Being a Cheerful Giver

I will sacrifice fat animals to you and an offering of rams;
I will offer bulls and goats.

~Psalm 66:15

As I mentioned in the video Monday, according to Leviticus 1, burnt offerings of fat were an aroma pleasing to the LORD. And in Psalm 66:15 we see a man joyfully bringing such offerings to God.
I'm arriving at the conclusion that the psalmist was joyful based on a few things:
*He spent the first half of the psalm giving instruction to praise God (and reasons to do it).
*The big BUT in verse 12.
*His recollection of God's faithfulness in the midst of trouble. (v.14)
*And the understanding from Leviticus 1 that this offering was a delight to God.

The thing I would like to do with you today is spend time examining our own hearts, in light of what scripture says regarding the way we make offerings to God.
And to do that I want to have a look at 2 Corinthians 9:6-9.

6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; 9 as it is written,
“He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor,
His righteousness endures forever.”

What is the first thing you notice in verse 6? What correlation?
According to verse 7, what is to be the motivation for the amount sown in verse 6?
Who does verse 8 indicate is the One behind everything we have to sow?
Verse 9 is a quote from Psalm 112 which examines the life and behavior of a righteous person. If you have the time, I would encourage you to read it!
OK. Now that you have a general familiarity with this passage, I want to focus in on verse 7 and ask God to speak to us about our hearts when it comes to the way we make offerings to Him.
First, let's look at the word "purposed." It comes from two Greek words which mean "before" and "choose". And when the two are put together it means "to choose for oneself before another thing."
That is, to purpose something - to decide that you're going to do one particular thing.
Now let's examine "grudgingly". The transliteration from Greek is lupe (Pronounced loo'-pay - as in, You'd have to be crazy to let this be your motivation for giving! *wink*) and it actually means pain of body or mind. It could be used to describe the kind of heart-sorrow that brings a person down.
Next up? "Compulsion". This word in Greek carries with it the idea that an action must be performed. It describes a situation often brought on by pain or distress, and may even imply the use of force to get something done.
And, finally, let's look at "cheerful." As a stark contrast to the previous two words, this one means "joyous". It describes a person who is "cheerfully ready to act" because they have already decided - without outside influence, compulsion, or otherwise - to do a thing. And that - we are told - is the kind of offer-er in which God takes pleasure.
So, my friend, as you consider the joy of the psalmist bringing his offerings to God in verse 15, and in light of what you see in these word studies from 2 Corinthians 9:7 - how are you doing with your giving?
Not only in the financial/material realm, but also with regard to your time and talent, your attitude and intent? What is God saying to your heart?