Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Free Will Offering

What is a free will offering? It is offerings made with no coaxing, no feelings of I have to, it is offerings made with a right heart. It is over and above the tithes. It is a willingness of the spirirt and a right heart to want to give more than enough. God was instructing Moses to build for Him a tabernacle, a place of worship for His people to come and worship and He could come and dwell among them. The people were so moved, that they began bringing what was needed. All the gold, and fine threads, and linens that they possessed. They wanted to give their best to the LORD.

How do we respond today when asked to help with the building needs of a church? Do we bring all we have? Do we bring our best to give to help complete the building of a place for GOD to come and dwell among us. We might think just because it is a building for the youth and we do not have any children, that we are not the ones to give. Well, we would be wrong. Regardless of what the building extension is for, it is still a place for GOD to come and dwell among His people. Would you want your youth hanging out where GOD is not welcomed, or would you rather them be at church in their youth building with other youth learning the word of GOD. AMEN!

What about giving into the mission fields? Do we give our best? Do we give more than enough? Or when the Pastor says they need x amount of dollars to complete a project, do we just stop with that? Or do we give over and above so that they can get started on their next project? Because there will always be a next project. God's work will not be done until He comes back for us. So for all of those who are saying, I will be glad when all this building is done, and they quit asking for offerings, well that is just not going to happen. And if you are saying that, then you might as well keep your money in the first place, because you missed the part about the willingness of spirit and the right heart on giving.

Exodus 36 v 2-7......Then Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work. And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning. Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, and they spoke to Moses, saying, "The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do." So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, "Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary." And the people were restrained from bringing, for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done-- indeed too much........

Why can't we be like the people in Exodus who gave so much, that Moses had to ask them to quit giving. Will we ever get to that point? How awesome would it be if your Pastor had to ask you to quit giving because they had too much? Hallelujah! I am still trying to imagine it!

RTB....Exodus 25-27

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