Borrowed Blessings

So here we are we are jump starting our New Week starting in the fourth month of the New Year Welcome to the month of April! As we begin this New Month take a moment to reflect on ALL that God has brought you thru as we take these words of wisdom to heart The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. Psalm 24:1 READ 1 CHRONICLES 29:6–16 As we bowed our heads over lunch, my friend Jeff prayed: “Father, thank You for letting us breathe Your air and eat Your food.” Jeff had just been through a difficult job loss, so his heartfelt trust in God and recognition that everything belongs to Him profoundly moved me. I found myself thinking: Do I honestly understand that even the most basic, everyday things in my life are really God’s, and He’s simply letting me use them? When King David received offerings from the people of Israel for building the temple in Jerusalem, he prayed, “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.” Then he added, “All of it belongs to you” (1 Chronicles 29:14, 16). Scripture tells us that even “the ability to produce wealth” and earn a living come from Him (Deuteronomy 8:18). Understanding that all we have is borrowed encourages us to loosen our grip on the stuff of this world and live with open hands and hearts—sharing freely because we’re deeply thankful for the kindnesses we receive daily. God is a generous giver—so loving that He even gave up His Son “for us all” (Romans 8:32). Because we have been given so much, may we give Him our heartfelt thanks for blessings small and large. By James Banks REFLECT & PRAY Whatever is ours is God’s. What borrowed blessing can you thank God for today? How does it help to know that every good gift is from Him? INSIGHT In David’s prayer recorded in 1 Chronicles 29, he makes several important statements about the true and living God. He praises God for being everlasting (v.10), having majestic splendor (v. 11), exercising kingdom rule (v. 12), and ultimately being the source of all provision (v. 14). This is the nature of the God that David rightly worships and the reason he’s made preparations for the building of a temple for Him (chs. 28-29). For more on 1 Chronicles, check out the online course christianuniversity.org/OT220christianuniversity.org/OT220. Bill Crowder