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On Focus
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 THE
INSTRUCTION
- By Sansu Garin
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- In Matthew
10:8, Jesus said to His disciples, “…freely you received, freely you
should give.” This was the instruction to the twelve apostles when
Jesus sent them out to proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.
It is still the same instruction for us all today as we continue the
mission of building Christ’s Church - freely we received, freely we,
too, should give.
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- When we think
of giving or sharing in this sense, what comes to mind is the virtue of
generosity. An undeniable element of generosity is the concept of “gratis”
or FREE. We only have to remember that we have a limitless bounty in
God FREELY available to us. Out of love, God provides all that we
need and more. He spared nothing. Even His Most Precious Son, He gave
to us. Having therefore such a Model of Generosity, so too should our
giving be like.
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- Give or share
what we have FREE from expectation of any return. Let the act of giving
itself be enough reward. Although God said in Luke 6:38, “…give and
it will be given to you, and you will receive in your sack good measure,
pressed down, full and running over,” the thought of a reward should
not motivate our giving. Rather, when we give, let there be no strings
attached.
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- I remember a
story about St. Isidore, Patron of Farmers. He is one saint who is known
for his generosity. One wintertime, on his way to mill a sack of corn,
he passed by some birds perched on the bare branches of a tree. Touched
by the sad plight of these hungry birds out in the cold, he emptied out
for them half the content of his sack and went on his way. Even to the
birds, he gave! Surely, not even in his wildest dreams did he ever
expect a return of favor from these creatures. Such generosity! Of
course, the story goes on that when he got to his destination, wonder of
wonders, the sack he was carrying was still full! And the resulting
flour was even more than the normal output from a sack of corn!
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- Generosity is
an expression of our love. It is giving to FREE others in need. The
beautiful book “City of Joy” (which I read thanks to a dear priest!),
tells of the inspiring story of the poorest of the poor in the slums of
Calcutta and the exceptional individuals, characterized foremost by a
saintly priest, who cared for them. Who could ever imagine people to be
giving, to be sharing in such a place where there is hardly, if at all
anything, to have. Read the book and you would definitely be moved by
the grace by which the poor would not think twice of giving what little
they have to someone in need, and by the selflessness shown by the
privileged people who decided to be among them. By the end of the book
you will certainly find yourself referring to the book also as “City of
Angels.”
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- Freely we
received, freely we should give.
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- May the virtue
of generosity flourish in our lives, not only with our brothers and
sisters, but with our God, the Giver, above all.
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- All Glory to
God!
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- TELL US LIKE IT IS!
- Has
something wonderful and unique happened in your life lately? Did God
answer your prayer in a very unexpected way? Did you, like Isaiah, meet
God’s whisper?
- Have you felt His
powerful hand working in your life recently?
- Everyday, people
are experiencing God’s mighty Word in their lives and it is a pity that
very few know about it. Do you have a story to tell? Some Good News to
share?
- E-mail us (genesis@catholic.org) or fax us
(021-6627384), and tell us about it. That’s right! You don’t have to be
a great writer to do this. We can help you write it – just tell us like
it is!
- Don’t forget to
write the subject: “Let Me Tell You A Story”
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On Focus
By Sansu Garin
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