Giving is a principle that God set up from the beginning. Some have called giving the foundational principle of financial prosperity. God teaches us that as we give, He will abound that amount and more back to us. It is not logical, but it works every time.

God himself set the example of how this principle of giving works by giving His only begotten son that all that believe on His son would receive eternal life (John 3:16). Since God had given, he received back hundreds of thousands if not millions of sons and daughters after the day of Pentecost. Thus, God set the standard, the all-time example of how giving and receiving works.

Fortunately, God does not ask us to give our firstborn, just some of the money He sends our way as our Father.

There are four very nice promises about giving and receiving we can look at.

Malachi 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

Galatians 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

Philippians 4:15-19 Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only. For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity. Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account. But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God. But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

These are four promises, depicting the same truth: as you give, you receive back much more than you gave.

When we read about the windows of heaven being opened and blessings pouring out, sometimes we feel that if we give, God will immediately shower gold coins down upon our head. Kind of like a slot machine. Not seeing this come to pass right away can cause some to feel that giving does not work. But when God uses the illustration of sowing, we know that it takes a while once the seed is sown for the harvest to take place.

There is a rule in life that says that things that are equal to the same thing are equal to each other. If A equals D, and B equals D and C equals D, then A is equal to B, which is equal to C.

These promises of prosperity about giving are illustrations that show different aspects of the law of giving God instituted.

The record in Philippians states that God will supply all our needs. Many times, like the record in Philippians, that need of Paul was supplied by people. Just like the promise in Luke says, “shall men give into your bosom.” Galatians speaks of this law or promises of giving and receiving like a person sowing a crop. You don’t harvest the day after it is sown. You have need of patience that once you have done the will of God, you will see the promise come to pass. (Hebrews 10:36)

Very few things in life happen instantly. Prosperity is growth over time like most of the rest of things in God’s creation. Children take years to grow up. Crops take months to grow. Our prosperity is not in our paycheck. It is in what we do with part of the check. It is our faithfulness in handling what God has blessed us with. Saving and investing our surplus.

There is an old saying that says when the going gets tough, give. When the going gets tough in this context what we usually need is more money. Why not pick up a second job, give off the income from that job and use the rest to meet the immediate need. There are no hard and fast rules. But some have given away what they really needed in hopes God will give them even more back. He may. He is very gracious and merciful. But we would do better over the long run to keep close adherence to the principles in His Word.

According to Dave Ramsey, if you put $35.00 per week away in a savings account and invested it in a good growth stock mutual fund at 15%, you could retire in 40 years with $890,000.00 to $1.5 million.

This could be done on a federal minimum wage. A genuinely nice growth process.

If you worked at federal minimum wage for 40 years and retired a millionaire, could you feel like God opened the windows of heaven?

Prosperity is built over time rather than being a cash machine whereby we give, and God then gives us rent money. This is not to say He will not or could not do that, but we need to take a long-term perspective on prosperity. Learn the principles of prosperity and make them the habits of our lives. It is not how much you make, but what you do with what you make. Do you spend it all or save part? It is a huge difference down the road.

So, as you give and save, remember to be patient. You don’t reap the day after you sow. But it will come back to you, pressed down, shaken together, and running over so that over time it will be like the windows of heaven have been opened to you.

Learning about the process of prosperity is all part of The Prosperous Life of a believer.