Top Twenty Proverbs on Giving Without Regretting
Christmas is the one time of the year when giving is on the forefront of everyone’s mind and possibly heart. You can witness it in the retailer raking it in, the mom preparing for guests, or the Salvation Army volunteer ringing that bell. Every where you go it is the season of giving. Then soon all your money will be spent and it will become the season of regretting those credit card payments. Which means the back side of gift giving can feel very different than the front side.
Giving joyfully then regretting painfully is no fun. Giving should be 100% rewarding all the time. How can we discover this? Can we move to an incredible lifestyle of consistency, dependability, and the rewarding life of generosity? A place where the front side and back side of giving are equally meaningful. Giving is fun at Christmas, but can be painful at church. Why?
I love the book of Proverbs. Virtually every chapter in Proverbs contains amazing life wisdom about finances, resources, marketplace, and generosity. I took the time to put together a brief list of the Top 20 Proverbs on Giving Without Regretting. The key is to lean into all the promises, blessings, and rewards from God. Enjoy!
1. Your Life Success Is Held In God’s Hand. When you are giving you are not losing. Your life success is in His hands, not your hands. Your ability to achieve does not guarantee success; however, your willingness to surrender does.
He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, (Proverbs 2:7 NIV)
2. Your Life Treasures Are Multiplied When They Are Released. When you give to God you are really giving back to God. It was never yours to start with. When we live with an open hand God is able to release what He wants us to have.
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. (Proverbs 3:9,10 NIV)
3. Your Life Will Not Want For More. What is it like to not want anything more than what you currently have? To not worry about today, tomorrow, or the next. God promises He’s got it, so be generous.
The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked. (Proverbs 10:3 NIV)
4. Your Life Can Receive Undeserved Blessings. I like getting rewards, but I like undeserved, surprise rewards by grace even better. Load me up, Lord!
The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it. (Proverbs 10:22 NIV)
5. Your Life Can Make An Impact In Your City. Everyone wants to live a life that counts. Usually we think a life of significance is for the mature or successful. Maybe you dream about it happening one day for you. You probably think you need to get some problems solved or gain a new career. Wrong, live righteously today and your city will be blessed.
When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices; when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy. Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted, but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed. (Proverbs 11:10-11 NIV)
6. Your Life Will Be Prosperous To The Level You Are Generous. It is not about giving to get. However, you can’t stop God from wanting to bless you. So just give and let Him do his thing. It’ll be okay. Maybe even better than okay.
A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. (Proverbs 11:25 NIV)
7. Your Life Career Will Be Rewarded. Wake up everyday, work hard, and ask God to bless your work. He wants you to be successful at what you do. Bloom where you are planted.
Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense. (Proverbs 12:11 NIV)
8. Your Life Savings Will Expand Little By Little. Giving to others doesn’t mean not giving to yourself for future needs and opportunities. You might not see the reward of faithfulness today, but little by little it grows a great return.
Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow. (Proverbs 13:11 NIV)
9. Your Life Will Honor God When You Honor The Poor. Giving to the poor is wonderful, especially when it is the same as honoring God. Every imperfect, hurting, selfish person can honor God. That’s an amazing thought.
Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. (Proverbs 14:31 NIV)
10. Your Life Will Be Protected If You Find Yourself Alone. Being alone and the fear of doing without is scary. God protects us when we need to be protected.
The Lord tears down the house of the proud, but he sets the widow’s boundary stones in place. (Proverbs 15:25 NIV)
11. Your Life Will Experience Favor When You Serve Your Leaders. Humility and service are also expressions of generosity. Rebellion, selfishness, disrespect, and entitlement are, well, the opposite. God blesses you when you respect authority figures in your life.
When a king’s face brightens, it means life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring. (Proverbs 16:15 NIV)
12. Your Life Will Go Places When You Give. Jesus said that the last will be first and the first will be last. He also said that He came to serve and not to be served. Do likewise.
A gift opens the way and ushers the giver into the presence of the great. (Proverbs 18:16 NIV)
13. Your Life Can Give Without Sparing. Need and greed compete with giving. Givers have given long enough to know God gives without sparing so it is okay to do the same.
All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing. (Proverbs 21:26 NIV)
14. Your Life Will Become Free When You Stop Depending On Yourself.You can not make yourself rich. God creates, disperses, and takes away as He pleases. You will always be standing on the same level ground as everyone else no matter your home address.
Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all. (Proverbs 22:2 NIV)
15. Your Life Will Relax When You Realize God Made Money To Come And Go, So Let It Go. Money is simply paper or metal to be circulated among all God’s creation. It is never really yours to keep, so share it.
Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. (Proverbs 23:4-5 NIV)
16. Your Life Hope Is Permanently Secure. Change happens and it can be very unnerving. Today change happens rapidly and repeatedly. Money won’t stop change from occurring nor can it provide you permanent peace or hope. God has your future secured and it is a hopeful one.
There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. (Proverbs 23:18 NIV)
17. Your Life Will Become Consistent When Your Priorities Are In Place.God gave you principles, laws, and truth for your benefit. He does the same for your financial life. Follow the truth and you will be blessed. I think you probably know what the alternative is. You reap what you sow.
Put your outdoor work in order and get your fields ready; after that, build your house. (Proverbs 24:27 NIV)
18. Your Life Will Be Rewarded When You Give To Your Enemies. Giving can be fun, but it can also be hard. Then sometimes, it can be really hard. God has a gift for you when you do the really hard thing like live generously towards your enemies.
If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you. (Proverbs 25:21-22 NIV)
19. Your Life Will Become As Generous Is You Envision It To Be. Vision matters both at work, church, and home. No passion, no priorities, no plan, then no reward. Discover God’s unique vision for you and live it.
Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction. (Proverbs 29:18 NIV)
20. Your Life Will Expand When You Focus On Today. Focus doesn’t limit, it expands. Give today all you’ve got at every moment. Be generous when you pray, think, drive, shop, talk, work, and live. You will find more ways to be generous than you imagined. God will care for tomorrow and all it’s worries.
Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. (Proverbs 30:8-9 NIV)
If you are a preacher, I dare you to turn this into a sermon series. If you do, let me know. I’d love to see it.
Want to walk through Proverbs with your team to discover how every chapter contains multiple jewels of wisdom about money? If you are struggling with confidence in being the lead financial disciple, or if you just want to sharpen the skills on your team, please check out my book, Leading a Generous Church.
Tags: Giving, Giving without Regretting, Resourcing, Todd McMichen, Top Twenty
