Sharing is Praise!

5 “And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. 9 As it is written,

‘He scatters abroad, he gives to people experiencing poverty;

His righteousness endures forever.” 

-2 Corinthians 9:8-9 (NRSV)

Reminding ourselves to share seems like it should be easy, but, unfortunately, it is not. We have to constantly remind ourselves to share! The Scripture does more than remind us to share; the Bible gives us the reason to share: God! First, we have to separate bare acts of kindness, like sharing food with our children and partners, from the type of radical sharing that Paul is talking about in the Scripture. By radical sharing, I mean the sharing that directly expresses our love for God’s grace. Radical sharing is giving to others that require us to share from a place of appreciation. Appreciation to God, obviously, and appreciation to the person we share with. 

We are people in community, and God wants us to remember that. Paul also reminds us that our community is bigger than just our friends and people we know. Loving our loved ones and sharing with our friends and neighbors is expected, but more is required. Our community includes people experiencing poverty, the homeless, and the food insecure! This is more than just a good thing to remember; sharing with those in need is how we can help the world see God’s righteousness. This is what I mean by radical sharing: God shares with us simply because God is great, and God expects us to radically share to express our gratitude. 

God of mutual love and grace, your help in our lives is how we endure. Help our family love each other so our lives will testify to your glory! Amen!

Question for reflection: How does your family practice mutual love during times of difficulty? Is it different than when things are “good”? What are three ways that your family can show love to each other in ways that each one of you will understand?