Thought for the day
I love the story of a church that had a parking problem. It was right next door to a store that was closed on Sunday. They asked the owner if they could use his parking lot. He said that they could use it for 51 Sundays out of the year but that it would be chained off one week. They were happy with the deal, but curious why it would be chained off that one Sunday. He explained that he just wanted them to remember that it wasn't their parking lot!
You know, there's a lot of wisdom there. Because if you use something long enough, you tend to assume that it's yours. But everything we have belongs to God. God wants us to remember that. He told Israel that one day they would be richly blessed. But He warned them: "But then you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of mine hand have gained me this wealth.' And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth." (Deuteronomy 8:17-18).
Think about it. Is it harder to give up something of your own or give someone back what is already his? If I need to haul some stuff around, I might need to borrow a friend's pickup truck for a while. Suppose I kept it for a day. Then I start to give it back to him. Is that hard to do? Here's a car that's worth thousands of rands and I'm just giving it to him? Sure, it's easy to give it to him because it's not mine; it belongs to my friend.
What we have belongs to God; it's His stuff to begin with! He blesses us by letting us use it, but it's still His. And when we understand that, giving to God becomes a lot easier.Someone has said that "As long as a man thinks that he owns what he has, then the church will always appear to him as a beggar appealing to him to part with what he has to meet her needs. But once a man realizes that he owns nothing, but owes everything, and even his life is given him in trust, then proper portion of his blessings will be given back to God."
Verses
Matthew 24:35
The earth and sky may disintegrate, but the promises and predictions which I have made will stand.
1 Peter 3:10
For "He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking guile;
Ephesians 5:1
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.
Jeremiah 29:7
And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.
Romans 8:32
He who has not spared even his own Son but has delivered him for us all, how can he fail to grant us also all things with him?
Prayer
Father, You have placed Your children in a world where people push and shove to be first. Because of their self-importance they clamor for recognition and will stop at nothing until they get what they want in life, even if it means hurting others in the process. But You’ve called us to view life from a perspective that considers others as important as ourselves. We are to have a humble attitude that puts You first, others second, and ourselves last in everything we do. In our humanity this is impossible, but as we are being transformed into the likeness of Your Son, Jesus, we become more like Him. Our love and consideration for others grows and we apply the golden rule to our lives where we do to others as we would have them do to us. May this relationship rule guide us as we make decisions that affect others and ourselves. Help us to have the mind of Christ in all that we do. Amen.
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