OT DAY 105 - Too Much Spending, Small Offering (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)

Let us praise the Lord:

I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love,
    because you have seen my affliction;
    you have known the distress of my soul,
8 and you have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
    you have set my feet in a broad place.

                                                            Psalm 31:7-8

Today's Reading: Genesis 47:1-26

** If you would like to learn a simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please read my “Count Down 5” from my Devotion on Fire blog:

http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html

To use this simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please click this link:

 .Subject Shifting Devotion.pdf

Please click this link to read Genesis 47:1-26

Chinese(CUV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=創 世 記 47&version=CUV
English(ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis 47&version=ESV

Bible Study

      What we can see in today's passage in Joseph plan is the result of his personal relationship with God and his gift of prophecy. His "Resource Saving Plan" against the "Big Spenders Lifestyle" of everyone helps him to have his position secured and the nation he serves becomes a wealthy and powerful nation. How can that happen? 

Let's take a look at what Professor John Goldingay says (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) :

    

     Egypt and Canaan know years of prosperity.  Though that period they live well, but no one except Joseph would have given a thought to the future.  Presumably Joseph is able to store the surplus grain of the good years because he buys it from the people, and presumably the fact of the surplus means he doesn't have to pay much for it.  One might even imagine Egyptian farmers laughing all the way to the bank at Joseph's paying them for grain no one is ever going to need.  Whereas they could have stored it up for themselves, selling it and/or eating well and/or using the money to build swimming pools in their yards seems a better idea…. 

John Goldingay. Genesis for Everyone - Part Two. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p.168.

      Christmas is just three days away. People likes to talk about giving during Christmas season. Today's passage talks about spending and the curse of too much spending. What have you got from Jesus today?  

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe":  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

Spiritual Journal

    The title I heard from Jesus today is: Too much spending, small offering

    What Jesus tells me today is a practical challenge: Is our lifestyle of spending blessed by God?

    You may think that it is not easy for you to answer this question. You think this question is difficult to answer because you do not know this is a "relational" question. We can learn from the past many chapters about Joseph's story that the reason he has those plans, strategy and lifestyle is because of his personal relationship with God. He knows what to say, how to do it and when. Even though he is the lord of Egypt and no one is above him but just Pharaoh, God is his Lord and King. He allows God to lead him, give him God-led strategy and be willing to do all those things no one can do. 

    Today our younger son Athanasius told us that he had his first pay check as a first fruit offering. Michelle and I have been teaching our two sons to have tithing since they were still children. It has become their lifestyle for so many years and this God commands bottom-line lifestyle helps them to be two better disciples of Jesus. Money is not their lord lording them but Jesus is Lord.

    First fruit principle is something lots of Christians do not know, do not want to know and even if they know they do not want to do it. Athan started to have his first pay job working in a Juice shop in Richmond Centre last month after school, working for three days after school hoping that he can earn enough money for university next year. He made an offering in today's service to put his first pay check as his first fruit offering. When I asked him this evening why he has the call and courage to do that. He told me he wanted to do that. I know that part of the reason is because Ignatius his elder brother, Michelle and me taught him to do that. The main reason is because his personal relationship with Jesus that he knows Jesus loves him to do that.

     So far as I know, all those Christians who tithe have a more healthy lifestyle of saving and spending. All those Christians who did their "first fruit" offering will demonstrate the gift of generosity in their lives and show forth a lifestyle of Christlikeness.

     May be this is the time to ask yourself how much you spend for yourself and family this year that is not what you need but what you want. And, how much you offered to your home church and other places and compare that. Ask Jesus how He thinks and see what kind of message and feelings Jesus is going to give you.

     I pray that you will make an extra offering to your home church before the end of this year because Jesus loves you to do so!  

Dear Lord Jesus,
Open our ears that we can hear from you of today's calling to make a special offering according to your command before the end of this year so that our home church will be richly blessed and be able to bless more people. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.

    Please click this link to the app. Andy Ng wrote. You really need to use that if you have an Android cel. Andy said he is going to do the App. for iPhone later:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ideal.rec.app

Please click this link to worship with us -

從心合一

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJWZQyLzDRQ

10,000 Reasons

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

You may choose to follow my other daily blog: 

Daily Devotion on Fire 2(2 years plan -One year New Testament, one year Old Testament): 

http://bishopsilas2.blogspot.ca/

Daily Devotion on Fire (3 years and 3 months plan, one chapter a day to finish reading the whole Bible): 

http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/

Break.Build (40 days daily devotion- For Renewal or First Step for new Christians): http://www.breakbuild.blogspot.ca/

Emmanuel330 (40 weeks First Step Bible Study): 

http://emmanuel330.blogspot.ca/

This blog:

Discipler 123 (Daily devotion using N.T. Wright's NT for Everyone as source)

http://discipler123.blogspot.ca/

Rev. Nicky Gumbel's daily devotion: Bible in One Year

http://www.htb.org.uk/bio