ARE YOU PREPARED TO ACCEPT THE BLESSING
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
“Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me! “But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’ “You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me. You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test! Your crops will be abundant, for I will guard them from insects and disease. Your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Then all nations will call you blessed, for your land will be such a delight,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Malachi 3:8-12 NLT
TODAY’S THOUGHT
Yesterday we asked the question about robbing God. We discovered that when we rob God of the tithe, we put ourselves under a curse. Today I want to look at the positive benefits of tithing. God invites us to test Him in this area of our lives. This is the only place God invites us to test Him. Over the years I have often invited people to test the principle of tithing. I have asked them to tithe for 90 days and see if they do not experience the blessing of God on their lives. I give a promise that if they don’t experience a blessing from their 90 days of tithing, I will refund their tithe. In thirty-six years of pastoring, I have never had someone ask for their money back. God’s Word works if we work! We must be willing to tithe first and then see the blessing after the tithe is released from our hand. God’s promise has three elements, our work will be more productive (“your crops will be abundant”), our work will produce a harvest (“your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe”), and, other people will recognize the favor of God on our lives (“all nations will call you blessed”). I believe God wants the world to see His children being blessed. This blessing is not so that we can be proud and arrogant about what we have. Instead, we can praise God for His favor on our lives by using our blessings to bless others and advance His kingdom. When we choose to obey God in tithing, we open the windows of heaven so that God can pour out His blessings. Then we move beyond the tithe and begin to give over and above and the flood of blessings become overwhelming. There will be so much blessing we will not have room to handle it. We will be looking for places to invest the resources God has released through us.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Holy Spirit, I ask You to help me more faithful and consistent in the tithe and the offerings. Help me know how to steward the resources You are giving to me. Help me to use them all for Your glory.
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