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Day 182, or July 1.—Nothing but the best.

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Our thoughts today are rooted in Proverbs chapter 3 verse 9.

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Honour the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops.

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And now the big picture surrounding this verse.

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There is little doubt that in the book of Proverbs we have a glimpse of the wisdom God

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gave to Solomon when he succeeded his father David.

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When you read some of these Proverbs they can make you smile, but most of them are challenging,

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and make you wonder how you were going to incorporate their lessons into your daily

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life.

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And now our action step for today.

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If you read today's verse publicly from the front of your church at any Sunday service,

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I guarantee most people will assume you are fundraising, and money is such a delicate

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subject with many Christians that we steer clear of it as much as possible.

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I believe when Solomon wrote this Proverb he had far more than finance in mind.

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The idea of giving your first fruits goes right back to Genesis when Cain and Abel gave

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their first fruits to God.

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When it was time for the harvest, the Bible tells us, Cain presented some of his crops

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as a gift to the Lord.

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Abel also brought a gift, the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock.

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The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift.

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This is recorded in Genesis chapter 4.

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What we give to God is not as important as why we give it.

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God doesn't need any of our gifts, but he wants the givers, you and me.

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Out of your wealth of time, talent, and money, are you giving God the best portion, or just

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what is left?

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I have a friend who went into the ministry some years ago, after being a member of a

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very popular and successful band in the 1960s.

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He laid aside his guitar because he said it was from his old life.

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I think he should have used the musical gifting he had in his ministry, but he didn't.

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If God has gifted you with talent or wealth, then give him the best.

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Then he knows that he has you, too.

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When God has you, he has all you possess, too.

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But when he only has your possessions, he has nothing of worth until he gets you.