Some businessmen from a tractor...
Illustration
Some businessmen from a tractor company were in Japan looking over building sites for a new plant they were going to build. They were photographing some land on the edge of a city when they saw something unusual in an adjoining rice field: an old man was pulling a single furrow plow while his son guided it. The Americans were amused by that and took many pictures to "show the guys back home how much they need our tractors over here." A few days later one of the businessmen was showing the pictures to a missionary in a nearby village, still joking about how they farm in Japan. The missionary looked at the photos and said, "I know that father and son. They are members of our village church. They didn't always farm that way. You see, when we built our mission church they wanted to give something, but they were so poor they couldn't. So they sold their oxen and gave the money to the church. Until they can afford another team, they'll have to pull the plow themselves." Most people contribute, but there is a great deal of difference between a contribution and a sacrificial gift. "Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
-- Lentz
-- Lentz
