Give and Get

"What are you going to do with that?" Chloe asked when she saw her sister grab five dollars from her dresser before church."We're taking an offering today for the missions project," Taryn told her. "Did you forget?""Guess so," replied Chloe. But I'm not giving five whole dollars! she thought. So after her sister left the room, Chloe opened the drawer where she kept her money and took out some change. This will do, she thought as she dropped it into her pocket.When they got home from church, Mom looked over at the flowers along the back porch. They were bursting with blooms. "Look at my pansies," she said. "Aren't they pretty?""Yeah!" said Taryn. "How can there be so many flowers already? You only picked off the dead ones a couple of days ago. And you picked some for little bouquets too, didn't you?""Yes, but pansies need to be picked often for them to blossom more fully," said Mom. "The more you pick, the more you get.""That doesn't really make sense," said Chloe. "Seems hard to believe, but it's true," said Mom. "It's true for other things too--like giving to the Lord. When we give to Him out of a generous, thankful heart, we receive more blessings in our lives.""You mean God will send us more money if we give lots of money to Him?" Chloe asked."Well, I can't promise you that, although that could be one way He decides to bless us," said Mom. "But the extra blessings God gives us often come in a form other than money. For example, I think the greatest blessing is a sense of joy and peace that comes from giving generously to the Lord. When we give to Him with thankful hearts for all He's done for us, He reminds us of the blessings we already have in Jesus, who gave His life for us so we could have eternal life with Him. He also promises to provide for our needs so we can share His love with others by giving generously."Chloe thought about Taryn, who was so generous and happy. Then she thought about how discontent she often felt, and she made a decision. I'm going to be like the pansies, she thought. I'm going to give more generously out of thankfulness for everything God has given me. –Hazel W. Marett