Another devotion from Judy’s heart

Today I read from Luke 6:37 where Jesus says, “Give and it will be given you. Good measure, pressed down and shaken together and running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
Just before this, Jesus is saying we need to not judge or condemn others but forgive them, and now He is saying we need to go beyond this and seek the best for others. The result is God will give us generously, not meagerly; PRESSED DOWN ( filling all the space in a container); SHAKEN ( so that grain will settle and fill the container even more fully); RUNNING OVER ( so that a rounded heap will form at the top ). Just recently a retreatant came to Canaan that is  poor and lives within a very tight budget. But when she came she brought gifts for her stay here… a big jar of Honey, boxes of tea, and yummy cherries. Now I know she could really use these things herself and yet she had it on her heart to give sacrificially. My heart was touched and I imagined how the Lord feels when we give to Him not out of our abundance but sacrificially. I had the joy of taking her to get clothes for her and her family at an “almost new” place and after we got home I had a knock at our door. Someone  handed me a plate of chocolates and a card with a check for Canaan inside that was much more than I just spent. Truly He gives to us “good measure, pressed down and running over.”  Listen to your heart if you are prompted to give!!!