BIBLE PASSAGE:
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 3:10b)
MEDITATION:
Is there anyone who would not welcome being ‘flooded’ with the Lord’s blessings?
I suspect that even those who are skeptical about His existence, would welcome
His blessings, if they only knew the magnitude of what He has to offer.
We can be blessed by others, but nothing we receive from another person
can compare with what our Heavenly Father can give us.
None of us have the capacity to fully appreciate the height,
breadth and depth of the blessings He has available for those
who ‘test Him’ (aka trust Him).
However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared
for those who love him—(1 Corinthians 2:9)
He loves every human being and wants to bless us,
but we have some responsibilities in order to receive His blessings!
If asked, most Christians would say that they trust God,
but yet they fail to show that trust through obedience to His commands.
And, as a result many never get to experience the abundance of His blessings.
The Psalmist knew the importance of complete trust in the Lord:
Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge. (Psalm 62:8)
For some odd reason, it seems that sincere trust in the Lord comes to a
screeching halt when we are asked to obey some of His commands.
It appears the thinking is,
“Lord, I trust You with everything EXCEPT in this particular area”.
Look at the full context of God’s message to “test Him”
and in doing so, open the doors to new blessings from Him.
“I the LORD do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not
destroyed. Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away
from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return
to you,” says the LORD
Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’
“Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me.
“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’
“In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole nation—because
you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there
may be food in my house.(Malachi 3:6-10a)
They failed to trust God because they had “turned away” from Him.
God welcomes us with open arms when we return to Him, and trust Him.
Some have the idea that when we fail to tithe,
we are robbing God of the money and time that belongs to Him.
That could be true, but when we look at the promises in Malachi,
we see that we could also be we are robbing Him of the opportunity
to pour out His blessings on us.
In essence, when we rob God, we are robbing ourselves of His blessings.
ACTION:
Have you allowed Satan to convince you that you cannot trust God financially?
Imagine how ludicrous it is to think our Creator
cannot be trusted in any particular area of our lives.
Is He speaking to you in His devotional for today?
Have you failed to trust Him with a specific area of your life?
What is preventing you from ‘testing’ our Heavenly Father?
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I admit that my trust in You is limited. Forgive
me for failing to show my trust in You through obedience to all of
Your commands, including my finances. According to Your Word,
I cannot expect You to pour out Your blessings on me if I choose to
disobey Your command regarding tithing. I know that You do not
need my tithes, but have commanded me to tithe as an opportunity
to show my trust in You. I now realize that when I fully trust You in
all things, I can receive blessings that have been locked away due to
my disobedience. Forgive me for my selfish refusal to trust You as
an adopted child of Your family.”
blog: UTVOLWOODY.WORDPRESS.COM
About Don Woodruff
Retired from FedEx and dedicated to sharing God's Word with others. I send out devotionals weekly and have written two books: "The Crucifixion Catalyst / Unspoken Messages From God To Believers" (published and available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble **out of print**) and "I'm Saved Now What?" (unpublished). I am currently working on a third one that will be a Daily Devotional. The devotionals on my Blog have been viewed by people in all 50 states and over 80 foreign countries. I sincerely believe the Lord provides the content for the devotionals and in 2013 He “tasked” me with distributing them and storing them on my Blog. They are free and I will not solicit any donations. I hope you enjoy them and feel free to leave comments if one of them speaks to you personally, or if you have a suggestion.
Discussion
No comments yet.