Tags
2013, don't wait, firstfruits, God, move, new year, obedience, obey, possibilities, procrastination, tithing, trust
Happy New Year All!
Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve blogged. I took a bit of time off to reflect on 2012 and see what God wants me to focus on in 2013. Here are just a few things that I learned:
1. Trust God’s timetable. I spent a lot of 2012 asking God why certain things had not occurred yet. Now that He’s finally bringing some of those things to fruition, I totally see why – and I am SO glad that He waited. So in 2013, I want to stop trying to make God’s timetable my timetable – as if this works anyway.
2. Obey immediately. If you’re like me, you do what God says, but you don’t always do things when He says to do it. Following God’s instructions a week after He asks me to do something (i.e. when it’s more convenient for me) is just as good as disobedience, and who knows what blessing I might miss or who may have been encouraged had I moved when God said move.
3. Tithe FIRST. I am a faithful tither. I believe in it, but I don’t always tithe first. The Bible says to give God our firstfruits, meaning that we should tithe before we spend money on anything else, not a week or two later. Near the end of 2012, I began tithing of my FIRSTfruits, and man did God pour out some unexpected blessings! Think of it this way – would you rather God bless 100% of your finances or 50%? If we tithe before we do anything else with our money, God can bless, extend, or multiply 100% of our paycheck.
After reviewing these lessons, I realized that maybe God didn’t respond when I wanted Him to, because I don’t always respond when He wants me to. But when I put God first in my finances, my time, and my actions, it opens up many more doors. As I have started implementing some of these things over the past few weeks, I have seen positive changes, and I am excited about what God has in store for 2013 when I wait for (and move in) His timing – oh, the possibilities!