We don't always have to make money.
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On the evening before our family left Utah, I still hadn’t decided what to do with our old 1997 Buick LeSabre that had served me and our family well for several years. I had offered it to one of our nieces but I guess it wasn’t cool enough to be her first car.
So at around 9 p.m. I had what I believe was the inspiration to call a friend of ours who had a young child, a pregnant wife and plenty of car troubles. Our Buick certainly wasn’t beautiful, we only paid $1000 for it in Minnesota before driving it all the way back to Idaho, but it was running, which was more than their cars seemed to be doing.
It was a weird call to make, when he picked up, I asked him if he wanted our car for free, but if he did I needed to sign over the title tonight. So I drove the car over to his apartment at around 10 p.m., signed the title and said a final farewell to old Betsy.
I saw another friend that night who when hearing that I had just given our car away, commented that due to the current car shortages, even a car like ours could have garnered a thousand dollars or more.
Perhaps he was right, but I replied “Sometimes it doesn’t have to be about making money.”
We had just sold our home which in two years had over doubled in value. We were already being overwhelmingly and abundantly blessed and I didn’t need an extra thousand that cold March evening.
Because I had been given much, I also chose to give. That car drove our friend all the way back to Wisconsin and then earned him $500 when he later sold it. This gladdened me to hear that he had made money.
It’s true that we need money to pay our bills, feed our families and clothe our backs. But once these necessities have been met, do we really need to make our friend, fellow Christian or neighbor pay for what we have? I am not suggesting we never sell anything ever again to anyone.
But I am suggesting that when we have been given much, we should readily, and freely give to other people who are less fortunate, less wealthy, less capable, and even less worthy than us.
Everything we have is a blessing that should be used to bless others. So much of what we acquire in life is through the merits and mercy of a loving God who doesn’t require any payment for what he offers us. He always gives freely, so as Christian’s should we not also give freely all that we have to bless and lift others?
As we celebrate this week of Easter and remember the greatest gift that was given freely to each of us, perhaps we could look around us and see who stands in need and likewise give freely of our time, talents and yes, even our wallets.
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