In these tough financial times, many are cutting back on things - even believers in their giving to the church.
Jesus says in Luke 6:38: "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you".
This past Sunday when I was preparing to write out a check to put in the offering plate, I asked the Lord what did he want me to give. The amount he spoke to me was going to be a stretch for us this week, but I willingly did what he asked, knowing that he would be faithful in his promise of being Jehovah Jireh - my provider. What I wasn't expecting though, was how soon he would show himself in that way!
When I got home from church and finished with brunch, I decided to lay down for a nap, and when I woke up, I came to check my email, and there were two orders in my inbox! After sending an invoice to one, I got an immediate payment. I wrote an email of thanks to this customer, and at the bottom of each of my sent emails, I have a signature that includes links to my website, Etsy, and the TDIPT Mercantile. Within minutes, this same customer that had gotten my email of thanks, had gone to the link to my items on Etsy, and had purchased yet another of of my pieces!
All I could do was say, "Thank you Jesus" over and over again. The total amount that I received just from that one person, was the amount I'd given in church and an overage of the very same amount!
And it just gets better! I sold two items on Ebay yesterday, and again, just kept thanking the Lord for his goodness and faithfulness.
I then listed another item on Etsy, and within minutes of listing it, I received another email saying that I had an order from there that included not only the just listed item, but another one along with it as well!
I'm not telling you any of this to brag, but to encourage you to be faithful to the Lord in your giving - He will prove to you, his faithfulness in his promises from his Word.
I'll close with this passage from Malachi 3:10: "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. "TEST ME IN THIS", says the Lord Almighty "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit", says the Lord Almighty.
Trust in the Lord, and especially when you are tempted to cut back on your giving to the church. He will honor you for your obedience, and will reveal himself as Jehovah Jireh - our wonderful and faithful provider.
Have a blessed Tuesday!
Janelle
Showing posts with label tithe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tithe. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Honoring God with Our Giving
The Lord is speaking to me today about tithing - giving back to him out of the resources he uses to bless us financially with.
First I'm taking a passage from the OT, the book of Malachi 3:7 - 12
"Ever since the time of your forefathers, you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you", says the Lord God Almighty. But you ask, 'How are we to return'? "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me". But you ask, ' How do we rob you'? In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse - the whole nation of you - because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of Heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit, says the Lord Almighty. Then all the nations will call you blessed, and yours will be a delightful land".
Now I know not many of us have crops or vineyards, but the Lord is saying that no matter what we do in the business world to earn a wage, he will bless us beyond what we can even contain if we just give to him and his work FIRST!
The next passage is from Proverbs 3: 9 - 10
"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine".
Even if you don't have a "home church" that you can tithe to, you can ask the Lord to show you a work that His hand is upon, that you can give to. I attend a small church, and am fed there, spiritually, so I give a portion of my earnings to the church. I also know that there are many good charities that do the work of the Lord that could use help. I have a place in my heart for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, so a portion of my earnings are given to them.
All God is wanting, and saying to us is that HE is our source, and wants us to honor him and be thankful to him for providing for us. The way for us to show that is to give back to him, and let what we give in turn help reach others to come to know him and also to use the gifts he's given to them to help others who are sick, without shelter or food....you get what I mean.
Honor God today - ask him to show you how to give back to him, and as he said in Malachi, TEST him on this, and he will prove to you that he will bless you beyond what you can even imagine.
First I'm taking a passage from the OT, the book of Malachi 3:7 - 12
"Ever since the time of your forefathers, you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you", says the Lord God Almighty. But you ask, 'How are we to return'? "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me". But you ask, ' How do we rob you'? In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse - the whole nation of you - because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of Heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit, says the Lord Almighty. Then all the nations will call you blessed, and yours will be a delightful land".
Now I know not many of us have crops or vineyards, but the Lord is saying that no matter what we do in the business world to earn a wage, he will bless us beyond what we can even contain if we just give to him and his work FIRST!
The next passage is from Proverbs 3: 9 - 10
"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine".
Even if you don't have a "home church" that you can tithe to, you can ask the Lord to show you a work that His hand is upon, that you can give to. I attend a small church, and am fed there, spiritually, so I give a portion of my earnings to the church. I also know that there are many good charities that do the work of the Lord that could use help. I have a place in my heart for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, so a portion of my earnings are given to them.
All God is wanting, and saying to us is that HE is our source, and wants us to honor him and be thankful to him for providing for us. The way for us to show that is to give back to him, and let what we give in turn help reach others to come to know him and also to use the gifts he's given to them to help others who are sick, without shelter or food....you get what I mean.
Honor God today - ask him to show you how to give back to him, and as he said in Malachi, TEST him on this, and he will prove to you that he will bless you beyond what you can even imagine.
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