“And He said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth”(Luke 11: 5-8).

God has made man with the ability to love and receive love. That’s why you can make a great deal of sacrifice for someone you love, despite the inconveniences. In the opening scripture, Jesus pointed out that even the natural man can make an extra effort to help his friend. How much more the Christian!

God’s nature is to give exceedingly, abundantly, and in excess of what you could ever ask or think. His style is to supply according to His riches in glory. He gives to overflowing. And we have received that divine ability to give because we have His nature in us.

To be a giver, you must do it time and time again, each time doing more than you have to.  Rebecca went beyond the request of Abraham’s servant to give him water, by offering to draw water for his camels also (Genesis 24:17-20). Abraham himself offered the best part of the land to his cousin Lot (Genesis 13:5-12).

You have to move beyond the ordinary, having the consciousness of doing everything to the glory of God. You can’t give God any material thing so to speak, but when you give to your brother and sister, you’re actually giving to the Lord. Jesus said, “And whoso shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward” (Matthew 10: 42).

Jesus taught that our attitude should be one of going the extra mile, putting in that extra effort and going the extra distance. That’s love. It gives more than is required: “And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain” (Matthew 5: 41). Learn to stretch yourself beyond your limits. You’ll be remembered for your wisdom in acting beyond the expectation of people, and going the extra mile to get involved with them and show them love.

Confession

I’m controlled by the love of Christ that flows lavishly from my spirit; today, I go the extra mile in showing love to the people I come in contact with! I thank you Father for the ability and inspiration you’ve given me to always give more than is required of me. Amen.

Further Study

2 Corinthians 8:1-4

2 Corinthians 5:14

(Taken by permission from Christ Embassy Church , aka Believer’s LoveWorld Ministries , Lagos, Nigeria. www.ChristEmbassy.org )