May 5th~Yours or His?

1 Chronicles 29:1-22

1 Kings 1:1-53

David made public his choice of Solomon as his successor, which, of course, did not sit well with his oldest brother Adonijah. Having felt deprived of his rightful place on the throne, Adonijah staged a power play and “decided to make himself king.” However, his attempt to seize power was undone when David had Solomon publicly anointed and heralded as the next in line.

We also read of the tremendous outpouring of gifts for the building of the new Temple. Not only had David given of “his own private treasures of gold and silver to help in the construction,” but also “the leaders of the tribes, the generals and captains, and the King’s officials all gave willingly.” King David was filled with joy.

I loved David’s prayer of praise that he offered after he saw the outpouring of gifts to the Lord. It is a model prayer of thanksgiving, full of truth and wisdom. “O Lord may you be praised forever! Yours is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom. We adore You as the One who sits over all things. Riches and honor come from you alone, for You rule over everything. Power and might are in Your hands, and it is at Your discretion that people are made great and are given strength.”

He continued, “Who am I and who are my people that we could give anything to You? Everything we have has come from You, and we give You only what You have already given to us! We are here only for a moment, visitors and strangers in the land. Our days on earth are like a shadow, gone so soon without a trace. O Lord, even these materials that we have gathered to build a Temple to honor Your holy name come from You! It all belongs to You!”

Daily Reflection

Wow! What a picture of the proper perspective of earthly wealth and possessions. Everything you have belongs to the Lord. How would this biblical view of “your money and belongings” affect how you treat them, how you use them, and how you give them away?

But wait, aren’t you the one who worked and earned that money? Aren’t you the one who bought those things? Since it is your money and your stuff, aren’t you free to use them as you wish? While these thoughts may be “true,” what is missing here?

These two areas, of money and possessions, may be the most difficult to surrender to the Lord, for the flesh is naturally greedy and materialistic. However, God provides for your needs. At times, He also provides more than you need, not so that you can accumulate more stuff, but so that you can give to His work and give to meet the needs of others. It is so easy to fall into bondage to greed and materialism, but take heart, when you understand and live by these principles, they will set you free.

BiAY.org | Day 125 — 240 Days to Go