Science catches up with the Jesus once again, proving what He said. Acts 20:35 says, "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive."
Ulrich Mayr, a psychology professor at the University of Oregon, has experiments and brain scans that show people get a kind of thrill from giving money to charity. You can read a Reuter's story about the experiments here. And you can read Dr. Mayr's abstract here.
Tithes and offerings have been a part of our lives for so long this seems natural. I don't notice any special feeling of euphoria but I do feel deeply that giving is right. I feel uncomfortable and get an internal nag when I don't give. But I have a question or two about the study. They gave the subjects $100 to start with and then studied their reactions to parting with that money. Would it not have been more realistic to use their own money? John Tierney, a New York Times science columnist, writes about the study and asks some provocative questions. It is a blog so you can see what his readers think.
An article in Time magazine says:
It is not just the fabulously wealthy and the entrepreneurial elite who are giving. Average Americans continue to step up, whether by volunteering at their local schools or contributing through churches, mosques and synagogues....For every Bill Gates there are literally a million Morris Popes. The 81-year-old retired train engineer has given at least $500 to the Atlanta Food Bank every year since 1982. One year he gave $1,200. And this on a retirement income of about $1,700 a month. He is almost too shy to mention the $3,000 he annually tithes to his First Corinth Missionary Baptist Church. "I look at how God has blessed me during my working years and raising my family, and I can't tell you how many times I've come to these homeless shelters and heard people say, 'My children haven't had a bite to eat today,'" says Pope. "Everyone should feel the pleasure of giving to others. If they knew that, they would give too."
We have had no more serious rain since that of Friday a week ago. But the weather has changed for the better -- the heat broke and now we have nights in the upper 40s and days in the 70s. No big change in the leaves yet but that is coming, too. We took in the "Wings Over the Smokies" motorcycle rally in Fletcher, NC, last week. Our Goldwing chapter worked the entrance gates on Thursday and then I hung out in the vendors area Friday and Saturday. Sylvia joined me at the closing ceremonies Saturday night, but we didn't win the drawing -- a 2007 Goldwing and trailer. This is one of the largest rallies for Goldwing riders in this part of the country and was the first that we attended (2004) after we starting riding again.
