Cheerful Giver (Part 1)
Something the Success gurus get right
===
My point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. Each one of you should give just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, because God loves a cheerful giver.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (NET)
===
I’ve studied a lot of business and success books.
Most of them talk about success/wealth/money as having an energy to it.
I think they do this because they correctly recognize the rhythms of the universe that God has put into place, which we can see illustrated in verse 6 here. What they often fail to recognize is the God who created those rhythms.
Thus, a “law” of the universe:
You reap what you sow.
That is, you harvest the fruit of the seeds you planted.
A lot of people, and I’ve been guilty of this myself, ask God for success in things when they’ve never done the work it takes to plant a seed of that success. What I mean is, if I want to harvest a million buckaroos from the stock market, then I have to actually plant some stock market “seeds.”
Yes, God could one day drop a million dollar check on my lap …
But He’s not going to.
God is much more interested in my heart and my relationship with Him.
Work is part of our perfection.
It existed before the fall of mankind.
(Toil, that is, hard work that sometimes yields “thorns and thistles” is part of the curse.)
So, if I am to become a successful person, someone who pleases God and reaps a good harvest of His kingdom, then I need to be planting “seeds” of kingdom work.
Also, this is true of money.
The only way to reap an investment harvest is by planting money seeds.
…
More tomorrow.
— Ricky Ketchum
Copyright © 2025 by Ricky Ketchum. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication prohibited.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible® copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from the ESV®Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright© 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.