November 12, 2022 ~ Devotions: "The Grace of Giving"

Harry (101 yrs. old), Bill, Rose, Henry, Wayne, Tom

 And So, I Continue . . . . . .

That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.   Psalms 26:7 KJV

Proverbs 22:9 ~ He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.

This simple message in this verse is that a charitable man has a bountiful eye. He has an eye that seeks out objects of charity, offers themselves, upon the sight of one in want and misery that affects the heart with compassion. He has an eye that gives which causes the heart to give with a liberal hand. He gives of his bread to those that need bread, even the bread from his own table. He will give till it "hurts" rather than see the poor perish for want. He does not give all of his bread, but of his bread; the poor shall have their share with his own family. From the beginning there have been those that are "rich" and those that are "poor". 

Jesus considered the poor part of His ministry!

One Sabbath morning, Jesus stood in the synagogue and made a public proclamation of His ministry. He took the scroll of Isaiah and read the following words:

Isaiah 61:1  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; (Isaiah 61:1-2).

With faith and believing in God, we would follow the Lord in our giving even in these perilous times we live today. When prices have skyrocketed in every area of our lives, we are deeply affected financially. We have our families to be concerned about and we do not want them to go without even the most basic of things. We have new twin great-grandsons, and we are concerned that they are getting formula and all the other things they need to have a good and decent life. I'm sure you can all relate. We pray diligently for God to use us in any way to help others. Many times, we don't have a lot to give, but we give anyway. Because of your support however, we can give!  You are a part of our ministry when you give. 

Each Thanksgiving and Christmas we have our seniors into our home for a feast of which the Lord supplies. We have done it for years, and with the Lord's help, we will continue to host as many as will come. In the picture above, 3 of our precious saints are in heaven now, and they will never "want" again. I'm so glad we had them in our home. Folks who have family but have just "forgot" about them. They are our blessings.

When we see one in need and give from the "heart," God will surely bless the giver and the one receiving. You may have a son or daughter who has a need, but they don't want to tell you about it; give them a little something along and along to just be a blessing! Look around you, they are everywhere. Give, not blindly, but with the heart of God. Give of yourself and of your blessings from God. 

You will never ever regret it.

Lord, help us to be wise, studied up, aware, and faithful to You. Amen.

With love and prayers,

LKMilam

May we be faithful to be your Philippians 2:16 Missionaries. 

Philippians 2:16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

Tom and Linda Milam

Missionaries to America

and around the world