A gift is any tangible or non-tangible object given with the intention of giving or receiving something in return or compensation. An object is not necessarily a gift if the one who receives it already owns it. However, even though the gift-giving may involve only an expectation of compensation, a gift really means to be freely given. Gifts are very special and meaningful to give and receive.
There are many types of gifts. The most common ones are money and gifts of knowledge or advice. These two gifts are the basic and fundamental types of gifts. With these two types of gifts, you would expect that recipients would have something to put them in use or for future use. In fact, Ephesians does state that the gifts of the holy spirit and of wisdom and knowledge shall help us to bring forth and manifest the love of God toward men.
In addition to the two types of gifts mentioned above, there are other gifts. It is entirely up to the donor, whether he wants to give his donation in cash or whether he wants to give it in kind. Even though most donor will choose to give in kind, it still remains possible that some will give in cash if they feel so inclined. In any case, the intention of the donor in giving his gifts should always be clear. If the donor gives his gifts out of the kindness of his heart, then the gifts are truly the fruit of the charity’s heart.
Many people wonder how a gift can be given in kind. After all, if you give a gift in kind, then the recipient will not receive a tangible present; instead, the gift will be appreciated by him or her. This is exactly what a charity wants. They want their donors to provide them with gifts that will help their cause in making a difference in the lives of others. Therefore, it is important that a donor knows and understands the difference between giving in kind and giving in a manner that simply reduces the amount of taxes he or she has to pay.
The second type of gift that often attracts criticism is the one where the donor gives a very expensive gift, thereby expecting the recipient to carry it forward. The problem with this type of gift is that the recipient is likely to give the expensive gift as a last or only option. In other words, if he or she finds that the recipient is not capable of purchasing the gift then they would probably not carry it forward. This means that the gift would go to waste and the donor will have to start the process all over again for another expensive gift. Such an act of giving should not be labeled as charitable giving at all because it does not serve any good purpose.
One kind of gift that is never questioned about being a charitable gift is the endowment. Endowments are commonly taken for educational purposes, for building something that will help someone achieve something else or simply as recognition of a person’s past achievements. In general, it is the exact opposite of the kind of gift mentioned above. The endowment serves a purpose beyond the mere expression of gratitude or admiration.
The other type of gifts that need to be checked when donating money are those that are given out for the purpose of election campaign. In most cases, these types of gifts are not questioned and many people find them as something good to receive. There is one condition however; gifts that are found in the form of bulk advertising must not be given away as gifts. This is because this type of gift will serve no good purpose in the hands of a beneficiary. The reason is that the money spent on buying such gifts will serve only to further the agenda of the politician. Politicians often end up spending the money in such an inefficient manner that they eventually find themselves in deep financial trouble.
The last type of gift giving that needs to be mentioned in relation to social media is that which is found in the form of donations. In most cases, people feel more comfortable contributing money to charity and most social media websites allow the users to donate money to charity with ease. However, the issue with this type of gift giving needs to be highlighted. In most cases, those who contribute money to charity do so with the intention of getting something in return as well. For instance, most people who donate money to charity will end up buying expensive products from the giver in order to get something in return, most times in the form of goods and services that the giver can promote via social media.