generous or stingy
In broad strokes, we can approach life with a generous spirit or choose to be stingy. This is about much more than just money, though it certainly includes how we budget and spend our money.
A person with a generous spirit looks for ways to add value to people and situations. Generosity might mean allowing the mom with three kids to get in line in front of you. It may take the form of closing the laptop when a co-worker comes in the office, obviously in need of someone to talk to. A generous person sees a minor inconvenience as just that — minor.
People who approach life with a generous spirit are a joy to be around.
People who choose to be stingy, well, they are not so fun to be around. Stingy people cling to more than just their money. A stingy spirit forgets to hold the door for the next person. A stingy spirit takes the last cookie without offering to split it in two. A stingy spirit springs from a place of scarcity … there aren’t enough parking spaces, shopping carts, time, dollars, etc., to go around.
At its core, stinginess is about selfishness. Generosity is marked by stewardship. I am not the owner of my time, treasures, or talents; these are on loan from God.
You can be stingy. I am choosing to be generous.
I am choosing a path that offers joy when a gift is given rather than disappointment when one is not received. How about you?
