“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” — Matthew 6:2-4
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My wife and I have great memories of the late Lois Evans, wife of Dr. Tony Evans. One evening, I was coming out of the employee break room at our church and Lois stopped me and handed me an envelope. She said, “An anonymous donor to the ministry wanted Tony and I to give this to a seminary student who had a financial need, so we decided to give this to you and Tara.”
Inside the envelope was a substantial amount of cash. My wife and I just had our first child, I worked part-time at the church, and I still had another year left as a full-time seminary student. The financial gift came at the right time. Since the gift was anonymous, we couldn’t thank the donor, we could only give praise to God.
Secrecy is another spiritual discipline we can practice. Secrecy is when we give money or material things like clothing or food, or do kind acts anonymously. In Matthew 6:2-4, Jesus says when we give money, we should do it in secret.
When we give in secret and don’t draw attention to ourselves, people may not see and reward us, but God will. And when we give anonymously, the receiver of the gift will often give credit and praise to God because they can’t thank the giver.
How can you meet someone’s need or bless someone anonymously? Pray that God would lead you to someone you can bless.
— Ikki Soma, Iowa Wolves chaplain
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