This is Come Follow Me for us, hybrid. A little bit of old, a little bit of new, because, yeah, I said it, and it was good.

And as always, I'm your host, Melanie Stroud. This is season five, episode 36.

Second Corinthians 8 through 13. God love it a cheerful giver. And I just want to say this is such a fun, good episode.

I have felt so much spirit and love and warmth and guidance in preparing this podcast.

So I hope it actually records as great as it prepared because there's a lot of good stuff in this lesson.

So I'm just going to go ahead and get started. It said, what would you do if you heard that a congregation of saints in another area was struggling in poverty?

This was the situation that Paul described to the Corinthian saints in second Corinthians 8 through 9.

He hoped to persuade the Corinthian saints to donate some of their abundance to the saints in need.

But beyond a request for donations, Paul's words also contained profound truths about giving.

Every man, according as he purposed in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly or of necessity for God love it a cheerful giver.

In our day, there are still saints throughout the world who are in need of help.

Sometimes the most we can do for them is to fast and to donate fast offerings.

In other cases, our giving can be more direct and personal.

Whatever forms our sacrifices take, it's worth examining our motivations for giving.

Our sacrifices, expressions of love, after all, it's love that makes a giver cheerful.

And in the first section, it's second Corinthians 8, 1 through 15, and 9, 5 through 15.

I can cheerfully share what I have to bless the poor and needy.

There are so many people in need all over the world. How can we possibly make a difference?

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland offered his counsel. Rich or poor, we are to do what we can.

When others are in need, God will help you and guide you in compassionate acts of discipleship.

If you are conscientiously wanting and praying and looking for ways to keep a commandment, he has given us again and again.

And before we even start all of this, I just want to bear my testimony to this.

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