So now you want to know what to give and how? As I said give with an open loving heart to the truly deserving. You think I am talking about being charitable and wanting to donate. Yes, that too! To make you understand the action of giving selflessly, I will give you certain examples here.
A young man comes to your house fully drenched from the rain, would you give him your raincoat or rain jacket? Even an old one lying in the cupboard would serve the purpose. Do you think this is an act of giving?
You realize when you open your fathers wardrobe that there are a couple of brand new jackets which you have given him as gift in the last 7-8 years and they are unused. You know there are a couple of young men who don’t have a jacket and would like to give them those. Would you consider this as an act of giving?
You know there are homeless people living in your area. You go around collecting old clothes and money during Christmas and buy some more from the thrift store and distribute amongst these homeless people. Would you consider this an act of giving?
Every month your company deducts a very small amount from your salary and it goes towards a genuine charity and at the end of the year you feel that you have done your part of giving back to society. It is a regular deduction and everyone has to compulsorily contribute towards it. Do you think this is an act of giving selflessly?
Now you reserve a certain amount from your daily spend and whenever you feel there is a needy person you give it to that person. If you aren’t able to find someone needy you collect that amount in a glass jar and give it away to your nearby charity at the end of the month. Would you consider this action as selfless?
You scrimp and save throughout the year and at the end of the year you gather the saved amount and go and select the one thing your son or daughter dearly wanted. Then you leave it under the Christmas tree for them to find it next morning. Would you consider this act as giving?
There is a baby shower and your friend has arranged it for your another best friend. She asks her for a list of things she wants for the baby. Then the list is circulated amongst the people attending. You get the gift you have agreed to give from that wanted list. On the baby shower day everyone gives what the friend asked for. Do you believe you just performed an act of selfless giving?
There is flood or famine, war or outbreak of diseases, calamities and disasters strike places and you become a Boy Scout or relief worker and help the people around. Riots break out or terrorist attacks happen and you save a lot of people. Do you think this is giving selflessly?
In all of the above cases was there an expectation from you or the ones who receive your goodness? Do you think you can call most of the acts above as acts of giving? Now let me offer you an explanation here. What does it mean to truly give?
Now assume you are that homeless person or terror hit person. Then someone comes and gives you a seven year old trench coat or jacket. What would you say to that? Would you say this person is just trying to palm me off his old stuff so that he can buy new stuff for himself. Or would you say he is giving away to make more space in his cupboard for new stuff. Or would you only look at the gift as a means of getting out of the cold or rain? So what would you think if you are the receiver of the givers grace?
So before you give anything to anyone and gloat over it or think of yourself as the great giver, empathize with the other person and think what does he feel about it. Assume the position of receiver and check out what it would seem to you in other persons shoes?
What do you think when you give someone in baby shower? What would you want back? Do you want return gift or some sort of acknowledgement?
When someone is offered something spontaneously without much thinking or stressing on the mind and without any expectations of getting anything in return then it would account for selflessly offered gift. Next is the person you give to- the moment you think he doesn’t deserve then your mind has come into play. Then it is not a gift at all. When you wonder how God gives to people who don’t deserve, you are making judgements on God. You cannot judge God and His ways. Can you understand with your two pice mind how profound are god’s ways? Likewise don’t judge people while giving. If you have to give them give selflessly and without any attachments of any kind. Open your heart with love and fill it with goodness and give. Give the way God gives!
Image Credit: Pixabay
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