I have an uncle who is a farmer, his name is Bobby. Most people would look at him in his overalls or jeans and button up and think he was not wealthy. But he is not poor. Far from it. 
He looks a great deal like Santa Claus, except he keeps this look all year long.
He lives a life that most people envy. Many days you will find him sitting in his back yard, near the molasses mill, talking to one of his many friends. Shooting the breeze. Enjoying the day. Oh, he works hard. Harder than most people I know. But he enjoys life, every single moment of it.
If he is not out back, he is on his front porch, waving at all the vehicles going by.
Recently, Breanne, the kids and I stopped by his home to pick up some freshly made molasses. (He still makes them using horses, which is beautiful to watch)
Sitting around the molasses mill was my Uncle Bobby, Aunt Sherry, Uncle Ulysses and a couple of their friends. You can’t just ‘run by,’ you have to stop and visit a bit.
As we chatted, either Breanne or I would say something about a new piece of equipment he had or a new building. His reply was always the same. “Oh, so and so gave that to me.” Or, “This guy brought that to me for helping him with his hay.”
Everywhere we looked there was something of great value that had been given to him.
While that may seem amazing, you only need to talk with him for a few minutes to understand his great harvest.
He is the most giving man I have ever met in my life.
He gives all the time. He gives his precious time. He gives hay to those in need. He saws and gives wood away to anyone who he hears has a need. He will literally give you the shirt off his back.
Before we left, he had given Breanne a trailer load of freshly sawed wood. He gave me and Breanne bales of hay for harvest decoration and he gave us canned goods. He never lets anyone leave without first giving them something.
He is the very best example I know of Luke 6:38, and he lives it.
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
The Passion bible says it like this; “Give generously and generous gifts will be given back to you, shaken down to make room for more. Abundant gifts will pour out upon you with such an overflowing measure that it will run over the top! Your measurement of generosity becomes the measurement of your return.”
My uncle had brand new buildings that had been given to him. A full-size recreational vehicle someone brought him. His house is filled with antiques and treasures people drop off just because they thought he would like them. It is amazing to just sit and listen to the stories.
But it didn’t happen by accident. No, it came because of a lifetime of giving.
A few years ago, he heard I had been purchasing a certain bean to can and put up each year. The following Spring he called me and said, “Baby, how many beans do you want to put up, I am going to plant you a row, you can just come and get them.” It was such a wonderful act of kindness. But it didn’t surprise me one bit – he is a giver – he can’t help himself.
Giving is a heart issue. And his heart is good. It’s the best.
Because of his lifetime of giving, he is living the life he imagined. Things are coming to him on every wave. I, for one, am thrilled to see him reaping the harvest he has sown into.
Giving is a God principal and it will produce a harvest, every single time. It is, as I said, a heart issue and I pray for a heart like my Uncle Bobby’s. One that gives freely, without hesitation and with joy. My uncle is living a life of the benefits of a generous heart and it is evident to everyone around him. May we all be cheerful givers. May we all have generous hearts.
Meditate on this:
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7
