It’s New Year’s Eve! Will You Put God To The Test?

I remember December 31, 1996 because it was the first time I read Malachi 3. It had a challenge that awakened something that was scary & exciting all in one.

Malachi writes about the coming judgement of God at the end of times. He casts vision of what’s to come while wielding the vision like a cattle prod for change.

As he describes a coming time when we will all stand trial before God, the Lord reminds the hearers of this:

“I am the Lord & I do not change.. Now return to me & I will return to you.”

He says “return” because the people wandered by cheating God of tithes & offerings. 

God is so tender & patient with us. He reminds us of His unchanging, faithful nature & of the blessings that flow when we return to His will & His ways!

Then he lays out a command & a challenge:

“Bring all the tithes into the storehouse… If you do 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! “

Wowza, right?

At the time I 1st read this, we’d just made the decision for me to be a stay at home mama. Money was tight, but the conviction felt tighter!

The Lord had pulled both of us from a life of worthless pursuit & created a unified family out of what had the potential to be a big, fat mess!

We knew the much we’d been given & both agreed that we wanted to ”Try it & put Him to the test”

The first month we took 5% of our earnings & offered it to our local church &, lo & behold, the Lord provided! We kept inching up the % each month & the Lord continued to provide!

When we take His Word at face value & follow Him with reckless pursuit, His faithfulness always proves true!

This is the last day of 2021! Of all the income you earned, did you remember that it wasn’t you, but the Lord who provided the ability, skills & talent TO earn it?

Whether it’s your local church, a non profit that shares your core values, or maybe some faces come to mind who need help, where can you test & try the Lord with giving a portion of what He provided?

If He’s Lord, it’s all His anyway! If it’s His will, it’s His bill!

Try it! Put Him to the test & see how you can take Him at His word!

#OneYearBible

December 31st One Year Bible Readings

💡MALACHI 3:1-4:6💡REVELATION 22:1-21💡PSALM 150:1-6💡PROVERBS 31:25-31

Say What You Mean & Mean What You Say

Today I read a short verse & it socked me like a prize fighter in the gut👊🏽

The prophet Malachi is writing to the people of Israel who’ve forsaken the Father. The priests left God’s path, gave faulty instruction tainted by their own favoritism, the people offered worthless sacrifices & the men did not honor their marriage vows.

That’s just a few of the grievances God had against His beloved bride, but the topper was that they questioned His justice.

Malachi writes this one sentence that should have stopped the complainers dead in their tracks:

“You have wearied God with your words.”

Matthew Henry once said,

“Corrupt practices are the fruit of corrupt principles.”

I would add this zinger to his zinger:

“…and corrupt principles are the result of corrupt preferences.”

The priests told the people what their itching ears preferred to hear.

The people went through the motions of sacrifices, even crying on the alter for God to save them.

The faulty words of their shepherd gave them false confidence & their fake sacrifices did nothing with the corruption in their hearts.

The men dishonored their marriage vows & the bride of their youth to pursue  their own pleasures.

The oath between husband and wife is not to be trifled with because God created them to literally become one!

When you read through the Bible, there are many references to Jesus as our groom & His followers as His bride.

He wants to become one WITH us!

But here’s the thing: if we think we can be in union with sin on any level AND be in union with our Holy Groom, we are sorely deceiving ourselves!

As we prepare to step into 2022, it might be worth asking:

❓Do I have a shepherd who is leading me in Truth or am I leading myself towards my own preferences?

❓Am I permitting slight dalliances with sin & then wearying the Groom with words of praise & prayer for rescue?

Father, help us to step into 2022 saying what we mean & meaning what we say. Permit us not to speak meaningless words that weary your heart. Holy Spirit, before we ADD goals, help us  REMOVE anything from our lives that would hinder our union with You. Give us eyes to see what You see & walk into 2022 in lockstep union with You! #OneYearBible

December 30th One Year Bible Readings

💡MALACHI 1:1-2:17

💡REVELATION 21:1-27

💡PSALM 149:1-9

💡PROVERBS 31:10-24

If The Way We Spend Time was a Symbol & Source of Something, What or Who Would Your Life Represent?

I heard a story last night of a pre-Med student at UGA. If you’re like me, you picture a super smart guy who spends all of his time studying. And he DOES-literally from 9-5. But from 5:00 on? He  pours out his life like a drink offering among the international students who have no family this side of the ocean. 

Every week he & his roommate feed over 100 young people. He’s made his way into the lonely space of int’l students & has unwittingly become a symbol & source of blessing.

That phrase comes from a verse I read in Zechariah this morning. The Lord declares rescue of His people & proclaims,

“I will make you both a symbol & a source of blessing. So don’t be afraid. Be strong & get on with rebuilding the Temple!”

To the degree that they were formerly a symbol of a cursed nation, they would become a symbol & source of blessing!

I’ve never met Matthew, but his story inspires me! Just recently, one of the int’l students shared that of all the churches he’s attended & Christians he’s met, Matthew was the 1st Christian whose life matched this Jesus he’s heard about!

If the Lord were to speak this same imperative today, how might WE allocate our 5pm-9pm time slot?

Maybe a whole lot less of Netflix & fearful isolation, & a whole lot more of spending our lives as a symbol & source of The One Who Saves?

The Word tells us that we ARE  the Temple! The Holy Spirit resides IN us & is known as our Comforter & Counselor! What would our lives look like...no, what would OTHERS lives look like if we intentionally used our “free” time to freely give what we received?

Maybe it’s a simple conversation with a lonely widow, maybe it’s helping a single mama, or maybe it’s feeding the hungry? Regardless of the what, we know the real need that we can meet-the Who behind it all👉🏽 The Symbol & Source of Salvation-Jesus Christ!

Oh Father, let our lives become a symbol & source of blessing! Help us to get out the way so You may minister blessing to those around us! May we be like Matthew who doesn’t see his time as “free”.  His eternal life was bought at a high price, so he’s doing all he can to honor You with how he spends it! Help us to not fear, but be strong & do the same!

#OneYearBible

December 25th One Year Bible Readings

💡ZECHARIAH 8:1-23

💡REVELATION 16:1-21

💡PSALM 144:1-15

💡PROVERBS 30:29-31