THE HAPPY GIFT
DAY 47: When our kids were young we wanted them to learn the importance of giving personally to God. So I bought each one of them a special bank so they could organize and prioritize their wealth. The bank was actually a cash box that had money slots. We taught them to set aside 10% of their allowance and money gifts to offer to God. They were to set aside 10% for saving, and the rest was for them to spend at their discretion. While $10 a month may not seem like "wealth" to you and me, to a first grader it's a fortune. Not once did they ever balk when it came time to take their tithe to church. They seemed happy to have something of their own to give to God.
One Sunday a missionary was coming to visit our children's program. A special offering was going to be taken to help them with their work. It also happened to be allowance day. As we handed each child their allowance we reminded them of their opportunity to give that night. The boys nodded and headed off to stash their dough, but our daughter Hannah, six-years-old, hung back.
"Mom, do you think $1 is enough to give tonight?" she asked.
"Honey, I think they will really appreciate any offering you chose to give?" I said.
"Well, do you think $1 will make God happy?"
Not wanting to speak for God I offered her this final piece of advice, "Why don't you pray about it and whatever you think God wants you to give that is what you should give."
About an hour later Hannah came to my room with her decision made. "Mom, I am going to give the missionaries $11. I think that will make God happy." And with that settled, she ran out of the room to go play.
My mom-heart soared. My daughter had been unselfish. She was generous. She was prayerful. She gave without considering herself. And she gave sacrificially. Her gift cleaned out her money bank for the month - savings and all. But she didn't give her gift to make me proud. With her own words she explained her actions: "I think that will make God happy." Her actions were focused on pleasing God. Talk about "out of the mouths of babes." I learned a valuable lesson from my daughter that day... and today, as I was reading passages in Leviticus, God reminded me of it all over again.
In Leviticus 1-3 God explains to Moses exactly what kinds of sacrifices are to be made to Him at the newly constructed Tabernacle. These particular passages deal with burnt offering, both animal and grain. They are very specific, describing how an animal was to be killed and which body parts were to be burned. Each animal had particular requirements. It was somewhat tedious reading. It would be very easy, in a time when we are no longer required to sacrifice a substitute for our sins, to breeze past the passages as archaic. After all, Jesus Christ was the perfect spotless Lamb of God sacrificed once and for all for our sins. At best, perhaps these passages just make us grateful we live on this side of the cross.
But then I noticed a little phrase, repeated over and over after each type of sacrifice was described.
"It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD."
Seven times God says that giving an offering that He has instructed to be given is more than just "obedience" or "lawful". It is a pleasing aroma to the Lord.
Hannah and Leviticus both reminded me that my goal when I give is not the offering itself, but the pleasure of the Lord. That is my reward. Why give if I do not feel His pleasure? Why serve if it does not make God smile? Why testify to His goodness if I do not delight the King I testify about? But what if I do!!! Yesterday I was reminded that God tells us clearly what pleases Him... today I was reminded that no matter what action I take or offering I make... HIS PLEASURE IS MY GOAL!
Leviticus is not a book most people think to read if they are looking for practical life lessons, but to a heart that is looking to be transformed, God can use ALL of the Bible to teach how to live for Him and how to please Him - He can even use the actions of a child!
When was the last time you sought God's pleasure?
Day 47 of 365
Leviticus 1
Leviticus 2
Leviticus 3
Mark 1:29-45
Mark 2:1-12
Psalm 35:17-28
Proverbs 9:13-18
One Sunday a missionary was coming to visit our children's program. A special offering was going to be taken to help them with their work. It also happened to be allowance day. As we handed each child their allowance we reminded them of their opportunity to give that night. The boys nodded and headed off to stash their dough, but our daughter Hannah, six-years-old, hung back.
"Mom, do you think $1 is enough to give tonight?" she asked.
"Honey, I think they will really appreciate any offering you chose to give?" I said.
"Well, do you think $1 will make God happy?"
Not wanting to speak for God I offered her this final piece of advice, "Why don't you pray about it and whatever you think God wants you to give that is what you should give."
My mom-heart soared. My daughter had been unselfish. She was generous. She was prayerful. She gave without considering herself. And she gave sacrificially. Her gift cleaned out her money bank for the month - savings and all. But she didn't give her gift to make me proud. With her own words she explained her actions: "I think that will make God happy." Her actions were focused on pleasing God. Talk about "out of the mouths of babes." I learned a valuable lesson from my daughter that day... and today, as I was reading passages in Leviticus, God reminded me of it all over again.
In Leviticus 1-3 God explains to Moses exactly what kinds of sacrifices are to be made to Him at the newly constructed Tabernacle. These particular passages deal with burnt offering, both animal and grain. They are very specific, describing how an animal was to be killed and which body parts were to be burned. Each animal had particular requirements. It was somewhat tedious reading. It would be very easy, in a time when we are no longer required to sacrifice a substitute for our sins, to breeze past the passages as archaic. After all, Jesus Christ was the perfect spotless Lamb of God sacrificed once and for all for our sins. At best, perhaps these passages just make us grateful we live on this side of the cross.
But then I noticed a little phrase, repeated over and over after each type of sacrifice was described.
"It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD."
Seven times God says that giving an offering that He has instructed to be given is more than just "obedience" or "lawful". It is a pleasing aroma to the Lord.
Hannah and Leviticus both reminded me that my goal when I give is not the offering itself, but the pleasure of the Lord. That is my reward. Why give if I do not feel His pleasure? Why serve if it does not make God smile? Why testify to His goodness if I do not delight the King I testify about? But what if I do!!! Yesterday I was reminded that God tells us clearly what pleases Him... today I was reminded that no matter what action I take or offering I make... HIS PLEASURE IS MY GOAL!
Leviticus is not a book most people think to read if they are looking for practical life lessons, but to a heart that is looking to be transformed, God can use ALL of the Bible to teach how to live for Him and how to please Him - He can even use the actions of a child!
When was the last time you sought God's pleasure?
Day 47 of 365
Leviticus 1
Leviticus 2
Leviticus 3
Mark 1:29-45
Mark 2:1-12
Psalm 35:17-28
Proverbs 9:13-18
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