Tag: giving
Week 17–Day 1–Provision for Responders
Scripture reading for April 20: Philippians 4:18-20 “I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable to God. And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.”
Paul was in jail facing an uncertain fate. He was not sure if he would live or die. But he maintained his faith in God and fulfilled his responsibility to the churches he had helped found who were now supporting him while in prison. Paul viewed their gifts as a blessing and stated that they were like a fragrant offering and an acceptable sacrifice to God.
Part of God’s way of caring for His people is through others of faith who are willing to share from what God has blessed them. But God does not force anyone to do anything. He makes promises through His Word which are given to bring faith to act on them. In Paul’s message of thankfulness for the Philippian’s giving, He spoke a promise to them that God would supply all of their needs in return for their faithful and cheerful giving. The law of sowing and reaping is simple and true. If we sow or give cheerfully and abundantly, God will provide a time of reaping even more abundantly than what we sowed. (2 Corinthians 9:6)
So, we can conclude that one of God’s ways of meeting the needs of His children is through giving. Giving helps the one given to but it also blesses and sets in motion a harvest for the giver. When we are generous, we reflect our Father and His Son Who are continual givers of every good gift we receive. All we have in our hand is from Him. As we act in faith, we also bless God and bring Him joy and blessing. It is a win for everyone. Our God will supply all of our needs in Christ Jesus.
Prayer: Father God, I sometimes fear that I may come up short if I give resources that I am a steward over. Thank You for faith through Your promise to meet all of my needs in Christ Jesus. I say ‘amen’ and ‘thank You’ that all my needs have been met through the unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Food for a multitude!
Scripture reading for February 17: Mark 6
“But He answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to Him, “Shall we go and by two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” And He said to them, “How man loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” Then He commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish He looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And He divided the two fish among them all. And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of fish.” Mark 6:37-43
Mark tells us how Jesus had a large crowd of five thousand men plus women and children come out into the wilderness to hear Him preach and teach. When it was late evening, the disciples suggested to Jesus that He send them away to find food in the villages. Jesus turned the tables and told the disciples to provide food for them. Their brains thought about buying bread and how much money it might take to feed that large a crowd. Jesus asked them for an inventory of what they had. He had the disciples bring the five loaves and two fish that they found and to organize the crowd into family units. He blessed the food, broke it and gave it to the disciples, who, in turn, broke it and gave it to the people. When all had been fed, they gathered twelve baskets of left-overs! (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)
Jesus was teaching His disciples to see things from a different perspective. They were to live by faith in what they had, not fear of what they did not have. They were to seek God’s blessing on what they had and act with that as seed to sow. As they gave in faith to those in need, God multiplied the bread and fish and met the need with an abundance left over! Amazing grace received through faith!
Do you live with feeling of lack and fear over provisions? Has God ever ‘multiplied’ the bread as you by faith gave! Have you tried to suggest a course of action and had the Lord tell you to do it yourself?
Prayer: Father God, thank You that you are always at work to expand our world-view. Forgive me for living in the natural world and fearing lack. Help me to stay calm, take inventory, and ask You to bless what I do have. Thank You for overflowing abundance every time I have believed You! Amen!
Sunday rest: Blessed givers!
Dear Friends,
Welcome to another day of rest in Christ Jesus! Because of what He was willing to give to us, we can now rest secure in our salvation and live today in freedom from fear of punishment, guilt or shame! What a blessing to know that! Let’s take time today to reflect on this blessing of Jesus Christ and His gift to us!
“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus Himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’“ Acts 20:35
This quote from the Lord Jesus is a truth that we can live by. Jesus lived to give His life blood for our salvation. He offered His body as a sacrifice for our sins and willingly laid down His life that we might have life. He always considered the needs of others above His own needs and readily gave His time and effort to meet their needs. He taught us that the blessed life is a life that is willing to give! If we give, we will be taken care of and our own needs will be met. What we sow we will reap!
I was talking to a person today who said that he had given away his electric dryer to someone who needed one because the rental house he moved into already had a dryer. When he recently moved here, he needed a dryer and told his wife that the Lord would meet their needs. After three days here, a person brought a dryer by his house and gave it to them! God blesses givers! The person that gave them the dryer will be blessed, too!
As you rest today, thank God for His generous heart towards you and ask Him to show you how you can bless someone by giving today. We are imitating our Lord when we give and His blessing will rest on us!
In His Love, Pastor John
Safeguarding finances!
Scripture reading for September 15th: Isaiah 56-59, Psalm 70, 1st Corinthians 16
Key Scriptures: 1st Corinthians 16:1-4 “Now concerning the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come. And when I arrive, I will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem. If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.”
Paul gave simple and godly instructions to the church concerning an offering that was to go to the church in Jerusalem. There was to be no pressure in the giving. Each person was to put aside something, as God had prospered him and the collection should be taken and stored safely until time to deliver it. Trustworthy people were to be selected to carry the offering to Jerusalem. If they church preferred, Paul was willing to go as well on their behalf. Everything concerning finances was done in an orderly manner with accountability.
Psalm 70:4 “May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You! May those who love Your salvation say evermore, “God is great!”
Faith confession and prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for giving such clear instructions concerning kingdom finances and accountability. Help me to give generously and without compulsion to Your kingdom work.
Isaiah 58:10-11 “. . if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a well-watered garden, a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.”