The key to cheerful giving lies in our willingness to receive. This includes recognizing our own limitations and needs as givers, and being willing to freely give to ourselves and graciously accept from others. Many of us find it hard to take gifts for ourselves, and when we do, we often feel guilty about it, especially when there are so many other needs and demands. But being open to receiving gifts is a responsibility we have to God, self and others. To be the cheerful givers God asks us to be, we must stay replenished so that the gifts of giving can truly flow to and from a willing heart.
This message is adapted from “God Loves a Cheerful Receiver” written by Linda R. Harper in the November 2002 issue of Lutheran Woman Today (now Gather) magazine. Today, Christ the King Sunday, we remember three pastors in North America, Justus Falckner (died 1723), Jehu Jones (died 1852) and William Passavant (died 1894).
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