Do Not Withhold Good When You Can Give It
When it is in your power to act, do not withhold good from those who deserve it.
How much good could I have done, yet postponed with a 'next time'?
📝Reflection
We usually fail to do good not from lack of heart but from postponement. How much goodwill have we let slip with 'someday, when I have room to spare'? The Hebrew sage points it out coolly: the time is now, while the power is in your hand. The moment you can help is shorter than you think, and the moment someone needs it shorter still. When Mencius called the heart of compassion the root of humanity, he meant it must not stop at the heart but move to the hand. Postponed goodwill differs little from goodwill never given.
🌱Apply It Today
If you thought 'I will help next time' about something today, do just one of them before the day ends.
This verse is read as universal humanistic wisdom, not religion — no faith is promoted, and the reflection is 100% original ONGO content.
