1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Dear God, since I have a professional career where I minister to the needy, it is hard for me to do the things I do in secret. At least, it is hard to do ALL of the things I do in secret. I do suppose that there are a number of things my wife and I do that others don’t know about. We support causes that others aren’t aware of. We give money that others don’t know about.
I can say that I feel rewarded for the things that my wife and I do. Not that we are wealthy and living in luxury, but we do live a nice, middleclass life. You are good to us and you provide for our needs. We appreciate that. We really do. The rewards I feel, however, come in the areas of joy and peace. I feel peace whenever I am able to turn loose and give some of my resources (time as well as money) to others. I learned a long time ago that you want me to turn loose of everything I own and offer it all to you as sacrifice. I learned that there is joy in giving. There is peace when I deny myself things for the sake of others.
On the other side of things, I see different kinds of donors through my job. I see those who want no recognition and I see those who clamor for it. I always feel sorry for the clamorers, and I do my best to respect the privacy of those who wish it.
Father, help me to joyfully give of myself to you. Help me to give of my time, my thoughts, and my resources. Help me to be willing to deny myself little luxuries and toys for the sake of others. Help me to be satisfied with what you have given to me and my family. Help me to embrace all that you are for your glory’s sake.
Emails to God 