There are things that simply don't sound right but are nevertheless true. You must die to find life, and you'd be better off dead. In order to be the best you that you've always wanted to be, content, full of joy, resting in peace while loving and being loved you have to put to death the will and desire of self and tying to meet these needs first and foremost in exchange for the will of God and the new spirit born of God within you. To find freedom you must surrender completely and unconditionally, and to keep what you have found, you must give it away. And we have come full circle back to the subject and truth that it is better to give than receive and it is by giving away what we have, our life and love and freedom and everything God has given us, that we find we have so much we can never run out, we always get more than we need back, so we can always give more.
When all we do is take and see what we can get from those around us, there comes a time when even those who love us will stop giving. Going through life trying to selfishly suck the marrow from life for our own pleasure and needs without giving back leads to us being surrounded by a bunch of dry bones and full of unmet need. But in giving we receive. When we give love and the other spiritual fruits that are produced in our life to those around us, freely and with a heart that simply wants to love and give for what it can do for others and for the glory of God, we will never be disappointed in what it does for us as well. I'm not talking about somehow that if you give 20% of your paycheck to some preacher that God is obligated to fill your bank account and you'll never be broke again. That's bogus heresy and not scriptural. There are times of famine, even for prophets who are walking with God in obedience and full of faith.
No, what I am talking about is that when the fruit that is grown from the seeds of faith is picked and given away, where it was picked from bears even more fruit in its place. It's like a hydra head, cut one off two grow back, only we're not talking about snake heads but more love, more joy, more peace, more patience, more of Jesus being evident in our life. More of the good things of God. And the way to get them and have them more and more is, as weird as it sounds, to stop worrying about getting more or any and stop seeking what seems or feels best for us but rather, as is stated in the Prayer Of St. Francis so well and often, let us instead seek to serve and give away those things we have been given and need. Jesus promised a life worth living, a life so abundant that there is plenty to share, because the purpose of life and the good things that come with it, is to share it and pass it on. Lay your life down. give it away with as much of the love and joy and the rest that God gave that you can find in your heart, and when you do you will see the miracle of life grow and produce fruit in the lives of those around you, and it will be awesome. And you will also discover that your jar never goes empty and your love and good things never run out.
Then the word of the Lord came to [Elijah], saying, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.” And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” So she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’” So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.
- I Kings 17:8-16
Peace Prayer Of Saint Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
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