"There is more happiness in giving than in receiving." This comment of Jesus is quoted by St Paul (Acts 20:35) though it is not in the Gospels. We know its truth from experience - there is such joy in giving to the one we love. ‘Giving' does not mean just the transfer of property; that can be done (think of corporate donations) without any emotion. Part of the joy of giving is that it costs us. Remember King David's protest, "I will not offer sacrifices that cost me nothing." (II Samuel 24:24) Whether what we are giving is money, or a gift, or care, or time, there must be something of ourselves in it. I love the old Dean's wisdom in Babette's Feast, "The only things we take with us from our life on earth are those which we have given away."
from
Sacred Space - Daily Prayer Online.
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