The Power Of Giving
Are You A Believer?
Can the power of giving really
change your life? By putting prosperity principles to work will you
really see improvement in your financial situation, your happiness,
your success? Many people, including me, believe wholeheartedly it
will.
If you are one of the many who already know the true
rewards of philanthropy or sharing a charitable donation with
others read on... there are many resources here for you. Stick around
and share
your story.
If you are new to the concept, you've come to the right
place and will hopefully leave this website more enlightened and
informed than when you arrived.
Giving, Philanthropy, Tithing
The first time I was introduced to a concept like the
power of giving I was more than a little intrigued. I was taking a
class by a well known financial guru. One of the things he taught was tithing 10%
of everything you make back to charity. By doing so, he told us, our
financial situations would improve greatly.
Hmmmm, I thought... if I had money to give away, I
wouldn't be taking a class on improving my finances. At that time, I
had a very hard time wrapping my mind around the power of giving
concept. After all, I had bills to pay, responsibilities to tend to.
Wouldn't it be completely negligent of me to give money away when I so
desperately needed it?
At the same time though, my thoughts kept dwelling back
to the teacher. He always drilled the "giving back" theory home. He had
money. He had success. He appeared to be happy. His students looked up
to him. He was well respected. Maybe, I thought, there was something to
this power of giving idea.
After I decided to open my mind a bit and allow some of
this to sink in I had many questions. There
are so many ideas out there on who to donate to and how much it can
become confusing.
Some say, you MUST offer to the church. I like my
church, I like the people at my church. Did I like the idea of giving
the money I really didn't have to the church? Maybe. I wasn't sure.
Some say, donate to anyone in need. That sounded nice. Who were these
people in need? Where were these people in need? How do you give to
them?
Then there were all the conflicting ideas of how much to
donate. Some say it has to be 10% to count. Whose counting? Some say it
needs to be much more while still others say just give what you can.
Just give what you can. Now that sounded like a nice idea.
Since, at that time, I was being taught to contribute
10%, I followed those guidelines my first time giving money away.
I received a phone call from a friend who was running in
a marathon for cancer awareness. She was a survivor. She was looking
for donations but said she understood if I was unable to.
Immediately after I hung up with her, I was handed my
pay check for the week at work. Without hesitation I wrote a check for
10% of my pay check and dropped it in the mail to my friend before I
could change my mind.
Did I have second thoughts after I dropped the money in
the mail? You betcha! I thought, Oh my gosh, what have I done? How will
I pay my entire mortgage, or will I be able to buy groceries this week?
I had anxiety.
It didn't last long. Amazingly I was able to cover all
my bills. I don't even remember feeling a pinch.
The best part was though, I received a phone call from
my friend. She had received my check. She was crying. She was
overwhelmed with my generosity (she knew my financial situation). She
was so choked up with emotion, she got me all choked up. Her happiness
caused a lump in my throat. I'll never forget it. Then, she proceeded
to tell EVERYONE we knew how generous I was. How's that for the power
of giving?
Even if I had felt a pinch that week I would have gladly
accepted it just to reap the rewards of my friends happiness. I felt
good. Very good. I knew I did the right thing.
Later that month I received an unexpected $1000 bonus at
work. I just sat staring at the check. Coincidence? Maybe. Would I have
received the bonus anyway? I don't know. All I know is two things
happened; I did something good for someone and my life was enriched, happier
if you will, in doing so and my financial situation was
better NOT worse by donating money. Neat trick, huh?
There are numerous stories on the power of giving just
like mine out there. You'll
find other examples here on this website. You'll also find
information to help you sort through the confusing conflicts of who to
give to and how much. Information on how to offer from your heart and
the many benefits you'll receive in return. It's all about who you are,
who you want to be and what makes you most enlightened, empowered and
joyous, and allows you to feel the true power of giving.
"A man there was, and they
called him mad,
The more he gave, the more he had."