One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. Proverbs 11:24-25
“Giving money, volunteering, being relationally generous, being a generous neighbor and friend, and personally valuing the importance of being a generous person are all significantly, positively correlated with greater personal happiness, physical health, stronger sense of purpose in life, avoidance of symptoms of depression, and a greater interest in personal growth. These findings have not been weak, inconsistent, or requiring convoluted explanation to make sense of. Nearly every test came out similarly…
People may rightly wonder whether being a generous person and acting generously is a costly course of life. They might ask whether spending money, time, attention, energy, and emotions on and for the good of others proves to be a net loss in the overall scheme of things. The answer here is clear and compelling. Greater generosity is clearly, positively associated with many of the characteristics that most people consider essential to a good life: happiness, healthy, purpose, and growth.”
Christian Smith and Hilary Davidson in The Paradox of Generosity: Giving We Receive, Grasping We Lose (Oxford: OUP, 2014) 44.
Last night I recorded a spot for the It’s Never About Money Podcast with Joe Stephan in Melbourne, Australia.
He had alerted me that he would ask a series of questions. One was about well being. He loved that I cited the work of Smith and Davidson who demonstrates with research that Proverbs is spot on! If you want to flourish, choose the path of generosity. The paradox is that in giving you gain and in keeping you lose.
Confused? Most people are. He asked me how to help people get started. What was my answer? You know it.
You don’t figure it out until you live it out. Rhose who are generous don’t end up empty but enriched. He grasped it. Will you? The generosity research describes the gain in this life. Imagine the gain in the next!