The Reluctant Giver

The Reluctant Giver

You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”

2 Corinthians 9:7

At the height of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln met a prominent society woman from Alexandria, Virginia. She had come to request that the president allow a certain church building, which had been captured by Union forces, to be released for use as a hospital in which wounded soldiers could be treated and allowed to recover.

Seeing that she was a woman of wealth, Lincoln responded by asking her why she did not simply donate the money to build a hospital. She replied, with an exaggerated look of sadness, that her wealth was being temporarily hampered by the war effort, and she could not afford to take on such a project at that time.

At her response, Lincoln could not resist a small chuckle. Then he gave this reply:

You, as a representative of your class in Alexandria, remind me of the story of the young man who had an aged father and mother owning considerable property.

The young man, being an only son, impatient for good fortune, and sincerely believing that his old parents had outlived their usefulness, assassinated them both. He was accused, tried, and convicted of the murders.

When the judge came to pass sentence upon him and called upon him to give any reason he might have why the sentence of death should not be passed, the young man stood up and promptly replied that he hoped the court would have mercy upon him because he was a poor orphan!

Dear Lord, thank you for the amazing blessings you lavish on us every day. May we learn to adopt your generous spirit and share our many blessings with others happily and willingly. We want to be more like you, Lord, in our giving. Amen.