More Blessed

The Lord Jesus Himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35

It is good to belong to a community of people who know it is more blessed to give than to receive. I have many examples of generous people. My brother-in-law once came upon a Sri Lankan missionary and his family. They were buying peanuts on the sidewalk and did not seem to have enough money for a meal. So my brother-in-law who had a meeting in Max’ Fried Chicken, invited them to Max and treated the whole family. 

Whenever there is a need, I am quite confident that if I ask for help, there are many who will respond. I once posted on Facebook that the flimsy homes of the Aetas in Floridablanca were destroyed by the last earthquake, and many gave P1,000- P5,000 to help them. Every year since 2009, before the pandemic, we gave 300 plus gift bags to the inmates of Quezon City Jail at Christmas time. We always had more than enough donations to make the inmates happy. The bags were packed full with shorts, t-shirts, cookies, soap, packed food, coffee, etc. 

When one member of our community fell and hit his head and the family needed so much money for the operation and procedures, we held a fund raising, and asked for things to sell. So many responded, thank God, to ease the burden of the young wife and mother. My garage and lanai were filled with things to auction and sell, clothes, books, toys, even jewelry. Then there was a young member of our community who was hit by a fast moving vehicle. The outpouring of support was very quick and generous. The doctors held little hope for her but more than the financial help, she was surrounded by the power of prayer. She was healed and it was a delight pre-pandemic to see her attending our community meetings with her big smile. I have no doubt, she is convinced that she is surrounded by love and prayers. 

Winston Churchill said, “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” If we want to make a good life, we have to learn to be more generous with what we have.