If we walk with Jesus, daily, then He blesses us daily. And He blesses us daily for a purpose—so we can then BLESS others. What we need to learn is how to recognize the BLESSINGS we have, and who God wants us to share them with—and why.

Such was the case one day, when Jesus walked this earth, He was leaving Jerusalem, when a man came running up to Him and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mark 10:17).

Jesus answered him saying, “Why do you call me good?…Only God is truly good. But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother’” (Mark 10:18-19)

“‘Teacher,’ the man replied, ‘I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young’” (Mark 10:20).

Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “‘There is still one thing you haven’t done,’ he told him. ‘Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me’” (Mark 10:21).

It was then that the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

You may recognize this story, as we often refer to the man as the Rich Young Ruler. It’s an important story because there is so much for us to learn from it.

We Need To Hear What God Wants Us To Give—And Understand Why

First, Jesus loved the man, and how could He not? Jesus is God and God is good (1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 25;8; 34:8; 145:9). He’s God manifested in the flesh, and He is Love (1 John 4:16). But the Word in Mark 10:21 makes a point about the look of love that Jesus gave the man. Beholding the man, the KJV says, Jesus loved him.

Second, it was after Jesus looked at him with the look of love that Jesus said for him to go and sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor, and he would have treasure in heaven.

Third, then Jesus invited the man to come and follow Him.

We Need To Listen for as Long as It Takes To Know

But the man didn’t hang around long enough to grasp the full meaning of what Jesus was saying. He considered it a loss to sell what he had and give. He was so hung up on his wealth and being asked to sell it and give it to the poor that he left. He didn’t stay around long enough to get the answer to his original question, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mark 10:17).

We all know we don’t have to sell what we have in order to gain eternal life. That’s not what Jesus was saying. To have eternal life, all we have to do is give our hearts to Jesus—to make Him the Lord of our lives. And therein was the issue. Jesus loved the man and wanted his heart—but the man didn’t understand that the way to give his heart was to give up what had a hold of his heart—and in his case, it was his wealth.

Why God Wants Us To Give Our All

What is it that God is asking you to give? Particularly, what is He asking you to give that you don’t want to give. God wants us all giving continually so the BLESSINGS in our lives don’t become what we don’t want to let go—so the BLESSINGS in our lives don’t stop being BLESSINGS. He wants us to give out of our resources—and that’s not limited to our money. He wants us to give out of our time, talent and treasure. Sometimes, it’s easier to give money than to give of ourselves, but Jesus wants us giving our all.

What Is It That God’s Asking You To Give?

Your time—to check in on a neighbor or drive a friend to an appointment.
Your strength—to share your story of a similar experience to encourage someone’s faith.
Your attention—to listen with an understanding heart and say nothing.
Your skill—to help someone build a budget or learn to cook.
Your talent—to help someone learn to play an instrument.
Your story—so someone else can know Jesus.
Your love—so someone else can feel what it is to be loved.
Your forgiveness—so you both can be free.
Your prayers—because every healing, miracle and breakthrough starts with prayer.

Don’t be like the Rich Young Ruler and hold on to what isn’t eternal. Give God your heart—your all—and be willing to share it with others. Give more than your money; give out of all that you have.

Give out of your kitchen cabinets, your packed closets and your overflowing garage. Give out of your knowledge, wisdom and spiritual maturity.

Give out of a compassionate heart—because we all started somewhere, and we’ve all been there.

Give out of your passion for one more soul to know Jesus.

Never let a day go by that you don’t give something to someone, because there’s always Ways To Share God’s BLESSINGS.