Proverbs 11vs. 25(NIV)
A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
It does not seem possible that someone who decides to share what they have will end up having more. We all learned in first grade Math that if Susie has 3 pieces of candy, and gives one to Bobby and one to Sarah, that only leaves Susie with one piece of candy, not four pieces. This is a universal transaction that cannot be altered or denied yet imbedded in Susie’s generosity is the secret to wealth, and it is the opposite of what we have all learned.
The Dead Sea is the saltiest body of water known on earth, while it receives water from the Jordan River and the Mujib river, it contains no outlet to contribute water to another source. Thus, what flows in is kept there without an ability to release. Because of the water’s harsh environment, no plants or life can grow there, which is why it is called the Dead Sea.
There is a difference between being rich, which is having a lot of money, and being prosperous, which is finding a deeper meaning not only in what you have. Prosperity is a state of mind that says you are satisfied with what you have, and your value is not formulated by what you keep, but by what you give away instead. Therefore, you can share, trusting that you are connected to a never-ending source. Those who are stingy may hold on to their possessions, taking joy in watching them build up and collect dust instead of allowing them to be released to serve a purpose. However, slowly over time, those who have been given so much but choose to give so little become of no value to their surrounding borders. Offering nothing to the living things surrounding them, they become stagnant and slowly die. May you have the courage to open your hands, for not only can things flow out of them, but an open hand allows for things to flow in. That’s why Susie is the one who always has candy.
