“So whatever you wish others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 7:12) These familiar words of our Lord are often quoted by the worldly and spiritually minded alike. Nevertheless, His admonition is often disregarded by many of those doing the quoting. Some of the difficulty lies in the fact that this practice requires taking the initiative. Jesus does not say that we should treat others how we have been treated, instead we ought to treat others the way we ideally would prefer to be treated (even if we are rarely ever treated that way). This means not giving to another what I would not want, which does raise the question of whether what I want is good, but there are several basic good things the vast majority of humans desire. In seeking to give these things to others, there is a sense, though, in which we are giving what we have already gotten. “Every good and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17) It is important to remember in our giving, that we can only give to others the good that God has already given to us. It is equally important to remember that we could never give to others any amount that would equal the good that God has already given to us.