Lender

Summer time during high school was a time for summer school (by choice) and summer jobs for me. I use to work as a locker attendant for a parks and recreation at a pool, volunteer at a child day care and also work as a reservationist at a hotel. All of the jobs I had, I started to save up. Man! I was making mula as a teenager. One day my good friend came to me and was very distressed. Her really good friend was in a tight situation and needed money to pay rent; she was a single parent and needed the money. My friend asked to borrow the money that I saved up and they would promise to give it back in a few weeks. I felt so sad for her friend that I agreed and gave her all of the savings that I had. A few weeks went by and no money, I would call my friend and she couldn’t get a hold of her friend. After a few more weeks of me going to my friend, she gave me her friend phone number. I would call and leave messages but no one would answer and no returned calls. I didn’t get the money back. I was very angry, frustrated, my heart was not in the right place.

Well I’m not telling you this story to make you see how I was an irresponsible teenager or anything like that. I’m also not going to talk about the borrower. Most stories you normally hear is on the borrower (http://bit.ly/b9OctR Get It Together). I want to focus on the lender. My heart is telling you, when someone is in need, help them. Help with your time, energy and finances (if you have it, give). When you give don’t expect it to come back and if it does great, but if it doesn’t , great. Deep down you know that you are blessing them. Once you give, it will be given back to you. “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Luke 6:38.

I really didn’t know this principle until years after. My heart changed and well it’s true, I have been blessed in many ways.

Be the blessing not the lender “…borrower is the slave of the lender.” Proverbs 22:7b ESV. When you are the lender, you enslave the person who is borrowing the money from you. Think about it. Do you want to be that person?