Generosity... a hard lesson...

So, this month's theme at church is Generosity. It was just great timing!! Since we got married, we haven't got a month where our financial is predictable. Plus, having in-laws that needed support didn't make it easier. I was so used to using my money just for myself (well, I also didn't ask my parents for extra money). I was content with what I could buy and I was good at building my saving.

And the Bible says:
24 The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. 25 The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped.
(Proverbs 11)

Wow. It didn't slap me right away but through the weeks when I was faced with unpredictable expenses and I tried to protect myself with my own power. I kept saying to myself that "is this the lifestyle we deserve to live?", "Whereelse can I cut my expense?", even to a cruel question such as "Why does my hubby only get this amount of income?"

Then, we were challenged to give excellent sacrifice in this week of Easter. I was thinking of the amount of X, which is the same as last year's sacrifice as a single. Then hubby said, "yes it's an easy number, but is it excellent enough? Do we want to put our faith in God's hands?" Wow. And I prepared my heart and said "OK, how about 2X?".

We know the theory that God will give back in multiplication, but whatever, we just want to give our sacrifice, Our blessings is not for us to demand, but it's in God's timing and favor. But the next day I was calling around for one thing that I urgently needed to buy, and peace of God overflowed my heart (it is till now) finding that I can get that one thing at a much lower price than what I would have guessed. And the next day after that, hubby said that suddenly out of nowhere, his boss gave him some shopping vouchers. It was not that big of an amount (not even covered the price for that "thing"), but for me it is the proof that Godly theory of generosity does work.

³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ 
(Acts 20)