Giving is a Blessing - Acts 20:35

Sometimes I find myself loaning money to people with an expectant heart, thinking about when I will get paid back. Or, sometimes I buy something for someone and look for that appreciation and credit for my generosity. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit reminds me that this money is not mine and that everything in Heaven and Earth belongs to the Lord. (1 Chronicles 29:11) It’s like this is God’s money on loan to me for this short time, and He is watching what I do with it. This thought completely changes my mind to instead think, how can I best please Him with His money? This giving spritit then becomes an incredible source of blessing and joy in my life.

I wouldn’t have a penny if it wasn’t for the Lord and His choice to create me, to be born into a family that could provide for my needs, to give me a mind and skills that enabled me to be successful in school, and opened the door to a wonderful career. I am so thankful for what He provides and I am quickly reminded that it is only because of Him that I have anything at all. (John 3:27) He says that I should lend without expecting it to be returned (Luke 6:30), that I should be a good steward of the money I am given (Luke 12:42-46), that I should be openhanded toward my brothers, the poor, and the needy. (Deuteronomy 15:10-11)

Many times we spend and collect money as though it is ours and we think because we have worked hard to obtain it, that we should spend it on whatever our flesh desires. This allows us to easily forget the command we are given- to serve others and care for the poor. I think we can miss out on incredible blessings that God desires for us to have and understand like generosity… humility… sacrifice.. selflesness.

I definitely don’t discredit hard work; we are expected to work hard! However, I struggle when I try to align hard work with the amount of money rewarded. I look around Guatemala and see the people working here are some of the hardest working people I have ever seen, yet they make so little. These people work day and night and some can hardly provide food for their families.

A sewing machine donated to a family to enhance their business of making clothes to provide for their family

As I began to think about this, it seemed so completely unfair… but then God changed my thoughts. What if, God allows it to be this way, intending for those with extra to provide for the poor, changing the lives of others, and changing their own hearts at the same time and ultimately enhancing their lives with tremendous joy and contentment? All of this leading us to live the life God designed us for… that we would seek a dependecy on Christ.. and in all things seek His will for the use of our money? I know this isn’t a mind boggling finding, but it did allow for me to look at it with a completely different perspective.

Family House Visit – This family of four currently shares this one bed, the third child is on the way.

Being “poor” how we see it, is not always a negative thing. These people that may be labeled as “poor” have a different richness- a richness in their dependency on Christ to provide for them, they have contentment that comes from their hope of eternal life and not from the materialistic things of this world. But, I really struggle when I see them malnourished because they don’t have money for  the right kinds of foods, or freezing because they don’t have a blanket or coat, or sleeping and cooking in really awful living conditions, or living in terribly excruciating pain because they are not able to afford a doctor visit or needed surgery, or never having the opportunity to learn to read or write.

I can’t help but want to raise awareness, that these things are REALLY happening – and not only in Guatemala, but all over the world. And, it is our responsibility as Christians to continue to do something about it. When I dig into scripture, it is so clear that this is God’s will for us to give generously, that from whom much is given, much is expected. The best part is that I have no doubt that as we open our hearts to giving more, the blessings in return will far outweigh the small amount we are giving up.

Rosa and Lydia attend school from 7:30am – 11:30am five days a week and are learning to read really well!

Twice a week we meet with women who deal with abuse in their lives. We learn their stories and encourage them through these tough times. We teach them about the love of our Savior and the hope they can have in an eternity with an incredible Father. This past week we wanted to provide them with verses to learn and memorize, we also wanted to give them Bibles. Unfortunately, we discovered none of them could read.

The good news is people are doing something about this! The Porch and many others, sponsor children to attend school- some of the children are even helping their parents learn to read and write now. Did you know that you could sponsor a child to attend school for just about $250 a year here in Panajachel? Currently the Porch is sponsoring more than 70 students, and the need is greater than ever.

Tadeo the owner of Tat Loy Rehab Ceneter – a humble and generous man

I talked in the last post about a rehab center that we work closely with. On Wednesday, we returned to check on our friends and provide some medical assistance. I learned a lot about the owner of this house from some of the men that live there. On many occasions, quite frequently actually, the leader sells his own personal property to provide for the men in this house. He sells his own things right off his back, for example he has sold a watch and sunglasses that were given to him as gifts, just to buy food for the men in the house. Yet, he does not complain, he just thanks God for all that He provides and for allowing them to survive another day. His dependency on Christ is more rewarding than any materialistic thing money could buy. What a wonderful testimony of doing God’s will – dying to himself and his own desires to serve Christ and care for the lives of others more than his own.

A family very much in need of a new home, he works as a farmer and she cares for the children and they currently have no money for better living conditions

If you are interested in learning how to sponsor a child to get an education, or sponsor a family through the monthly feeding program, or contribute a donation for a house building project, please let me know. There are so many wonderful things going on here, God is changing lives and ultimately hearts towards Him. These amazing things happen through the generosity of people just like you