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Deuteronomy 15 (ESV)

19 “All the firstborn males that are born of your herd and flock you shall dedicate to the Lord your God. You shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock. 20 You shall eat it, you and your household, before the Lord your God year by year at the place that the Lord will choose. 21 But if it has any blemish, if it is lame or blind or has any serious blemish whatever, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. 22 You shall eat it within your towns. The unclean and the clean alike may eat it, as though it were a gazelle or a deer. 23 Only you shall not eat its blood; you shall pour it out on the ground like water.

 

REFLECTION:

• Every firstborn animal sacrificed to the Lord was to be free of serious defects. God is absolute holy and mighty, and is worthy of our worship and service with our very best gifts.  The principle here is that the best belongs to God, not what is left over.  In this way we show how we love God with all our heart, mind, and body.
• PGC doesn’t have its own church building yet; we rent the high school and use its facilities. However, we can begin to learn to give the best to God’s family instead of donating the second-hand furniture or old computer to church.  Today many of us think we are being generous when we give second-hand equipment and furnishings to our churches.
• When I attend services this week, look around. Is the ministry of our church being hampered by its dependence on substandard accoutrements?  If so, inquire of the situation.  If need be, make the pledge to purchase something for the church in a quality better than I would purchase for my own home.  How would I feel?

 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, thank You for teaching me again today how to offer my sacrifice. You love me so much, You give me life and breath, lead me on the path of righteousness, and teach me to seek the truth. You forgive and pardon my disobedience, and gave Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ to sacrifice Himself on the cross for me, washing away all my sins with His precious blood, and saving me from the power of death. O God, Your grace and mercy toward me are higher than the mountains and deeper than the sea! How can I repay You for all Your kindness to me? By offering my best to You. I would rather lack for myself, and make Your house rich. I will not only offer my excess money, time, and energy to the church, but also sacrifice my own interests to care for my brothers and sisters, just as my Lord Jesus Christ did for us. I want to imitate the sacrificial love of my Lord Jesus Christ and follow His command to love others as myself. I understand that the true meaning of sacrifice is not to give away my excess without hesitation, but to willingly give myself up to please You. I am willing to do so, and ask You to strengthen me. Amen!

 

HYMN:

Give of your best to the Master – youtu.be/yfnTB9cU8ww