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"We are living in a moment in history when we as believers have an opportunity unlike in any other generation to shine in the midst of darkness. In order to do this, we will need a remnant of people who will refuse the popular, lukewarm church culture and embrace the "do it in secret" lifestyle that brings misfits in kingship" (Casto, page 171).
Casto couldn't have made that any plainer. We need people who are on fire for God -- doing it with the right heart. Would you not agree? In other words, it's not those of us who are standing up simply to be seen -- simply to say 'look at me, look at me.' That's not what this thing is about. Jesus was never about that. In fact, when He did miracles oftentimes he would tell people not to tell anybody it was Him. Of course they ran off to spread it to those who would listen, right?
This chapter is about giving. It's about giving in secret or private and that can mean anything. It can mean our stories, it can mean tangible things. It runs the gamut. A testimony will be a blessing to somebody. A testimony will help others in some way. So the question we have to ask is, is our story going to bless and help others? If not, why tell it? Some experiences we go through are just between us and God so we have to use discernment and wisdom in order to know what the who, what, when, where, why, and how we tell people things. We have to be very careful with that. Is our testimony going to help people or are we just telling a story that doesn't resonate with anybody -- that doesn't help anybody?
Speaking of testimonies I remember a guy telling us a story. He grew up in New York. It was a really rough area. He was associated with the wrong crowd. After he changed his life and became a born-again Christian he said he told that story to some people in the church, but some of them couldn't handle it so they started avoiding him. Should he have told it? Probably not in that venue at that particular time. Our story is not for everybody all the time.
Now, what does that have to do with giving in secret? Well, alot. As I said, giving has more to do than with monetary and other gifts. It can also relate to what we share -- what we share about ourselves. And when we share ourselves we have to consider that that can be "giving." You get what I'm saying? On page 171, Casto says "God has promised that those who are faithful to sow in secret or in private may be rewarded publicly. This often happens when we understand the power of giving." And that giving may differ from person to person based on our walk. Some questions to ponder are, why is giving important to us? What are some ways we can give? How has God told us to bless people? Those are some of the questions we can use to help guide our giving. Personally speaking, my why is to ensure nobody has to go through what I went through, especially when I was recently divorced and found myself as a single mother. I struggled because of it, but listen, I'm better, faster, and stronger also because of it. Part of my why is to ensure that nobody has to go through what I did. We have to discover our why. All of us do who want to give and make a difference in the kingdom. My what and how? Well those are that I create inspirational products (books, talks, courses, podcasts, devotionals, etc, etc). And I do this in order to help people who may feel defeated and scared, because they lack confidence. That lack of confidence plays into my why also since I didn't have confidence when I went through a dark time of feeling sorry for myself mainly at night. That was years ago, but I know that because I went through I can help people and I can give to them, as well. Now, so what we can do is take our negative experiences and our negative circumstances and help people as a result. That can play into our why and our how. I also want to say and let me be clear, that if God says give money, a car, food, a house, groceries, or whatever it is, we have to be open to that, as well. And when we have a giving spirit, God will make provisions for us to give and give abundantly. He really will.
My when is every day throughout the day if necessary. That's when I help people. That's when I give. And my where is mostly online. In addition to more workshops and seminars sprouting up in person. Yes, that's what I'm on right now and that's what I'm doing. Within all of that I sometimes also "give" in secret/private. You see, when you are working in your gifts that's when God will give you the revelation of how you can help people and what you can do to give to them. Now may be a great time to take inventory of your life and your purpose. As we discover those things that are important to us in changing the world we can remain humble as we help those that we need to help. Remember it's not about us, it's about helping people. It's about giving to them. It's not about us being seen, right?
Casto says on page 174 that 'God wants us to give in secret sometimes because He doesn't want us to settle for the glory of men -- of people pleasing. God wants us to do it for Him in order that He will get the credit and He will get the glory, not us.' When we understand that truth we will be open vessels to give and help as many people as possible. Yes, God will exceed our expectations at every turn when we are operating in that fashion. On page 177 Casto says, "giving is an issue of the heart. And in Matthew 6:21 Jesus said, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." And Matthew 6:3/4, which says, "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you."
We just have to keep in mind that needy differs from person to person that you help. Needy is relative and can mean something different for each person, right? When we know the purpose for our giving, God will give us the ability to discern what those needs are. We just need to keep serving and keep giving, because God sees what we're doing.
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