Day 13: Examine Commitment

Read 2 Samuel 24:18-25

“I will not offer a sacrifice to the Lord my God that costs me nothing.” (2 Samuel 24:24)

As we continue to pray, we are heading toward home plate and getting close to being ready to start our campaign. Know that this gift has become something more than a donation! We have first given ourselves to the Lord. We have prayed for God’s will to be done in our lives. We have looked hard at our resources to find every way to make our faith real with our gifts. This gift has become a stewardship decision that re-shapes your life – you are growing in your discipleship!

Any gift will make some difference to the church, but a stewardship decision is a gift that makes a difference in you. Through this gift, God is actually growing your faith and your commitment.

Such a gift will certainly cost you something. King David had an opportunity to make an easy “sacrifice” (or offering) to God. Araunah was going to give him the whole deal – the threshing floor (the place for the altar), the oxen, and even the wood for the sacrifice – for nothing. What a deal! But David realized that such an agreement was no sacrifice for himself at all, no worship that honored his Lord and God. “I will not offer a sacrifice to the Lord my God which costs me nothing,” David said.

Offering yourself to God – giving sacrificially – does not come easy. It will cost you something.

Does your giving model the kind of commitment that would honor and worship God?

Does your sacrifice make a real difference to you? Are you giving in ways that shape your living? If you can answer “yes,” then you are not merely sharing a gift -- you are sharing your faith.

Prayer: Lord, if I give myself in ways that mean little to me, how would that honor and worship you? Let my giving honor you as my Lord and my God.

Action Item: Reflect on this question – Does what I am thinking about giving make a difference in the way I live my life?