Given to God

"Thus all the tithe of the land, of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s; it is holy to the Lord. If, therefore, a man wishes to redeem part of his tithe, he shall add to it one-fifth of it. For every tenth part of herd or flock, whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord. He is not to be concerned whether it is good or bad, nor shall he exchange it; or if he does exchange it, then both it and its substitute shall become holy. It shall not be redeemed." -Leviticus 27.30-33

I opened my Bible today to see a blank space at the bottom of the right hand page, and I began to rejoice. We're at the end of Leviticus. I'm relieved, and I imagine the people were as well. All of these instructions have taken at Sinai, and I'm sure they were anxious to get moving.

The final instructions that God gives His people here is on tithing. What was given to God's was to be God's, an offering holy to the Lord. What was offered was not to be taken back, it was Gods.

Men, have you set something apart for God, but later taken it back? Have you committed your life to a call into ministry, but later decided not to follow it for a job with more financial security? Have you committed to pray and read the Bible everyday, but decided not to follow through in favor of sleep? Have you committed to be more intentional about sharing Christ with others, but not followed through because of fear or discomfort?

I've experienced all of these things. Right now I'm working a job with unbelieveable compensation, not just in pay, but in bonuses, benefits, and other perks. It's tempting to just deal with it for the next thirty years and enjoy the financial security that it offers. But God has placed a call on my life, and so I'm currently pursuing two master's degrees, trying to prepare myself to be able to get back into full time ministry.

I've wanted to get up early and focus my time on prayer, study, and worship. But life is busy and sleep is a valuable commodity. In college, and to an extent when I was working in ministry, it was easier. In college I really wasn't that busy (in hindsight), and in ministry I was able to set aside office time for it. But now, with work, school, and family, it's hard. That's part of the reason I'm doing this daily blog.

I'm trying to be more intentional about sharing Christ. I'm trying to build relationships with people at work, and looking for opportunities in the conversation to bring up spiritual matters. But it isn't always easy. I've found that sometimes people just shut down, or that the transition isn't always natural. And there are times, for one reason or another, I stay quiet.

Giving to God involves so much more than money. And when we commit something to God, we need to leave it in His hands. Let us never take back what we give to God.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor