“The deeds of a man’s hands will return to him.” Proverbs 12:14 NAS

“Whatever good is done toward God or man, will be returned from God’s own hand.”

My thoughts today are about “a simple lesson.”

There is a simple lesson in life – what you do and say, whether good or bad, eventually comes back to you in some form of either kindness or trouble. Just because you feel like speaking or behaving in a certain way does not mean that you should. When you give and what you give determine what you will receive. Therefore it would only be wise to consider carefully the effect of what you do or say before doing so.

Solomon wisely observed, “Your reward depends on what you say and what you do; you will get what you deserve.” Proverbs 12:14 Today’s English Version. Now that can be either encouraging or terrifying. It’s great to know that God rewards goodness; not so comforting to realize that He does not spare you the bitter fruit of wrongdoing. The Bible calls that sowing and reaping: “For he who sows to the flesh will of the flesh reap corruption . . sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life . .” See Galatians 6:7-10 NKJV.

As a child, I remember my grandfather saying, “God will be no man’s debtor.” I have come to understand what he meant by that. He had learned that whatever good is done, toward God or man, will be returned with blessing from God’s own hand, in one way or another, at one time or another. Your return or reward may not always come from an expected point of supply, but the reward will always come from the only Source of good; God lets no good go unrewarded. God uses whom He chooses to do His work.

Here’s the practical lesson in this. Never hesitate to do what is right; those opportunities come your way with God’s blessing and enrichment. Conversely, never do what you know is wrong, however small or secret that may at first appear. There is a moral law. Good comes from good; no good comes from evil doing.

You can count on this to be true . . “knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord.” Ephesians 6:7 NKJV. You may not realize the connection with a previous occasion at that moment, but God does and remembers and rewards accordingly.

My prayer for you today is that you do good freely and receive reward extravagantly.