Do you know what a Chinese finger trap is? It’s the woven tube thing where you put two fingers, usually one from each hand, and they become trapped when you try to pull them out. It’s essentially a kinetic mystery, and it’s frequently one of the first things children encounter. The trap is interesting in that the harder you try to get your fingers out, the tighter it becomes; the only way out is to press in! The tube loosens and you are free when you push both fingers toward the middle. A seatbelt in a car works in the same way: the stronger you pull, the tighter it becomes. The lesson to be learned from these examples is that you must lean into certain types of suffering to benefit from them, even if doing so is counterintuitive.

Friend, this is what it means to be a person who generously gives to the Kingdom. Though it may feel as if you’re leaning into the knife, being unselfish allows you to break through the anguish by realizing that giving sets you free. If you need something, give it; if you do this often enough, you will develop an abundance mindset rather than a scarcity one. If someone gives you $10 and you’re destitute, homeless, broke, or in debt, return a dollar to the church or someone in need. Though it may appear insignificant, I assure you that doing that small thing will strike God’s heart — this is what the widow’s mite tells us. God will open the floodgates and pour out opportunity, knowledge, insight, and provision if you cultivate the habit of giving away the first half of all you are blessed with. Don’t you think this is fantastic news?