That can't be God, this dress is NEW!

I was watching Joyce Meyer this morning and she made this statement and it woke up something deep inside of me!  The subject was giving and hearing the Lord when He instructs us to give.  It's easy to give things that don't matter much to us anymore.  The example was cleaning out our closet and giving away our old clothes!  I have done it a hundred times!  I buy new clothes and or shoes and I go through my closet and pull out the things that either do not fit me anymore, are out of style, or I just no longer like!  Is this REALLY giving from my heart???  Well, I thought it was!  I mean, I am not going to wear it anymore and I could just throw it out (the sad truth is, some of it is worthy of nothing but the trash!), but I give it away!  As Joyce said, "The Lord seemed to be saying, those people that get your old stuff are doing YOU a favor by taking it off your hands!!"  I'm not saying that it is not a worthy service from the heart to donate our used things that we no longer use.  I believe it's a great thing and is good seed!  I have received used things from others and been super blessed by it!!!  But, I am saying that we should always be moved to give of our very best. 

So that brings me to the title of this blog:  Joyce heard the Lord tell her to GIVE AWAY HER NEW DRESS!  She replied, "That can't be God, this dress is NEW!"  hahaha  She said (to the Lord, as if to convince Him that He couldn't mean to give THAT dress), she also had matching earrings for that dress!!!  God then said that since she was so concerned about keeping the "set" together, to give the earrings too!!!  I love it!!!  God is so not concerned with our comfort!  Not that He doesn't want the very best for us, but He knows that all we really need is HIM!  We do not need a new dress to make us happy and complete.  Even if it comes with earrings!!!  All giving must take place because of LOVE!  All through the Bible God teaches us about sowing seed.  When our sowing is motivated by LOVE the seed is good and it will always grow!  I guess we should just ask ourselves the question, "why do we give"?  Are we looking for something in return? Are we just cleaning out our closet?  Does our giving only count if it make US feel good?  It doesn't matter if we give a cookie or a $500 pair of shoes, the heart must be motivated by LOVE!  That is how God operates.  Everything He does is birthed from LOVE because He IS LOVE!  To plant a seed through LOVE is sowing the very nature of Daddy God!  Show LOVE, share LOVE, BE LOVE!!!   Give the NEW dress =)