"you can't out-give god"
"I have designated a widow there to provide for you." —1 Kings 17:9
The Lord designated a widow to provide for Elijah during a famine. The Lord chose someone to provide for Elijah who was so poor that she and her son were about to die of starvation (1 Kgs 17:12). The Lord continues to designate people to provide for His Church, His poor, and all of His other ministries. Also, the Lord continues to designate not only rich people to fund His Church but also very poor people.
These poor people don't see how they can support the Church because they have almost nothing. However, if they give their "almost nothing" — all that they have "to live on" (Lk 21:4) — the Lord will miraculously multiply their flour, oil (see 1 Kgs 17:14), pennies and dollars, and loaves and fish to provide not only for the Church but for themselves. Consequently, the poor are fed not just by receiving but by giving.
We all are poor in various ways. To get help, we may need to give help to those the Lord has designated as our responsibility. "Give, and it shall be given to you" (Lk 6:38).
Prayer: Father, You gave Your Son to save us. May I live and give accordingly.
Promise: "Your light must shine before men so that they may see goodness in your acts and give praise to your heavenly Father." —Mt 5:16
Praise: Robert gave gloves to a neighbor without any and the neighbor asked Robert if he could come to church with him.
Reference: (For a related teaching, order, view, or download our leaflet The Bible on Money at presentationministries.com.)
Rescript: †Most Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, January 20, 2016
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