Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. – Romans 12:13

This week I had lunch with an old friend I hadn’t really seen in years. We talked and then spent a few minutes together on a hobby we have in common. So we shared a meal and some time together, but neither of us considered it as costly. We wanted to spend the time together.

Healthy relationships are generous relationships. Wouldn’t you agree? A relationship that is based on the concept of giving with the expectation of receiving from another is doomed to fail because we keep score.

We take notice of how others respond (if they do), but Paul encourages us to give to others freely and to show hospitality to others. Period. No expectations. Simple generosity for the sake of giving.

You’ve known people who are generous and maybe you are one. And we all know people who are less than liberal in their giving to others. And sometimes we are both kinds of people, so if we truly want to be generous we must be intentional in our relationships.

When we think of generosity, we tend to focus in the financial arena, but there is much more to consider. When we invest in a relationship, we give of our time. We listen more than we talk. To avoid a long list, we simply consider the needs of the other person more than our own needs. And in the end, we do receive the benefits from a deeper relationship with another.