Beware of practising your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honoured by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Do things for God that only He and you will know about!
Our desire to be respected and admired and validated in our spiritual life is so strong that it is very difficult to follow Jesus’ teaching in this passage. We want people to think well of us.
But God wants to know that you’ll do things for Him when no one else knows about them, that your obedience and service are not just to get kudos from other people, but are out of pure love for Him.
Can you sacrifice something for God today, or help someone or donate money today that no one will know about except you and God? Try it and see what joy floods your heart.
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