"Jesus said to him, 'If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.'" (Matt. 19:21)

Marquis de Lafayette was a French general and politician who joined the American Revolution and became a friend of George Washington. An influential man in the U.S. and France, Lafayette was also a man of compassion. The harvest of 1782 was a poor one, but the manager of his estate had filled his barns with wheat. "The bad harvest has raised the price of wheat," said his manager. "This is the time to sell." Lafayette thought about the hungry peasants in the villages and replied, "No, this is the time to give."

Real love is often measured by our willingness to let go of what we possess. Sometimes the thing we grip most tightly in our hands is the very thing God asks us to hand over to Him. (From Bible Illustrator)