Day 182, or July 1.—Nothing but the best.
Our thoughts today are rooted in Proverbs chapter 3 verse 9.
Honour the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops.
And now the big picture surrounding this verse.
There is little doubt that in the book of Proverbs we have a glimpse of the wisdom God
gave to Solomon when he succeeded his father David.
When you read some of these Proverbs they can make you smile, but most of them are challenging,
and make you wonder how you were going to incorporate their lessons into your daily
life.
And now our action step for today.
If you read today's verse publicly from the front of your church at any Sunday service,
I guarantee most people will assume you are fundraising, and money is such a delicate
subject with many Christians that we steer clear of it as much as possible.
I believe when Solomon wrote this Proverb he had far more than finance in mind.
The idea of giving your first fruits goes right back to Genesis when Cain and Abel gave
their first fruits to God.
When it was time for the harvest, the Bible tells us, Cain presented some of his crops
as a gift to the Lord.
Abel also brought a gift, the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock.
The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift.
This is recorded in Genesis chapter 4.
What we give to God is not as important as why we give it.
God doesn't need any of our gifts, but he wants the givers, you and me.
Out of your wealth of time, talent, and money, are you giving God the best portion, or just
what is left?
I have a friend who went into the ministry some years ago, after being a member of a
very popular and successful band in the 1960s.
He laid aside his guitar because he said it was from his old life.
I think he should have used the musical gifting he had in his ministry, but he didn't.
If God has gifted you with talent or wealth, then give him the best.
Then he knows that he has you, too.
When God has you, he has all you possess, too.
But when he only has your possessions, he has nothing of worth until he gets you.