God's Wisdom In A Nutshell

Hello,

If you are a self sufficient person, learning about the Lord can be a little unsettling at times. We are told to tithe 10% of our income, we are told to put God and family before making money. We are instructed that God will provide for His followers even during hardship so don’t sweat it. But we often feel providing for our family is our responsibility, not the Lord’s.

So we save our money and keep 3-6 months emergency fund at the ready just in case. But God says, don’t hoard your resources, give some to my churches and give some to others who are more needy than you.

Many people will come up with excuses as to why tithing and giving gifts of money to the church and to those less fortunate- is plain old fashioned.  But how will we ever be able to see God act in our own lives- providing for the needs of His followers- if we are always striving and being self sufficient? If you think about it, how much is enough that we feel comfortable giving some of it away on a consistent basis?

Let’s face it- no one ever will have enough, because we can’t see the future and the future could be very expensive due to some unforseen event. Therefore it’s never a good time to tithe and that is precisely why God asks us to do so. God is trying to teach us to rely on Him and He does that by asking us to give up some of our hard earned income.

God should be our EVERYTHING. Our comforter, protector, provider, physician, and Savior. The only way we can experience these qualities of the Lord is if we give Him some space to act.

If we tithe our income and give random gifts, we are creating a gap in our resources for the Lord to give to us. He may give to us by way of a talent that makes a side income. He may make our investments do better than the national average. God can do anything- lets not underestimate His power.

There is a story in the bible about a widow who had debt to pay after her husband died. She asked Elisha for some help, take a look:

^” Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”“Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”

Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring.  When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.”(2 Kings 4:2-6)

God has a way of providing everything we need and more- but we need to give Him something to work with. What do you have? What can you offer to someone else to spread God’s love in this world? Offer it to others and then watch God work in your life. An open hand and heart will always receive more. God is looking for generous people to bless, because He knows that generous people will pass on the blessing.

Food For Thought,

Lisa