INGRATITUDE

One day, a very wealthy man was walking on the road. Along the way, he saw a beggar on the sidewalk. The rich man looks kindly on the beggar & asked, “How did you become a beggar?”

The beggar said, “Sir, I’ve been applying for a job for a year now but haven’t found any. You look like a rich man. Sir, if you’ll give me a job, I’ll stop begging

The rich man smiled & said, “I want to help you. But I won’t give you a job. I’ll do something better. I want you to be my business partner. Let’s start a business together.”

The beggar blinked hard. He didn’t understand what the older man was saying. “What do you mean, Sir?” “I own a rice plantation. You could sell my rice in the market. I’ll provide you the sacks of rice. I’ll pay the rent for the market stall. I’ll even give you food allowance everyday for the next 30 days. All you have to do is sell my rice. And at the end of the month, as Business Partners, we’ll share in the profits.”

Tears of joy rolled down his cheeks. “Oh Sir,” he said, “you’re a gift from Heaven. You’re the answer to my prayers. Thank you , thank you , thank you !” He then paused & said, “Sir, how will we divide the profits? Do I keep 10% & you get the 90%? Do I keep 5% & you get the 95%? I’ll be happy with any arrangement.”

The rich man shook his head & chuckled. “No, I want you to give me the 10% & you keep the 90%.”. For a moment, the beggar couldn’t speak. When he tried to speak, it was gibberish. “Uh, gee, uh, wow, I mean, huh?” He couldn’t believe his ears. The deal was too preposterous.

The rich man laughed more loudly. He explained, “I don’t need the money, my friend. I’m already wealthy beyond what you can ever imagine. I want you to give me 10% of your profits so you grow in faithfulness & gratitude.”. The beggar knelt down before his benefactor & said, “Yes Sir, I will do as you say. Even now, I’m so grateful for what you’ve done for me!”
Each day, the beggar,now dressed a little bit better, operated a store selling rice in the market. He worked very hard. He woke up early in the morning & slept late at night. And sales were brisk, also because the rice was of good quality & after 30 days, the profits were astounding.

At the end of the month, as the ex-beggar was counting the money, & liking very much the feeling of money in his hands, an idea grew in his mind. He told himself, “Gee, why should I give 10% to my Business Partner? I didn't see him the whole month! I was the one who was working day & night for this business. I did all this work! I deserve the 100% profits!”

A few minutes later, the rich man was knocking on the door to collect his 10% of the profits. The ex-beggar opened the door & said, “ you don’t deserve the 10%. I worked hard for this. I deserve all of it!” And he slammed the door.

If you were his Business Partner, how would you feel???

But this is exactly what happens to us. God gave us everything. He gave us life, every single moment, every single breath, every single second. God gave us talents, our ability to talk, to create, to earn money. God gave us our body, our eyes, our ears, our mouth, our hands, our feet, our heart , HE gave us our mind, our imagination, our emotions, our reasoning, our language. God gave us opportunities, some taken some lost. God put us in positions, he gave us all we have to make the wealth. YET we take all of it for granted walking on the earth with pride as if we are self made ? We forget His immeasurable bounties & become ungrateful using the very same blessings He gave us to sin & throw back at Him.

The big question is, which of the favours of our Lord would we deny? When will we turn back to Him with gratitude & obedience? God has granted us all the opportunities to always remember Him and pay our tithes, offering, alms and first fruit. Sow a little kindness today.

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