Reciprocity

For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed; he will pour a draught from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs. But I will rejoice forever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. (Psalm 75:8-9) 
 
The Psalmist says something fascinating in this passage. He says, “as for me I will praise the God of Jacob.” He does not say “I will praise God.” He says, “I will praise the God of Jacob.”  
 
In the old covenant, the God of Jacob was the God who made provision for his people by supplying them with a well from which they could draw water. We remember the woman at Jacob’s well in John 4 whom Jesus asked for a drink; that woman, in her day, drew from a well that God had provided Jacob and his people ages before. A well is a place from which one draws water for refreshment and nourishment.  
 
When the Psalmist says I will praise the God “of Jacob,” I believe he is highlighting the principle of reciprocity. As I praise God, God replenishes me. The principle of reciprocity is key because too many of us are in one-sided relationships. Relationships where you give, give, give and never get a return on your investment. This is not to say that all relationships should be transactional, but it is to say that productive and mature relationships are relationships with mutual investment. Reciprocity. Give and take.  
 
That doesn’t mean that both people do the exact same things, but it does mean that you are mutually building up one another and contributing to the whole. Don’t ever give all of yourself to any person, place, or thing that never gives anything to you. Any investment is a seed, and if you are the one doing all of the sowing, that is not a relationship. That is an assignment. One of the greatest lessons to learn in life is the difference between an assignment and a relationship. So let’s pay attention as the psalmist gives us a key—if it never feeds you the way you feed it, it is not a mutual relationship.