Why be generous with money

While this is quite hard to admit, I am barely making enough money to sustain my own family right now. I had been working at a company for 10 years before it closed down last year — a circumstance many face today. If you are someone who is barely making it with the bare minimum and do not have anything you can cut spending wise, please know that this article is for you. I will say, though, whether you are at the bare minimum, or well above in terms of income, there is an understanding about generosity that you need to learn before you can begin to use your money not only generously, but with an eternal purpose in mind.

Our desire to be generous has to do with the fact that the Lord of heaven and earth is a generous God Philippians , 2 Corinthians and the fact that we are made in His image Genesis His generosity towards us began the moment He fixed the stars in the sky, separated the land from the water, and created Adam and Eve to inhabit, enjoy, and increase.

He continues this generosity by allowing us the air that we breathe even though, in all accounts, we are all worthy of a swift justice due to our disobedience and sin Romans Instead, He gives generously of His grace, His mercy, and of Himself, not because we deserve it, but because it is in His nature to do so. Since we are made in His image, we are able to not only recognize generosity but to uphold those willing to partake in its practice.

The hard part to all of this is found in the way we are locked in an internal struggle between holding on and letting go. On one hand, we desire to give because it is in our very nature to do so.

On the other hand, we hold on to what we have tightly because of the selfishness and fear found in sin. Minimalism helps with that, because it makes you want to give away your stuff, not buy more. My journey to a minimalist lifestyle coincided with having my faith renewed, and my values becoming more geared toward taking an action for what I stand for.

Interestingly, our financial situation is better than ever. I am blessed to have a safe home, enough clothes and food, and even occasional luxuries like trips. None of the nice stuff I buy is coming with me in the end. The last shirt has no pockets. My selfish enjoyment stings my heart when I allow myself to think about the poverty and suffering that abounds in the world. Giving has become joyful, and the right thing to do.

My next wish is to also find a way to contribute some of my time as a volunteer. Number three is perhaps the most powerful, at least to me. Not only are they encouraging but they personally invest in others and consider themselves as succeeding if the other does. Well, whilst 3 may seem powerful to you, realistically the people that you give money to are never successful.

You are absolutely right Kat, giving is for free with no attatchments or conditions. Yes yes yes…. It is all matter of viewpoint, philosophically. Those are just an examples. As for giving money, yes we must be real discerning, wise.

I give money to all street performers and to many others. I remember the bible verses that says in 2 Corinthians Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. I will not judge you greenminimalism for your opinion as i am sure you give cheerfully in other ways. That hit home with me. You are not generous giving an alcoholic or drug addict money. It is imperative for us who are generous to pray hard and seek guidance whom we help because not all are worthy to be helped instead of being a blessings it become a cursed.

Helping someone to be successful does not have to be monetary at all. And there is no suggestion in 3 that you are giving blindly. I think it is more about helping others, be it through mentoring, kind words, tutoring, giving work to someone with potential but needs to build experience, skill, etc.

I had a practicum placement and the woman I was assisting was a true leader. She was very generous; trusting me to the tasks as I was learning how to do them ,. That is generousity embodied. Not necessarily, there were two homeless men that used to come into the donut shop about each morning. They bought plain donuts and coffee to help warm themselves and to quiet their stomachs. They would meet the 6 am crowd and ask quietly for money. Then suddenly they were gone.

Seven weeks went by before I saw them again. They had used the money they were given to make their way to LA and would stand on the street corner with signs asking for work.

They took whatever jobs they could get and would meet again every night to find a place to sleep, and to watch out for each other. After two weeks they met a ma that took them to work for a day and they worked hard enough that he allowed them to spend the night.

After a few more days of hard grungy but well paid work the man offered them both jobs, well paid jobs if they worked hard. After two regular pay checks they had gotten new clothes to work in and had enough money to return to town. They said they just came by to say hello, and as they left they quietly passed out money to others that were still trying to get out of the homeless cycle, before they returned to their new life and the jobs they had prayed for and earned with a little help with money, their hard work, honesty and willingness to keep trying.

Not all donations are wasted. You could research what charities are trustful to give to, protest for higher taxes for yourself and the other rich-thank you Warran Buffet, you could support a genorous canidate for political office and if there are none or if you want to run for president-you can run yourself!

You can get to know a person and give them more than just money so they have hope and know that people care about them. Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Own less, live more, and create space for the things you love. Get new posts delivered right to your inbox:. Consider then, these 9 ways generous people see the world differently: 1. They recognize the resource pie is not finite. They know that generosity leads to greater happiness. They find success in helping others succeed. They believe changing even one life is worthwhile.

They trust others. They dream big dreams for their money. They see more resources to give than money. They fully embrace the reality that life is short. They are content to live with less.

Now check your email to confirm your subscription. There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again. Comments Hai susan.. Simply, Jonathan. Yes success is impacting the world through the investment of your personality. I deal with some very HNW strategic philanthropists and would add the following: These are very good points of generous people. Hi Joshua: What a wonderful entry! Wonderful work. We see this so similarly.

Best, Barbara. Number 1 is important. Money is treated appropriately: as a means to acquire the things that you need, and not as an end in itself. They are therefore able to spend money well on others, and not just on themselves.

Generosity is also not just about money. Generous people may be financially poor, but they still give their time and energy to others. The key is to engage with others for their benefit, with no thought of the reward that may accrue as a result. When generous people receive something from others, whether that is a gift, time or encouragement, they are grateful and express this gratitude in a way that is appropriate. Put simply, generous people give for the benefit of others, without counting the cost, and without expecting anything in return.

It may seem odd to talk about the benefits of generosity. After all, we have just said that generous people give without expecting a reward. But the rewards of generosity go far beyond the simple quid pro quo of bartering or trading.

Acting generously helps to make you feel good, because you are helping others. You should not, of course, give to satisfy your ego, because that is not generosity, but there is something very satisfying about giving what you can to help someone else.

Generous people therefore tend to make and sustain good friendships, built on solid foundations, and hopefully mutual regard and generosity. Aristotle, always a useful guide to exercising virtues, suggested that generous people gave when others needed and they had something that could help. That means that you have an opportunity to act generously whenever you see someone in need and you are able to help. Aristotle also suggested that generosity was measured against how much someone had to give.

Psychologists found that older adults are more likely to donate to complete strangers. This suggests generosity provides greater emotional gratification and a sense of purpose stock image. Previous studies have shown that older people are more likely to volunteer, are more concerned about the environment and are less interested in becoming rich. They examined how social relationships influence how much money older adults would give to people in comparison with younger adults.

Two groups of 39 volunteers took part, one with an average age of 70 and another aged around The psychologists found that, while older adults treat their family and friends the same as younger adults, they were more likely to donate to complete strangers.

This was true even when their generosity was unlikely to be reciprocated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Dramatic new testimony from third spouse's relative raises disturbing question after murder case that transfixed Britain.

Argos AO. Privacy Policy Feedback. Their results confirmed both of these theories. Share this article Share. Read more: nature. Share or comment on this article: Being generous with your money really can make you happier e-mail Comments 21 Share what you think.

View all. Bing Site Web Enter search term: Search. Download our iPhone app Download our Android app. Today's headlines Most Read Visit Olympia as it stood more than 2, years ago! Microsoft uses AI to digitally recreate the site of the That's roar-some!