FOUR KINDS OF GIVERS (2)

'..."the bin...shall not be used up..."' 1 KINGS 17:14

Bin people. In the middle of a devastating famine, God sent the prophet Elijah to Zarephath, saying he'd meet a widow there who would feed him. Why did God not send Elijah to a wealthy family? Because they didn't need a miracle, she did! When Elijah asked this woman for something to eat she told him that she'd '...only a handful of flour in a bin...' (1 Kings 17:12 NKJV). She had just enough for one more meal, then she and her son would die. Perhaps you're thinking, 'Typical preacher! They'll take the last bite out of your mouth and the last penny out of your pocket.' No, this was the best day of her life! She was about to step into miracle territory. But first she had to overcome the fear of giving. 'Elijah said to her, "Do not fear...make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me..." For thus says the Lord God of Israel: "The bin of flour shall not be used up...until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth'' (1 Kings 17:13-14 NKJV). How does this story turn out? 'So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and...The bin of flour was not used up...' (1 Kings 17:15-16 NKJV). Day after day, without fail, she reached into the bin and found more flour. She discovered that when you obey God's Word He will meet your every need. Are you a bin person? Are you afraid of letting go of what you have in case you don't have enough? Don't be. You will never out-give God! Whatever you give to Him, He has promised to give back '...good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over...' (Luke 6:38 NKJV).

FOUR KINDS OF GIVERS (1)

'...he...earns wages to put into a bag with holes.' HAGGAI 1:6

There are four kinds of givers noted in the Bible. For the next few days let's look at each. Bag people. In the days of Haggai the prophet, the Israelites were so busy making money that they had no time for God. Sound familiar? So he said to them: ''Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your panelled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?"..."Consider your ways! You have sown much, and bring in little...and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes"..."You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?" says the Lord of Hosts. "Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house'' (Haggai 1:4-9 NKJV). If you want God to be interested in your house, be interested in His house. If you want God to bless your house, begin to bless His house. If you want God to provide for your house, start providing for His house. You say, 'How much should I give?' God sets the baseline at one-tenth of your income (Leviticus 27:32). Whatever you give beyond that will be determined by three things: a) Your ability. 'Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God which He has given you' (Deuteronomy16:17 NKJV). b) Your desire to reap. God will '...multiply the seed that you have sown...' (2 Corinthians 9:10NKJV). c) Your love. '..."You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind"' (Matthew 22:37 NKJV).

BLESS THE LORD O MY SOUL (I)

Psalm 134:1-2, “Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord, which by night stand in the house of the Lord. Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.” Psalm 146:1-2, “Praise ye the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul. While I live will I praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.” We have a command to bless the Lord at all times. We also have promised, like the Psalmist, that we will praise the Lord as long as we live. Oftentimes we say thanks to the Lord, sing to Him in church, lift up our hand “in worship” to Him, etc. The question is, however, are we really thankful to God? Is our soul really blessing Him or are we just singing, especially when we are in the midst of other Christians because we do not want people to think that something is wrong with us? God knows if our singing, dancing, etc. are coming from our heart or not.

 

One reason why a lot of Christians are not really blessing the Lord from their soul is that they fail to count their blessings and see how good God has been to them. The Psalmist said in Psalm 103:1-2, “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless His holy Name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” Many quote this scripture, but oftentimes they forget God’s benefits. One of the benefits we are enjoying, which we are not supposed to forget is life (we are alive both physically and spiritually). As long as we are still alive every other issue is secondary because according to the Preacher there is hope for those who are still alive (Ecclesiastes 9:4). Salvation, the prospect of eternal life, the person that brought you to Christ, the people that God used to disciple and groom you in the faith, all the pastors you have ever had, the living church you attend, the privilege of serving God, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, functional physical and spiritual eyes and ears, good health and functional body parts for you and your loved ones are other blessings for which you should be grateful to God. If you have family members and friends, you are not alone and therefore you should be grateful to God.  You should also be thankful to God for your enemies and those who hate you because if you allow God He can use the hatred and bad treatment they mete out to you to teach you tolerance, patience and how to love those who hate you. You should also thank God for food, clothes, job/business, sanity, people you look up to in the faith, people who look up to you and also answered prayers. We are even to thank God for unanswered prayers because in everything He works for the good of those who love Him, according to Romans 8:28. These are just very few of the reasons we have to be thankful to God. However, a person who does not take time to consider the work of God in his life/family and to realize how blessed he is will never know how to appreciate and thank God.

 

Too much preoccupation with the negatives, troubles, problems, prayers that seem not to be answered, etc. can also make a person fail to appreciate God because he is not able to see the things that God is actually doing for him. Ezekiel 1:1, “Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.” If Ezekiel was able to see visions of God even in the situation in which he found himself, it is possible to bless God from one’s soul no matter the situation one is in. Make a choice to focus on the blessings you are enjoying and not on things you desire and do not have yet.

 

There are people who are very grateful to God for what He is doing for them until they notice what He is doing in the lives of some other people. They begin to feel like God is being unfair to them because as far as they are concerned He is doing more for others. Sometimes it is not only ungratefulness towards God that sets in but also envy and ill will towards the person you think is more favored than you are.

 

When a person believes that he deserves more blessing than God is giving to him he might become ungrateful and have difficulty blessing God. If you are in this category, look at Psalm 115:1-2, “Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy Name give glory, for Thy mercy, and for Thy truth's sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?” Also Isaiah 48:11,“For Mine own sake, even for Mine own sake, will I do it: for how should My Name be polluted? and I will not give My glory unto another.” Understand that God does not have to do anything for any of us. He is just being good to us when He blesses us. He does not bless us because we deserve to be blessed but because He delights in doing good things. If you have this understanding, praises will flow from your heart to Him.

Thanksgiving Service for the Month of September

IMPORTANT OR INSIGNIFICANT, YOU CAN BE SAVED!

'...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved...' ACTS 16:31

By putting your trust in Christ, your soul will be saved and your life will be changed for the better. The testimonies that this is so, exists in hundreds of thousands of famous people such as William Gladstone, one of Britain's greatest Prime Ministers, whose life was transformed by God. Abraham Lincoln tells us in his letters that at Gettysburg, the day he delivered his famous address, he too, was born again of God's Spirit. Martin Luther had been exceedingly religious, even as Nicodemus was, and yet had known nothing of the new birth. But all that changed when he discovered these words in scripture: '...The just shall live by faith' (Romans 1:17 NKJV). Writers like Fyodor Dostoevsky and Leo Tolstoy of Russia, have described the work of God's Spirit in utterly transforming their lives. Men like Chuck Colson, aide to President Richard Nixon and author of the bestseller Born Again have told of being radically changed by the new birth. And whether you live in a mansion or a mud hut, you too can be saved. When the Philippian jailer asked Paul, 'What must I do to be saved?' Paul didn't give him a theological dissertation. No, he simply said: 'Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.' Think: Not only can you be saved today, but through your life and testimony your entire family can be won to Christ, if they repent (2 Peter 3:9 CEV). Imagine the difference that could make! Do you have to understand it? No, but you can experience it. How? By placing your trust in Christ today.

TAKE GOD TO WORK WITH YOU

'You are the salt of the earth...' MATTHEW 5:13

Jon Gordon says: 'I speak to a lot of organisations on the importance of positive leadership and the benefits of building a positive culture that fuels performance. Yet the most common question I receive is, "How do I stay positive when my boss isn't?" Here are a few suggestions: Even though you're not the leader...focus on being the best and bringing out the best in the people you work with...tune out negativity and negative comments. Remember, you can't control what other people say and do, but you can control how you react.' Dr. David Hawkins says, 'Eighty percent of the population vibrates to a negative frequency. It's all around us. Stay above the fray.' There's an old adage, 'Never wrestle with a pig because you'll both get dirty-and the pig will enjoy himself!' Jesus said, 'You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.' Matthew 5:14 NKJV. Make up your mind to be the beacon that shines in your workplace. Bottom line: most people don't enjoy being negative. Many times they're that way because of stress, being too busy and fear. Most of them just need a wake-up call to break out of their rut, and contrary to what you may think, you can be that instrument of change. Jesus also said, 'You are the salt of the earth,' and salt has two functions. It stops things from going bad, and it adds taste and flavour. Your job as a Christian is to preserve, reconcile, and give hope to those around you; including the people you work with every day.' So, take God to work with you.

WHAT IS 'SUCCESS' FOR YOU?

'I have glorified You on the earth...' JOHN 17:4

At the end of His life, Jesus was able to pray, 'I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.' Jesus didn't try to compete with John the Baptist or model Himself after some Old Testament prophet. He knew what 'success' was for Him. To know what it is for you, you must: 1) Discern what success really is. When others feel good about you, you're popular; but when you feel good about yourself, you're successful. Your life's highest calling will always create the highest level of joy within you. 2) Before you set goals, pray. 'In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths' (Proverbs 3:6 NKJV). It's not wrong to set goals, it's just wrong to set them without first consulting God. 3) Stop expecting others to bring you success. Don't wait for flowers to arrive. God gave you seed; start growing some of your own. 'Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else' (Galatians 6:4 NLT). And besides, when you're less needy you'll become more attractive to others. 4) Get over yourself- everyone else has. A minister said he was praying one day, 'Father, why does the devil keep reminding me of my past?' God replied, 'Because he's running low on material!' Repent, and then move on. God says He will '...not remember your sins' (Isaiah 43:25 NKJV). There's only one good reason to bring up the past, and that's to learn from it and grow wiser.