We forget sometimes that we live in community.
People live in a city because they're supposed to take care of their neighbors and so on.
We live near water because we all need the water.
We need safety.
We need protection from one another, by one another, for one another and so on.
In Deuteronomy 23, 25, it says,
when you enter your neighbor's standing grain,
then you may pluck the heads with your hands,
or you shall not wield a sickle in your neighbor's standing grain.
Basically, what they're saying was,
it's okay for us to profit off of one another.
It's okay for us to be generous toward one another.
It's okay for others to consume some of our resources.
But the bottom line is,
they should come intentionally with a sickle to carve deep into our sustenance.
Using a sickle is a more purposeful taking of that which doesn't belong to you.
Basically, the difference between taking something along the way,
like Providence, etc.,
is different than purposefully taking that which does not belong to you.
So if you have somebody who comes to your house,
it's okay to be generous toward them, practice hospitality or so on.
If you have somebody who comes into your life,
it's okay to give them minorly here or there or whatever,
whatever you can help them with.
That's as if they were picking the grain a little bit with their hand.
But if they come intentionally trying to take from you,
intentionally taking more than what's reasonable,
then that's where you have to say,
no, that's not acceptable.
This is the sustenance with which God has given me,
and I will bless others with it,
but I'm not going to allow you to take it from me or to misuse me.
God wants us to be wise in all things,
and we can prosper along the way, and that's fine.
But misusing others or being misused by others is not acceptable.
God bless you today. Stand firm.