Be A Giver

“In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” - Acts 20:35 
 
“No one wants to be in a relationship in which they are the only ones giving.” That’s the conclusion of a book entitled Give and Take written by business school professor, Adam Grant. Grant says that the success of relationships depends upon having a healthy balance between giving and receiving.

He says many relationships break down because there are those who are takers and others who are matchers. Takers are people who are only in the relationship for what they can get from it. They typically use people in relationships, and once they conclude they can’t use you for anything, they are done.
 
Matchers are people who treat relationships like a balance sheet; they only do something for the other person if the other person has done something for them. When they give, they do so expecting something in return.

But givers are different from takers and matchers. Givers are people who delight in putting others before themselves. Giving isn’t connected with an agenda to get something in return. They give because of who they are and because they want to sow into the person they are in a relationship with.  

To put it simply, they genuinely care. It’s been said that takers may eat better, but givers sleep better. Let’s face it, the world is made up of mostly takers and matchers. But God has called us to be givers. Why? Because Jesus was a giver.
 
Jesus gave without expecting anything in return. He gave the ultimate sacrifice: Himself. He didn’t do it for anything in return. We could never possibly repay Him. But He did it because He loved us.

Don’t be a taker. Don’t even be a matcher. Be a giver. Give without expecting anything in return.