IT was a huge cheque I saw in the newspaper! Specially made for the occasion, designed for the publicity it would fetch. I looked closer at the newspaper picture, and saw that is was being given to some cancer- ridden child at a cancer hospital and was being presented to him by an actor.
I felt sad and disgusted as I saw this publicity stunt. Giving, I’ve always felt is a private affair, something that only the recipient of your goodness should know and you yourself. But before I go on, here’s a bit of giving to lighten the morning:
A member of a church won a lottery worth 100,000 rupees. His wife went to the bishop and told him that she was afraid to tell this glad news to her husband because he had a heart problem. The bishop offered to break the news gently to her husband. He visited the house and asked the man, ‘Wouldn’t it be a good thing if you won 1,000 rupees in the lottery?’ The man replied that he still would have to work to support his family.
‘What about 10,000 rupees?’ the bishop asked. The man still showed no excitement, so the bishop carefully raised the amount to 50,000 and finally to 100,000 rupees. ‘If I got 100,000 rupees, I would give half of it to you, your Excellency,’ the man replied.
The bishop had a heart attack, and the man called an ambulance. Well, well, that’s the excitement of receiving! But there’s a bigger, much deeper down meaningful excitement beyond anything you’ve ever realized in the act of giving!
Have you learned how much fun it is to give? Engineering and machinery genius R. G. LeTourneau (1888 – 1969) discovered the great joy that can come of generosity. Besides establishing a private school (today’s LeTourneau University), that remarkable man reportedly gave 90 percent of his income to worthwhile causes, while living on the remaining 10 percent. He became hooked on giving! He lived a life of joy! And it’s not only money that is a joy to give: We can give time; ever watched the face of an older person you’ve spent your precious time with, maybe a visit to the hospital or an old folks home, or just some moments with dad and mom?
You can give your expertise, your love or simply give a smile. What does that cost? The point is; none of us can ever run out of something worthwhile to give. Giving is fun. And addictive, but, and it’s a big but, the whole joy of giving disappears when it is done for publicity, with a big mouth or ‘big cheque’ and photographers to see you doing it. As the Scriptures say, don’t let your right hand know when your left hand gives..!
