Good morning you guys! Another beautiful day is coming with new opportunities! Deuteronomy chapter 26.
When the Israelites enter the promised land, they are to take their first fruits and place it before God and thank him for all his provisions. They were too tithe their produce to the Levites, The Foreigner, the fatherless and widows.
I feel we have so much to be thankful for and I know things happen everyday that I know never gets acknowledged before God in Thanksgiving. I need to thank God for our daily provisions much more than I do. To not give back to the Lord in tithe, to me, sounds pretty thankless. My wife and I tithe each week and give a portion above and beyond the tithe as a way of supporting ministries outside our immediate Church. I don't say that to brag. Actually I say that as a means of frustration.
Everything we have is from God. All the blessings we have are from the Lord God who is our provider. We have so much to be thankful for!
My frustration is, I am so much in a habit of giving that I don't thank God near enough for all his provisions. When I drop our money in the offering plate it should be done with so much humility and appreciation for the Lord and for all he has done for us. When I drop in our money into the offering plate it should be done so prayerfully while lifting up the different needs and ministries within the church. I should pray that God would bless all the ministries within the church and that what is given can be used to help meet the needs of those around us.
1. God, forgive me for taking you for granted and giving out of habit rather than with heart, with humility and great appreciation.
2. God forgive me for giving and not thinking of the needs that exist before me.
3. So Lord help me to give with a heart that is full of so much thankfulness and appreciation.
4. And Lord help me to give while becoming more aware of the needs around us and pray that through our giving and through our lives other people's lives can be impacted for you.
Verse 17 stood out to me from chapter 26 as it talked about walking in God’s ways. I looked at a couple of other passages while thinking more about this. There are 7 actions that I took away from these verses today.
1. Stay pure by using God’s Word to guard ourselves.
2. Seek God with our whole heart.
3. Learn God’s Word and store It in our hearts.
4. Use our lips to speak truth and keep our tongues under control.
5. Focus our attention on God.
6. Help those in need.
7. Don’t get polluted by the world, but shine for Jesus in this world instead. (This relates back to the first one.)
Here are the 2 passages:
Psalm 119:9-16
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your Word. With my whole heart I seek You; let me not wander from Your commandments! I have stored up Your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against You. Blessed are You, O Lord; teach me Your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of Your mouth. in the way of Your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on Your precepts and fix my eyes on Your ways. I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your Word.
James 1:26-27
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
I am thankful for all God has given me. some days are tougher than others , but today is beautiful day, and I rode my bike to church. I am blessed
9 He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey;
Love the 4 steps and the 7 steps. I want to write those down and remember them daily! Sometimes I get the attitude that tithing is taking away from other things I could use money for… I need to get rid of that attitude and remember everything I have comes from God! To tithe and give back is a small tiny way, never fully enough, to thank God for all He has given me in my life. I also need to remember to thank God separately from just giving my tithe.