There are two broad ways of living—the get way and the give way.
"What did you get this year?" "I got a new iPod and I'm really exited!" "What did you get?" "I got some handkerchiefs, socks and an ugly tie." And so the talk may go after friends share their thoughts about getting some gifts. There are two broad ways of living—the get way and the give way.
Interestingly enough, the greatest religious leader to Christians, Jesus Christ said that it was more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). Not that receiving is wrong, but the get attitude is. We need to be on the giving side more than the getting side. But, isn't it better to get something than to give something? Yet, Jesus Christ said that it was better to give than to receive. How can that be? If I have two pencils and give one away, I have only one. If I have two pencils and someone gives me one, I have three. Three—the get way; and one—the give way. It doesn't make mathematical sense that giving is better than getting, but is it?
The prophet Isaiah said that God's ways are higher than ours as the heavens are above the earth (Isaiah 55:8-9). He knows better than we do. Giving cannot be mathematically proven. However, there is another way to look at these two approaches to life—the get way and the give way.
Which one brings more satisfaction? Which one exemplifies the love that is essential for Christians? The answer is giving. And, in fact, an article in a health magazine stated that one of the 10 happiest things for a person was to be giving! The joy of giving is only surpassed by seeing the joy in the face of the person who receives the gift.
There are many free things that we all may give to test the give approach. Try giving a fellow employee a smile as you pass by and enjoy his response. Try giving a grieving person a shoulder and sense the comfort that follows. Or, what about giving an ear to someone anxious to share a recent happening in her life? And, what about giving a helping hand to someone whose arms are full and overflowing with shopping bags? All of these giving actions will bring responses far more satisfying than any mathematical analysis could possibly reveal.
The "give" approach to life is one which employs the love that is outgoing in its concern and not incoming like the "get" approach.
So, why not ask yourself, what did I give as a gift? Instead of, what did I get as a gift? And remember Christ's teaching, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."
For GN Magazine, I'm Gary Antion.
