also expect recipients to return favor in different form. In contrast, the person who scatters or generously gives anonymously won’t expect any favor from recipients.

Giving Money

Someone makes online video giving away money to poor families. They approach individuals and talk to them casually. When they presumed that the person is possibly financially deprived, they would handout few thousands of bills to the delight of the recipient. When recipients ask why they are generous, they would tell recipients that someone abroad is financing such generosity. And of course, the video garners millions of subscribers, and they earn more money.

Christ had advised in Luke 14:13-14, ¹³ When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, ¹⁴ and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.

Whatever Christ admonishes us to do is designed to pour out his blessings even more upon us when we obey him. It is by faith we trust that. The term blessing includes practical and spiritual blessing, here and in eternity. The Lord reveals how to prosper. He designed generosity as blueprint of prosperity.

2.  Generosity

²⁵ A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. ²⁶ People curse the one who hoards grain, but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell.

Ordinary people are envious of wealthy billionaires. Who aren’t? Yet, there are people who may readily badmouth the rich; they cannot readily appreciate how wealthy people get wealthier, but if you who wish to learn how the wealthy prospered, you may seriously consider how wealthy people behave.

Who is the wealthy personality you followed in your social media account? Do billionaires hoard their wealth? Do they keep all their money in the bank or hide them somewhere. Of course, they saved emergency funds for themselves. Do you know if a portion of their wealth is invested in charity organizations and charitable causes? If you were poor and needy and recipient of charity, would you not be grateful and pray that God would bless your benefactor even more?

Did those billionaires know that their generosity caused them to prosper even more? Did they know that the Lord heard the prayer of the recipients of their generosity? King David prophesied in Psalm 10:17, ¹⁷ You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry. 

What do you think? Did King David personally experience what he wrote?

David was a shepherd before God installed him as king of Israel. He had seven brothers and two sisters. He’s the youngest. Did David ever expect that tending the flock of his father will make him prosper? His brothers may have expected to inherit some but not him. So, he may have cried to the Lord for miracle.

Pray for stronger faith to trust that the Lord blesses you to be generous. We are also warned that there is curse to anyone who hoards provisions.

Nabal

When David and his men were running away from King Saul, they have no chance to earn fair living. They were dependent on dole outs from their friends. David had distant relative named Nabal. Nabal was a wealthy man from the tribe of Judah. At one time, David instructed his men to ask for provision from Nabal. He instructed them what they would to say to Nabal in 1 Samuel 25:7-11.

⁷ “‘Now I hear that it is sheep-shearing time. When your shepherds were with us, we did not mistreat them, and the whole time they were at Carmel nothing of theirs was missing. ⁸ Ask your own servants and they will tell you. Therefore be favorable toward my men, since we come at a festive time. Please give your servants and your son David whatever you can find for them.’” ⁹ When David’s men arrived, they gave Nabal this message in David’s name. Then they waited. ¹⁰ Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. ¹¹ Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?”

The narrative recorded that David and his men decided to punish Nabal, but Abigail the wife of Nabal quickly met David and gave him provisions for his men. Ten days later, David heard that the Lord struck Nabal, and he died. David sent a message asking Abigail to become his wife. Abigail became wife of David.

Nabal was not very grateful even after his men told him that David and his men served like wall around them; Nabal’s shepherds were safe the whole time they were herding his sheep near the camp of David and his men.

His wife Abigail was very sensitive and wise woman; she responded quickly; she did the best she can when their servants warned her about the possibility of disastrous attack from the angry David and his men. The Lord blessed Abigail and became the wife of David, the greatest king of Israel.

Let’s reflect on what it reminds us in 2 Corinthians 9:11, ¹¹You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

In generosity, God uses us as vessel of his blessings to refresh others; he refreshes us as well. When recipients of our generosity thank God, the Lord will enrich us even much more. God may present opportunities for us to be blessed and enrich at any given moment. Generosity is the open secret to prosperity.

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