Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Dancing To The Offering Plate

How many of you have ever danced. When you dance you have this feeling of freedom, to move and sway as you like. You are the choreographer of this dance. (I have no idea if I spelled that right) But in other words, you get to make up the dance. People who are dancing are usually happy while they are dancing. Well, we should be happily dancing to the offering plate with our gifts to the LORD. I read something this morning that just lit me up with a new fire for giving my offerings. If I had a church and was in charge of the offering, I would lead this dance right up to the offering plate. AMEN! And I love to dance for the LORD. It is not the same as the country two step, or the line dance you have probably seen, or the vulgar dancing all the singers think they have to do now. No this is a beautiful dance honoring God with my fruits of my labor to help build His Kingdom here on earth. To help reach those in need.

We should have a missionary dance offering at every service. Money that is taken up just for the missionary field. A basket sitting up at the altar, waiting to be filled as people dance their way to the altar with their offerings. I love this idea. It gets me very excited. But then dancing is usually done when someone is excited. How excited do you get when you give your offering? Do you feel like dancing? Or do you feel like crying? Sad to say but looking at some of the faces during offering time, some look like they are about to cry. Try giving your offering with dancing in your heart next time and see the freedom you feel. AMEN!

This story I read was in Beth Moore's daily devotional. It was about a missionary in West Africa, she watched the women as they came for the service, most of them had babies on their backs, had already hauled huge water pots to the place to cook the noon meal after service, hauled the wood, the kettles, and had to walk several kilometers to get there. The missionary was thinking how tired these women must be already. So as she was finishing her teaching she looked out and saw some of the women preparing the meal, and she closed and said lets give God thanks for our meal we are about to receive, and one of the women shouted, WAIT, we have not given our offering. She knew they did not have much, and she was not going to ask for an offering. And then the women one by one danced their way to the basket at the altar and cheerfully gave their offering with singing in their hearts.

The missionary heard God tell her, " I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I don't need their money. Their willingness to obey My commandments and joyfully share what little they have is the gift I seek. Do not rob them or me of this joy......"

WOW, I bet this missionary never misses a chance again to let the people share their joy with the LORD. We always try to out think God, and do what we think is best. When will we learn to do what God says to do, and let Him have His Joy. AMEN!


Mark 12 v 42....A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins.... He said to them, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on......NASB
Neta

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