Week 1 | Day 3 | Freely and Fully

Command:

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:20-21 NIV

Read:

“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 there will not be room enough to store it.” Malachi 3:10 NIV

Reflect:

One of my favorite worship songs contain the lyrics “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe.” This truth helps me understand why I owe God my all. God gave everything to us when he gave his son to die for us. He gives freely and fully. But what does it look like for us to give freely and fully?

Let’s start with the tithe. The tithe is the first ten percent of our earnings and resources. Giving our first ten percent of our earnings is a principle (first fruits) that establishes our priorities. It’s our way of saying, “God, you are first in my life.”

God loves to receive the first of our resources, but not because he needs it. What he wants is our whole hearts. Matthew 6:21 says, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” This kind of giving is rooted in the understanding that God already owns it all.

Giving faithfully (through our resources, time, and talents) opens the door to an overflow of blessings. Scripture says that God tells us to test him in this. This is the only place in the bible that encourages us to test God. Testimony after testimony declares God’s blessing on the lives of people who tithe. Some say blessings come in the form of financial stability, while others say they come in the form of a closer and deeper relationship with God and other Christ followers. We simply give back to him (what is already his) and God blesses in return. He invites us with open arms into this adventure with him.

React:

Where are you in your “giving journey?” What changes can you make to show God that he is first in your life?

Pray:

Thank you, God, for giving freely and fully. Help me to have an open heart and put your first in my finances.