Stingy souls pinch pennies when it comes to ministry and missions, and call it wise financial planning. Little do they know they're making themselves poor! Their excuse? "I have to take care of my own family first." They forget that neglecting God's house is the surest way to bring ruin on their own.

Our God has ways of working that can send our efforts soaring beyond our wildest dreams—or crush our plans into dust. With a turn of his hand, he can steer our ship into prosperous waters or run it aground on the rocks of bankruptcy. Scripture teaches it plainly: the Lord makes generous people rich and lets the stingy discover that hoarding leads to poverty.

I've watched this principle at work for years. The most generous Christians I know are almost always the happiest—and more often than not, they're the most prosperous too. I've seen open-handed givers rise to wealth they never imagined possible. And just as often, I've watched tight-fisted misers slide into poverty by the very penny-pinching they thought would make them rich.

Think about it: we trust good managers with more and more responsibility. God works the same way—he gives by the truckload to those who give by the bucket! And even when material wealth doesn't come, the Lord makes a little feel like much through the deep contentment that fills a heart that has honored him with the firstfruits.

Selfishness says, "Take care of yourself first." Godliness says, "Seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness." But here's what the selfish heart never grasps: in the long run, selfishness is loss, and godliness is great gain.

Yes, it takes faith to approach God with open hands. But surely he deserves it of us! Everything we could ever give him is a pitiful acknowledgment of the staggering debt we owe to his goodness.