The Laws of Generosity and Meanness in Life

Today's "Living Abundantly" discusses how one can live well. Observing those who live well, you will discern a pattern: there are two types of people, the generous and the mean-spirited. Those who can take a loss and bear responsibility are generous; those who cannot take a loss and shirk responsibility are mean-spirited. Few misers live well, but wanting to be generous does not mean acting recklessly. One must discern when to be generous and when not to be.

Mean People Do Not Live Well

When I was in university, everyone lived in dormitory buildings with many people. Some dormitories had excellent and harmonious interpersonal relationships; others were tense. Beijing winters are very cold, below zero degrees Celsius. There was no hot water; one had to carry a thermos to fetch water, a five-minute walk. After fetching it, one would leave it and bring it back after self-study for washing. Some people only carried one for themselves, some carried two for those with whom they had good relationships, and some carried four. The students who carried only one often found their water gone, and their classmates liked to prank them. This is a mean person. As the saying goes, "The child is father to the man." Mean people do not live well! Being easily angered is also a form of meanness; getting angry over trivial matters.

Among us are people of different ages. Meanness is a disadvantage, so do not be mean. But if you continue to suffer losses, then so be it. Everyone has their own standards for judging things; the benevolent see benevolence, and the wise see wisdom. Generous people are prone to suffering losses, but they look at the long term, while mean people look at immediate gains.

There is a management university in Singapore where students often spontaneously organize research projects. Some misers fuss around, and no one wants them. Some people are not very capable but are willing to contribute money and effort, so everyone likes to include them in their projects. Relationships between people have value. I do not like taking advantage of others; I value relationships, which have greatly helped me. Money and relationships are incomparable. Regardless of age, one must learn to discern. It is not that those people suffer losses, but their "calculations" are different. Therefore, I encourage everyone to discern. That miser from our school days will certainly not live well past fifty.

Generosity or Meanness is Influenced by Region

Some regions have different cultures and value systems. Some time ago, I ministered to a brother from a place where people are very stingy. This brother said that the people there are very generous and forthright, which I fully acknowledge.

Recently, I ministered to someone who stayed with me for a long time and was very stingy. Her good friend is very generous, and she owes her friend hundreds of thousands that she has not repaid. She even took a course on charity and said she wanted to do charity! I said, "Repay the money first before doing charity." Then her response was interesting: "Is it that I cannot afford to repay it?" Her good friend said, "Then repay me." The person replied, "Do you lack this money?" Whether one is mean or generous, do not ruin your brand. Each of us is a brand, building good and stable relationships with others. I once spoke about "stability," like an airplane needing stability. People are not only stingy with money but also with face and relationships.

Later, I received an older sister, a well-known traditional Chinese medicine practitioner with a high monthly salary, but she was very poor despite her age. I paid for her food, drink, and accommodation. You will find that inherent meanness is the source of poverty. What kind of person one is determines what kind of problems one has. The older one gets, the harder it is to change.

It is More Blessed to Give Than to Receive

The Choice Between Dedication and Blessing

Through this observation, we find that mean people do not live well. We can see this in relationships. If you are not stingy with money but are stingy in other matters, if people regard you as a miser, your interpersonal relationships will suffer, and no one will want to associate with you.
The Christian faith is a faith of dedication. God gave His only Son to us. It is more blessed to give than to receive! Those who give are more blessed than those who receive!
Someone said they wanted to give a testimony, and all I heard was what they received and what blessings they had. We talk about testimonies of service. The church is a group willing to offer themselves to God, a path of dedication. This is called Mingding Doctrine! The Bible says to cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

Choose to Be a Generous Person

Start adjusting in all aspects to become a generous person, a dedicated person. But do not always treat people to meals; that is not good. Instead, build a generous relationship. Learn to be shrewd; it does not matter if you suffer a little loss. In the Bible, Isaac dug a well, and it was taken away. He dug another, and it was taken away again. Isaac said, "Bless you with a well." Isaac was a willing and dedicated person who had a hundredfold harvest in that place. So today, do we want to give or receive? This is our choice!

In marketing, do you understand the needs of others or your own needs? If you understand the needs of others, you will surely receive a lot from them. My team is really great; they are willing to offer themselves to God and are never calculating. Sometimes, when we rent a house together and need daily necessities, we pool our money to buy and use them together, which greatly improves efficiency, rather than everyone buying and using their own.

From now on, constantly examine yourself in all aspects, no longer according to your own logic but according to the logic in the Bible. Jacob's wages were constantly changed by his uncle, but what does it matter? I encourage everyone to be filled with understanding and know what is worthwhile and what is not, to deal with the bad habits on your body one by one, to become a dedicated person, to become a giving person. May God bless everyone!

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