Tag Archives: Psalm 112

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The Fruit of Generosity

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Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
2 Corinthians 9:1o-11 (NIV)

I confessed in yesterday’s post/podcast that I wasn’t very generous when I was young. I explained my generosity has increased with my spiritual growth and maturity. If you actually read the chapter today, you’ll notice that there is no textual separation between the end of yesterday’s chapter and the beginning of today’s. It’s like those who determined where the chapters and verses should be (btw, that happened in the early 1200s) put the chapter break smack dab in the middle of Paul’s discussion about generosity and the Corinthian believers making a financial offering to the believers in Jerusalem. So, as today’s chapter continues his discussion of generosity, I’d like to continue and dig a little deeper into my own experience of generosity growing with spiritual maturity.

I have a tat on my right bicep referencing Psalm 112. Many years ago as a young adult, husband, father, and businessman I happened upon Psalm 112 in my reading. I was at point in my life journey in which I wanted God’s blessing. I wanted to do things right, and be who God created and called me to be. Psalm 112 begins: “Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in his commands.” It goes on to describe a blessed man of God and it penetrated my soul as I read. This described the man I wanted to be – the man I was striving to be.

I memorized Psalm 112. I quietly began using it as a personal guidebook. Twice in the lyrics of the ancient Hebrew song it references generosity:

Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely,
    who conducts his affairs with justice.

…and few lines later…

He scatters abroad his gifts to the poor,
    his righteousness endures forever;
    his horn will be lifted high in honor.

(Note: I read and memorized Psalm 112 in an older version of the NIV translation that used masculine rather than gender neutral language. For the sake illustrating its impact on me personally at that time, I’ve quoted the older, masculine version.)

As I recited, meditated upon, and sought to live out the description of Psalm 112, I continued to run headlong into the theme of generosity not just once but twice. It was at that point in my life that I began to seriously think about and address my family heritage of Dutch frugality (and well-hidden greed), my own deep seated patterns of financial irresponsibility, and my complete lack of generosity.

Wouldn’t you know it, as Paul addresses the subject of generosity as a spiritual matter with the believers in Corinth in today’s chapter, he references Psalm 112. I love the way God connects everything.

Two observations about generosity from my meditations on the chapter this morning:

First, Paul references what I had to learn along my life journey. Generosity is a spiritual matter of the heart first and foremost. God’s Word and Spirit had to sprout and take root inside me and force me into some much needed personal cultivation and pruning. Only then, through time and process did the fruit of generosity begin to emerge consistently and with increasing abundance. Paul is referencing this same spiritual process within both the Corinthian and Macedonian believers.

Second, generosity follows a clear spiritual pattern that is rooted all the way back with the freed Hebrew slaves in Exodus when He provided for them “daily bread” in the form of a miracle food called Manna.

Here’s the pattern:

God provides me with what I need daily —>

I spiritually learn to be content with what I need (not want) —>

What I have beyond my needs, I “scatter abroad” to others —>

Note that the metaphor here of “scattering abroad” is that of a sower sowing seed. This connects to Jesus’ parable of the sower sowing the seed of the Word of God. Now, hold that thought.

My generosity produces a crop of gratitude, thanks, and praise in others that both returns to me as a gift of righteousness and spreads through the others as they grow spiritually and are inspired to become generous themselves. Their gratitude, praise, and growth is righteous spiritual fertilizer that comes back to me and boosts the yield of generosity in my own life.


Paul repeats that the result of generosity is spiritual abundance in both the giver and the receiver that then spreads to others.

I can’t help but once again contrast this with what I’ve always heard spewed by televangelists and prosperity gospel preachers. They preach that if you give (them and their ministry) money then God will bless the giver financially as if generosity is an affluent financial investment strategy. Give ME your money, and God will give YOU MORE MONEY. The focus is on the money, especially the money going into their pockets.

In the quiet this morning, I come back to Psalm 112 that I had placed as a tattoo on my right bicep because the right arm is a metaphor of blessing, and the bicep is a metaphor of strength. It reminds me daily that my strength is in being a man blessed by God; The blessed man God created and called me to be is increasingly and perpetually content, generous, grateful, and fruitful.

That is what Paul is trying to teach his friends in Corinth.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
Chapter-a-Day

The Person I Want to Be

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The Person I Want to Be (CaD Ps 112) – Wayfarer

Praise the LORD!
Blessed are those who fear the Lord,
    who find great delight in his commands.
Psalm 112:1 (NIV)

I happen to be in the middle of a rather large project for a client. Our company has been helping them design, develop, launch, and implement a Quality Assessment (QA) program for their company. You know, the ol’ “Your call may be monitored for training and coaching purposes“? That’s a big chunk of what I do.

So it was this weekend that I’ve been deep in the weeds producing some training to introduce the program to my client’s front-line team members. One of the things I stated in the training is that you always want to build a QA program with the goal in mind, and in this case, the goal is to actually achieve the client’s corporate Mission and Vision statement.

Many years ago, as my life was emerging from the ash heap I had made of it, I happened upon today’s chapter, Psalm 112. I remember reading the lyrics to this ancient Hebrew song and realizing that it described the person I want to become and to be on this earthly journey. I remember thinking that day, “When this journey’s over and my number is up, I would hope that when friends and loved ones gather to celebrate my homecoming they could read Psalm 112 and say, ‘THAT was Tom.'”

“Blessed…” (vs. 1)
I have been blessed in so many ways, and never want to lose sight of that or fail to acknowledge it and be grateful for the grace given to me that my life doesn’t merit.

“Children mighty in the land…” (vs. 2)
I want to leave a legacy, not of earthly accomplishments, wealth, and fame, but children, grandchildren, and descendants whose life journeys walk the path of Psalm 112, as well.

“Wealth and riches are in their houses…” (vs. 3)
I never thought of this as a monetary blessing, but a spiritual one. Jesus said, “Don’t seek treasure on earth where it can be stolen, decay, and where you will leave it behind for all eternity. Seek eternal spiritual treasure that can’t be stolen. It doesn’t rot, and it will profit you through all eternity.” As a follower of Jesus, that’s the goal. That said, It also reminds me that if I manage my blessings and resources with the wisdom and the principles found in the Great Story, I will likely be just fine from a financial perspective. I haven’t arrived, by the way. I’m still in process.

“Even in darkness light dawns…” (vs. 4)
“They have no fear of bad news. Their hearts are secure, trusting in the Lord…” (vs. 7)
“Their hearts are secure. They will have no fear…” (vs. 8)
As an Enneagram Type Four, my core temperament always fights pessimism. Ironic, then, that God led me into a career in which my monthly and annual income is an ever-changing sum and has never been a sure-thing that secured by a corporation, a government, or a union (even though even that sense of security is ultimately an illusion). Recently I told our daughter that I perpetually assume that I’m one day away from living in a van down by the river. These words from Psalm 112 have become a spiritual bulwark against my pessimistic personality. It gives me an anchor in life’s “Chain Reaction of Praise” moments. I haven’t arrived, by the way. I’m still in process.

“…for those who are gracious, compassionate, righteous.” (vs. 4)
“Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
who conduct their affairs with justice…” (vs. 5)
“They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor…” (vs. 9)
Much of my life journey has been marked by a scarcity mentality. Along the way, I have come to realize that this has come from the perfect storm of my Type 4 personality, the realities of growing up as the youngest sibling, and growing up in a home in which my needs were always met, but there was never had a lot of financial margin. Psalm 112 and it’s repeated call to grace, compassion, generosity, and justice has been instrumental in helping me grow out of my scarcity thought-patterns and into the loving generosity that Jesus asks of me. I haven’t arrived, by the way. I’m still in process.

“…their righteousness endures forever.” (vs. 3)
“Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
they will be remembered forever...” (vs. 6)
“…their righteousness endures forever;
their horn will be lifted high in honor.” (vs. 9)
As I grew up, there was a period of time in which the women from my mother’s family would gather together. They would feast, laugh, share memories, and honor my great-grandmother, Grandma Daisy. Grandma Daisy Day made an impression on me as a kid. It revealed to me the legacy and impression that my maternal clan’s matriarch made on her descendants through her faith, love, grace, and generosity. She died pretty much penniless after a life dotted with tragedy and struggle. Her eternal bank account was full, and the legacy she left on her descendants was priceless. That’s the kind of legacy I’d like to leave behind, as well.

In the quiet this morning, I am celebrating the impression Psalm 112 has had on my life journey. It’s memorized, and etched in my soul. I have the song title inked on my right bicep, where it reminds me that my strength lies in becoming the person Psalm 112 describes.

It’s good reminder on this “reset” day that Monday is on a weekly basis and I’m heading back into life’s fray.

Have a great week, my friend!

Chapter-a-Day

The Miser and the Psalm 112 Man

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Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
2 Corinthians 9:6

Many years ago I was traveling with a colleague who, inadvertently made a comment that stung. Being a right-brained creative, I’m always searching for new and better ways to organize myself. Also, being a right-brained creative I tend to get bored quickly and move on to try new things. So it was that I had been experimenting with making a custom, daily to-do list on a 3×5 card that I kept on a leather blotter in my pocket. I like things small and compact.

“I realized why you write so small and put everything on a tiny card,” my colleague said.

I took the bait. “Oh yeah? Why is that?” I answered.

“Because you’re such a miser. You’re miserly about everything.”

Wow. Granted, I come from a Dutch heritage famous for thrift, but I’d never in my life been told that I was a “miser.” The conversation ended and the subject never came up again, but the comment stuck with me like a soul wound. Am I a miser?

Sometime later I read Psalm 112, and as I read it I realized that it described the kind of man I wanted to be. So I memorized it. I still whisper it to myself all the time. I even had the reference tattooed on my right bicep. Interestingly, the lyrics of the psalm twice mentions generosity:

Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
    who conduct their affairs with justice.

They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor,
    their righteousness endures forever;
    their horn will be lifted high in honor.

Looking back in 20-20 hindsight, I believe my colleague’s comment was a misguided perception based on other factors that need not be mentioned here. I’ve long since forgiven and let it go. It did, however, create a beneficial period of honest introspection, and it motivated me to increasingly live out Psalm 112 in my daily life. I know I have further to go in that journey, but Wendy and I desire to be consciously and tangibly generous with all of the blessings God has given us.

In today’s chapter, Paul is appealing to the generosity of Jesus’ followers in Corinth as he takes up an offering for the believers starving amidst the famine in Judea and Samaria. Interestingly, he quotes Psalm 112, and of course it leapt off the page at me.

In the quiet this morning I am thankful for my old colleague who caused me to pause and take a hard, introspective look inward. I am once again whispering through Psalm 112. As along week of work begins that will take me to the west coast and back, I’m thinking about the opportunities I will have to be a generous person in different ways with many different people I don’t even know. We can use more generosity in this world, don’t you think?

Have a good week, my friend.

Chapter-a-Day

Practice Required

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But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
2 Corinthians 8:7 (NIV)

I received a text from one of our daughters the other day. She was doing an exercise for work and each person was asked to quiz a few people who knew them well and ask , “What is it that I do better than anyone else?” In other words, what was the thing or things at which she excelled. It was an interesting question to ponder and fun to be allowed to share my thoughts with her.

I have always had certain things at which I excelled and many things at which I did not. I was never very good at sports. The only sport at which I exhibited some excellence was swimming, and this was only because of years of constant and disciplined practice. I was always a pretty good student, however. And, I displayed a modicum of excel-lence in the arts, especially on stage.

In today’s chapter, Paul answers our daughter’s question to the followers of Jesus in Corinth. Paul reports that they excel in faith, in good conversation, in being knowledgable and in their earnestness. Then, Paul then urges them to add one more thing to the list. He wants them to excel in giving.

The interesting thing about the encouragement given here is that generosity must have been an area that the believers in Corinth had not already displayed excellence. It was something that was going to require exercise and practice, and this was the entire point behind today’s chapter. Paul was urging them to stretch their generosity muscles and practice giving.

One of the passages of God’s Message around which I’ve chosen to try and model my life is Psalm 112, which has ceaselessly admonished me in the same way Paul encourages the believers in Corinth. The lyrics of the psalm describe the person who is “generous and lends freely” and who “scatters abroad their gifts to the poor.”

I must confess this morning that when it comes to generosity and giving I am an honorary Corinthian. I have known people who excel at giving, for whom it is a spiritual gift. For me, it is a lot like swimming. If I want to excel I’ve got to endlessly practice. Generosity stretches and builds spiritual muscles that are not naturally strong for me, but the effort and development is good for me in a myriad of ways.

This morning I’m pondering the areas of life in which I easily and naturally excel, and the areas like generosity that require repetitive practice. I don’t ever want to stop working on improving. I’m encouraged this morning to keep working, keep practicing, keep driving towards excellence in these important areas of Life and Spirit.

Chapter-a-Day

Confession and Blessing

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Psalm Tats LR

Praise the Lord.
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
who finds great delight in his commands.
Psalm 112:1 (NIV)

Years ago I read Psalm 112 as a part of my normal reading routine. I can’t explain it, but that day it penetrated deep into my soul. I memorized the psalm and I recite it regularly and prayerfully. I realized that the description of the “blessed man” that the lyricist describes is a description of the man I want to be:

  • God fearing
  • delighting in God’s message
  • successful father
  • gracious
  • compassionate
  • righteous
  • generous
  • confident
  • steadfast
  • fearless
  • secure

This past summer I had a tattoo inked on the bicep of each of my arms. On the left arm the tattoo reads Psalm 51 and the right arm reads Psalm 112. Psalm 51 is a song of confession and through ages the left hand has been associated with folly. Psalm 112 is a song of blessing and through the ages the right hand has been associated with favor. I placed the tats on my biceps because it is a muscle that men traditionally associate with strength.

My tats remind me daily that my strength for life’s journey is not rooted in my effort, social standing, intelligence, gifts, finances, career, or abilities. My strength for the journey is found in:

  1. Humility and daily confession that I am broken, make mistakes, and am in continuous need of God’s grace and forgiveness.
  2. God’s unmerited favor and blessing as I daily seek to be the man God calls me to be.

Confession and blessing. Every day. Every step. Confession and blessing.

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Tom's Messages

Podcast of My Message on Psalm 112

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For those of you who requested it, here is a link to the podcast of my message on June 30, 2013 at Westview Church. I did not think it a particularly good message, but have been informed by my wife that I’m being self critical.

C’est la vie.

http://www.westview.org/6-30-2013-podcast/