By Dynamis Ministries | April 22, 2021
If we’re smarter than a 5th grader, then we know that for every action there’s an equal and opposite reaction, according to Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion. This principle also applies to generosity. Our giving comes back to bless us. The Apostle Paul quotes Jesus when he writes in Acts 20:35 that “it is more blessed to give than to receive.” Jesus taught that generosity comes with benefits! This is true in a literal sense more than we have ever imagined. With the modern advancements in science and technology there have been numerous findings linking multiple health benefits to generosity, including emotional, physical, and relational.
Emotional Benefits
Research has shown that giving or acting generously towards others releases neurotransmitters in our body that activate brain receptors associated with feelings of happiness and well-being.¹ Any time we perform a random act of kindness or gesture of radical generosity that leaves us feeling elated and alive, then we have experienced the effects of these neurotransmitters firsthand. Concurrently, acting generously also suppresses the release of neurotransmitters associated with stress, anxiety, and depression.² This proves that acting generously can not only increase our mood, self-esteem, and happiness but also reduce stress, negativity, and even depression.
Physical Benefits
Being generous creates a positive response in our bodies that has many physical health benefits. These include boosting our immune system, reducing pain, and regulating blood pressure.³ Living ungenerously leads to heightened levels of stress, which over prolonged periods of time can increase our blood pressure and compromise our immune system. Generosity therefore, can aid in combating these negative consequences associated with prolonged stress.
Relational Benefits
Generosity promotes strong social networks. People who are generous tend to be more compassionate, forgiving, in tune with others’ needs, and empathetic. All of these traits assist in building strong personal relationships.⁴ Whether we’re giving our time to help someone in need or giving our money to a specific cause, our connections with others grow and so does our joy.
Generosity has a profound impact in the lives of others but also in our own lives as givers. We have an opportunity to bless others when we give, but like Newton’s Law of Motion, our act of giving can create a reaction of blessing back to us. How amazing it is that woven into the ways of giving from God himself are return blessings to us! As we go out and give, let’s be willing to both give and receive the fullness of all that generosity can offer!
References
¹ R. Bachner-Melman, I. Gritsenko, L. Nemanov, A.H. Zohar, C. Dina, and R.P. Ebstein, “Dopaminergic Polymorphisms Associated with Self-Report Measures of Human Altruism: A Fresh Phenotype for the Dopamine D4 Receptor,” Molecular Psychiatry 10 (2005): 333-335.
² A.R. Peirson and J.W. Heuchert, “Correlations for Serotonin Levels and Measures of Mood in a Nonclincal Sample,” Psychological Report 2, no. 87 (200) 707-716.
³ R. Bodnar and G. Klein, “Endogenous Opiates and Behavior: 2003, “Peptides 25, no. 12 (2004): 2205-2256.
⁴ Christian Smith & Hilary Davidson, The Paradox of Generosity: Giving we Receive, Grasping we Lose (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.
