Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time
God loves a cheerful giver. It is a common expression that comes from today’s first reading. What does it mean to be cheerful giver? For that matter, what does it even mean to be a giver? In trying to answer this question, I reflected on the different ways I give of myself. After naming a few things, the categories of time, talent, and treasure floated to the surface of my mind. From stewardship, I turned to the question of cheerful giving.
Cheerful giving seems straightforward. Giving with a smile on your face should be easy. Surely, we can all do that. However, Paul’s letter is not written to affirm the patterns of generosity of the community at Corinth. Instead, Paul is writing to challenge them to consider how their generosity or lack thereof is reflecting God’s abundant love. Paul’s words here suggest that our acts of giving are not ones that should come from sadness or guilt but from joy. We need to recognize the One from whom all blessings come. This needs to be more than cognition about God. It must lead one to an internal attitude of gratitude. This gratitude allows God’s grace to inform all they say and do. Paul was trying to tell the Corinthians that they needed to do more than be a people who acted generously on occasion. Paul wanted them to be a people who trusted God completely and reflected that trust to others by acting out of their spirit of charity.
Acting from a spirit of true charity may seem subjective. However, in the Gospel, Jesus makes it clear that charity comes from a secret place inside of us. A place where the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing. In other words, an act of generosity that reflected God would expect nothing in return.
Lord, help take away all in our heart that prevents us from being truly generous; so that with gratitude our lives will always reflect a Godlike generosity. Amen!
- Michael Montgomery