I have learned two very important principles from this lesson: "Giving is the secret."
The first is that God gives to us in order for us to give to others, and that doesn’t always mean money or earthly possessions. He touches our lives in order for us to touch other lives.
There are so many broken women out there, desperately in need of the same love we received from Him when He gave us His Son, who healed us and made us feel cherished and in need of nothing else but Him. This incredible gift, His Son, is something we cannot keep to ourselves; we need to share Him with other women we meet who ask about the reason for the hope within us without trying to push anything on anyone. We must be epistles of His love that naturally draw others to want what we have.
Once we learn the secret of giving what we have received, blessings will overtake us. We do not have to wait and believe that something good will someday come out of every trail that comes our way; we can start looking for the blessings immediately after the trail is over or when all that we have sown begins to overtake us.
If we are required to wait for something, we can know that the waiting period is there for us to gain new strength to be ready for when the blessing shows up.
"Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not get tired; they will walk and not become weary" (Isaiah 40:31).
Waiting can also signal gaining strength for what is about to hit.
And this is the second principle I’ve learned: to ride the wave of adversity or go with the flow, never opposing or resisting evil. Being able to not resist evil, to turn the other cheek, and to do more and give more than what was asked for, especially to those who hurt or wronged us, is a powerful way to live in the blessings of His message and to live the Abundant Life.
When we start to get everything we need directly from the Lord, we will be able to give what we have received so abundantly from Him. When we are filled with His love and acceptance, nothing that anybody does or says to us will hurt us, and we will be able to walk the extra mile or give more, even blessings, to those who hurt us.
One very difficult area of giving is giving money because we are fearful of not having enough and withholding what we have, only to find out that our fears are realized and manifested. Withholding will only result in want, a cycle that can only be broken by having enough of Him and trusting Him enough to walk out what He has told us.
As the author shared:
"Once you have enough of Him, you’ll want more and more of Him—not things, money, or other people. You won’t want attention or need companionship. And it’s then that you will finally be free to give because the love that saved this world will be overflowing in your life! You then no longer need or want things, money, or people—then all of these blessings will be "pressed down and overflowing" to the point that anyone who comes close to you will be drenched by His blessings too."
This is the secret of life—He gave.
Living the Abundant Life Playlist
Please share what He showed you in the lesson in the comments below.
These days nothing excites me more than an opportunity to give/share/serve. Not exactly knowing why, but there’s a sense of urgency to please HH or to follow where He wants me to do. I am not going to lie – because there were times I was very hesitant and had to keep asking Him “should I do this”. But nonetheless, if it’s part of His will, the amount of joy afterwards is indescribable.