"Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." Luke 6:38

When I was a little boy, most corner stores sold candy, and it was common that they would offer a deal where you could buy a small bag of candy for five cents. This was in the days when a penny would buy two jawbreakers, or two double-bubble-gums. The bags were very small, but you got more than two candies for a penny when you did this. They never had the bags pre-loaded, so you always got to watch them put the candies in the bag. I suspect that the owners liked to watch our expressions, watching with our eyes large, as they loaded the treasure into our bags. I also suspect that some stores did it simply because it was commonly done.

My friends and I figured out pretty quickly that some stores had a different approach to this ritual. Some stores would pull open the bag, load a few candies in, then hand you a not-quite-full bag. This was always a dissappointment, but we were too polite to complain out loud. At other stores, the person would load in a scoop, shake the bag, load another scoop, shake the bag again, and repeat this until the bag was full. Then, they would take their scoop, and put one more load on top, usually a few would drop back in the bin, spilling over the edge. We always reserved our brightest smiles and most hearty "thank-you"s for the people who did this.

I'm certain, looking back now, that the primary difference between these two people was that the ones that gave us the fully loaded bags loved children, and loved to see the delight on our faces when they gave us a brimming bagful of candies. I'm certain that they didn't make any money on the transaction. I'm also certain that they were concious of the sincere thanks that they got from a lot of very happy children. Those who love and have raised or worked with them understand that children know when they are loved, and reflect that love.

The scripture passage above draws much the same picture for us. God has made it a principal of human relations that those who are of a generous and giving spirit are the recipients, themselves, of generous, unrestrained love from others. You cannot fake this. Children and adults alike will sense in an instant if you are not "real" with them in this respect. You cannot fake generosity in order to get love in return. You might fool people for a short time, but it will quickly become apparent to those involved that it isn't real.

When Jesus comes into your life and makes you a "new creature", he puts a spirit of love and generosity into you. Satan will try to use the world and it's philosophy to stunt or steal these traits from you. The Spirit of God will cause you to grow in grace, and increase the fruit of the Spirit in your life. In this passage, God is telling us that these traits, which His Spirit will bring about in your life if you walk with Him, bring a natural consequence.

Another thing to consider is that God didn't say that HE would give to you in this measure. God usually blesses us through the instrumentality of others. He uses other people to reward us for our faithfulness. The Gospel is founded on love. "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples: If ye have love on to another". The Gospel, and in fact the world in general, works best when its actions are inspired and guided by love.

Do you feel that your life is empty? Do you feel that you are constantly hungry, emotionally or spiritually? The answer is to give. Give when you feel you have nothing to give. Give when you feel that you are getting nothing in return. Give because your God gave His Son for you. Give, not necessarily money: In fact, put money LAST on the list, but don't neglect it, either. Give of your time. Show love. Love is a choice, not a feeling. You can consciously determine a course of action that expresses love and engage in it when you have no feelings about it. Keep it up and the feelings will follow. Feelings should be a slave, not the master. Choice - Will: these are the master. Love is an act of the will, not a feeling. Lust is a feeling, not an act of the will. These are practically opposites, yet our society constantly confuses them! Give in this way, and God has promised that you will be filled up, Pressed Down, Shaken Together, Running Over!