The Giving Tree

Proverbs 11:24-31

 

In the 1996 movie, Jerry Maguire, a slick sports agent has a crisis of conscience which results in him getting fired and starting his own agency. Desperate to salvage the only client/athlete that he has left, the agent shouts over the phone, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” to show his client just how committed he is to him.

 

In the world, this is what it comes down to a lot of the time. Somebody somewhere is shouting, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!" As believers though, we’re to have a different view towards money; a different perspective for its use. Proverbs has this to say about it.

 

²⁸ A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump;
    a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.           Proverbs 11 MSG

 

This verse paints a picture that reminds me of the children’s book written by Shel Silverstein titled “The Giving Tree”. It’s a story about a boy and a tree.

 

During his childhood, the boy enjoyed playing with the tree; climbing her trunk, swinging from her branches, and eating her apples. However, as he gets older he begins to use the tree for his own selfish pleasure; selling her apples, building a house from her branches and cutting her trunk to make a boat.

 

The tree gave and gave and gave of herself until all that was left was “a stump”. This is an interesting twist on verse 28. In “The Giving Tree”, the stump actually became “a flourishing tree”.

 

Every time that the tree gave another part of herself to the boy, the narrative states, “And the tree was happy”. This is similar to what Proverbs has to tell us about giving.

 

²⁴ The world of the generous gets larger and larger;
    the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.

²⁵ The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed;
    those who help others are helped.       Proverbs 11 MSG

 

THE Giving Tree of the Bible, gave and gave and gave of Himself to the point of sacrificing His one and only son whom He loved. Likewise, God calls us to invest ourselves in the lives of those around us; not just with our treasure, but also with our time and talents. If we do this, the result will be “a flourishing tree”.

 

 

 

 

(If God has spoken to you, or touched your heart through this devotional, please feel free to share it with others.)