Finance for Single Mothers

How giving enriches
by Ginger Filippone - Spirituality.com

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Because of some unexpected expenses, I didn't have enough money to get me through the week. Although I knew I would be paid the following week, I found myself bogged down with worries about how I was going to make it until then. So I decided to turn to God. The answer I got surprised me: Give. I thought: Is that Your final answer?

Even when I opened the primary books I use in my spiritual study (the Bible and Science and Health) to find helpful ideas, the passages that were sticking out the most were about giving to others.

Helping others is nice, I thought, but if I don't have enough for myself, how could I give to anyone?
 
Those who give van expect an hundredfold in return.
The author of Science and Health, Mary Baker Eddy, affirmed in her book that giving does not make us poorer because the act of helping others is blessed. The Bible spoke to me of the rewards of giving, including those who give can expect "an hundredfold" in return for giving. Although these were not entirely new concepts to me, I wondered how they applied to my situation.

Maybe I was taking these passages too literally. Weren't these passages really talking about the fear of not having enough? Fear was certainly what I was feeling! But, I was to discover, there is a spiritual law—dependable and certain—that somehow works its way above the fear and pushes it out. God is all good and is constantly giving to His creation. I could trust this law.

I found myself becoming less afraid. But now I was getting frustrated. I felt like I was trying to put together a puzzle without all the pieces. I wondered how my not being afraid was going to buy food for the week and gas to get to work.

As if on cue, the doorbell rang.
And, as if on cue, the doorbell rang.

I opened the door to find a local farmer standing in front of me. "I'm volunteering for an organization that helps destitute families," he explained. "Families in our state are in need of food, shelter, clothing and money."

These families had lost everything due to floods, fires and bankruptcy. The farmer's words and sincerity touched my heart. I reached for my checkbook but then remembered my own financial situation. Would I be making a mistake by giving away what little I had?

I realized that this was the exact situation I had been praying about just moments ago. Here was my chance to put the spiritual law into practice. If God is constantly giving me what I need, there couldn't be dire consequences if I gave to others. I got the point: I wasn't afraid to give even though I had relatively little because I had a feeling that God was more than a low bank account. I was connected to God, and the feeling of calm and joy God brought me was so much greater than were the feelings of not having enough money.

The missing piece of the puzzle was found.
That was the missing piece of the puzzle! I handed the man a check for ten dollars, along with an apology for the small amount. He was very gracious and explained to me that ten dollars was certainly more than enough. When he left, I felt a sense of ease. I felt as if, somehow, things would work out.

The very next day, I opened my mailbox to find a check for one hundred dollars. The enclosed letter explained that the money was a security deposit that I had given the phone company years before, which they forgot to return. This was more than enough for me until my next paycheck.

The lesson came home very strongly: I didn't suffer by giving when I was short on cash. I was able to give because I am permanently connected to the divine Source of good, not because I was going to get something back. What I need will always come my way even as what the families needed would come their way. The grateful feeling I had was worth so much more than the $100 check.

Since this day I have often given to friends, family and strangers in need. I do not always receive ten times what I gave. Instead, my reward often comes from the knowledge that God's giving never stops and the confidence that comes from the fact that I don't suffer from helping someone. Even if that help means giving away something I think I need. It really is true: giving does not impoverish, it's spiritually enriching.

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