Stinginess Results in Having Less Resources, Not More

It’s counterintutive, but true:

“A stingy man hastens after wealth, and does not know that poverty will come upon him” (Proverbs 28:22).

On the other hand:

“One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered” (Proverbs 11:24-25).

This applies in all sorts of ways to all sorts of areas, and it’s not just about money. We are to incline towards mercy and generosity in all of our dealings with people.

Generosity means that when you do your work, you do it to the best of your ability — you do more than is expected, not less. When you lead others, you seek their welfare and building up, and not just the accomplishment of tasks. When organizations create policies, their disposition should be towards serving and empowering their people, not first protecting themselves.

In everything we do, in all realms of life, our disposition should be towards service and generosity, rather than self-protection.

Ironically, one of the biggest threats to this is the quest for efficiency. Sometimes, the quest for efficiency can simply become a cloak for stinginess. That’s why I don’t hit the note of efficiency much on this blog — I believe that the best way to be efficient is simply to be effective. There is a place for efficiency, but be careful of letting efficiency balloon in to stinginess. Make it your first priority to seek that which serves others and benefits them; let efficiency be the second consideration, not the first.

And, in the end, you will find that this is actually far more efficient. “He who waters will himself be watered.”

July 17, 2011 | Filed Under Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Comments

5 Responses to “Stinginess Results in Having Less Resources, Not More”

Glenn on July 17th, 2011 7:20 pm

A great reminder, Matt! As I reflect on my experiences, I cannot recall a single instance where being generous hurt me. Effectiveness goes hand-in-hand with being others-minded; there is no conflict between focusing on what’s best and being generous.

Thanks for your continual encouragement, Matt!
Allen on July 17th, 2011 8:50 pm

Excellent as always, Matt. I just recommended your blog to someone last week, matter of fact.
Jan Wismer on July 18th, 2011 4:09 pm

What an excellent article. I wholeheartedly agree. The only thing I would change is your title line: Stinginess Results in Having Less Resources, Not More. “Less” is used for volume, “Fewer” is used for countable items. Because you can count the number of resources, the word “less’ should be replaced with “Fewer” to be grammatically correct. (One usually asks for less milk, not fewer milk. Just the same, one might wish for fewer F’s on his report card, not less F’s on his report card.)
TJ on July 18th, 2011 5:50 pm

Great read. It fills me with a new sense of generosity!
Grace L on July 19th, 2011 7:20 am

Thanks for sharing this, Matt. I was sort of thinking about this last Saturday when my husband Dave invited me to go running with him and his friend and I hesitated because I was a faster runner than both of them and wanted to maximize the efficiency of the time I was investing to exercise. Afterwards, Dave considered going for a solo run because he didn’t run much due to his friend experiencing knee pain earlier. In my mind I was thinking, I was right, now you have to do extra work, but it didn’t bother Dave at all. I think your post confirms that my heart was not in the best place, but Dave’s was–being generous with relationships first, then thinking of himself.