I LOVE THE LORD BUT HOW CAN I SHOW HIM THAT I DO?

SCRIPTURE:
Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, 
not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  
(2 Corinthians 9:7)

MEDITATION:
Who do you think was the greatest giver of all time?
It would have to be Jesus Christ, wouldn’t it?
He gave His life for everyone in the world during the time He 
walked the earth, and for everyone born in future generations.

When He gave His life, 
He opened the door for everyone to spend an eternity in paradise.
But the question is, why did He do that?
He did it because it was part of God’s plan, 
and because He loved us that much.

His sacrifice taught us how to love even the ones who do not love us.
He taught us the joy of doing things for others.
He taught us the value and importance of showing appreciation.
When we have His Spirit alive within ourselves, 
we will want to freely give, without keeping a ledger to 
determine if we have received in proportion to what we have given.

When His Spirit is living in us, we look past the worldly pleasures and 
focus on the rewards we receive when we enter heaven to be with the Lord.
His Spirit teaches us how to let the Lord to remold us now 
so that when we enter heaven, there will be few changes in us.
The Holy Spirit shows us 
how to experience heaven while we are still living on earth.

Even though He doesn’t demand it, 
we owe so much to the Lord for what He did for us.
All He asks is that we show our appreciation for Him 
by returning ten percent of what He has given us.

And when we do, we receive a consciousness 
that we are in partnership with God, 
that we are doing something constructive, 
and that we are working with Him to reach the world for Jesus Christ. 

One question we need to ask ourselves is how do we give?
Do we give liberally and cheerfully (as the scriptures tell us), 
or do we give sparingly, grudgingly, or not at all?
When we give, are we thinking to ourselves, 
“I could have used this money for (fill in the blank)” 
or are we glad that we are able to contribute to God’s 
ongoing ministry of reaching the lost?

The greatest blessing of giving 
is not on the financial side of the ledger but on the spiritual side.
The pleasure of giving is not in what we can get, 
but in knowing what God can do with our gifts.
If we give God the leftovers of our substance and our life, 
we miss the true joy and blessing of Christian giving and living.

ACTION:
Are you obeying the Lord 
and returning the ten percent He asks of His followers, 
or have you allowed the attractions of the world 
to steal what belongs to Him?

If so, then why would you ever expect 
to receive all the blessings He has for you?
He really does have additional blessings for those who 
have proven that He is number one on their priority list.

Some say that ten percent is such a large amount 
that they just cannot give Him that much 
(even though he gave His life for them, and He asks for that amount).
Perhaps if their income was reduced considerably, then ten percent 
would be a smaller amount and they could then be obedient to Him.

We must never forget that we have all we have 
because He gave it to us in the first place.
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how 
will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 
(Romans 8:32)
For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have 
that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast 
as though you did not? (1 Corinthians 4:7)

And lest we have any doubt about His gifts to us, 
we need only to remember that He died for us!

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, You have given me so much! Forgive me if I have 
not shown You my appreciation by returning to You all that You have 
asked of me. Forgive me if my gifts to You consist of leftovers when 
Your gift to me was the most valuable gift You could give – Your life. 
Teach me to ignore the attractions of this world so that I will cheerfully 
give to You not out of obligation, but cheerfully out of appreciation for 
You and all You have done (and are doing) for me. I know that obedience 
to You in one area encourages me to be obedient in all areas, and increases 
my personal relationship with You.”