EXPAND TO READ: DEUTERONOMY 15 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 11b): The latter part of this verse has convicted me this morning in a continuation of yesterday’s quiet time. I do struggle at times with giving to others willingly with an open heart and hand. There are so many people who reach out to generous people for the purpose of taking advantage of them or using that generosity in a way that is different from what they claim. That is not what I should be concerned with, however. You tell me that I need to always be willing to open my hand to the afflicted and the poor brothers around me. Please forgive me for my hardened heart on this topic, Father. Help me to be better and more open to giving to others as You have blessed me to do so.
PROMISE (verse 6): In this verse, You make a promise to Your people that when You bestow a blessing onto us, according to our obedience, faithfulness, and trust in You, then those blessings will enable us to give more to others. The exact wording is that “you will lend to many nations but not borrow.” If I put that in the context of my own personal life, then that means that if I am faithful and obedient to You, then I will be blessed to the point that I will never have to borrow again; rather, I’d be put in a position where I am now the one lending out to others. I know I have received this blessing many times throughout my life, although I am undeserving of it. I am grateful for the grace You have shown me, Father, but I am sorry for not always being willing to give to others as You have blessed me. I do have a giving heart, but it has some boundaries, limitations, and wounds on it that are preventing me from being “all-in” with my giving in a way that is pleasing to You. Help me to be better, so that I may recognize Your blessings on my household and use those blessings in a way that is pleasing to You, Father.
ATTITUDE (verses 7-8): I see the theme of today is a giving heart as these verses are speaking loudly to me as well. You say that if a poor brother is among me, then I must not be hard-hearted or tightfisted towards them. You want me to open my hand to them and freely lend to them according to their needs and according to my capabilities from Your blessings. Help me to be better at fully embracing the attitude of a giving heart in my life, Father. Help me to be better at truly walking with Christ in this life, not fearing anything I come across in this life; rather to be trusting in You and with righteous discernment recognize when and where I am able to give according to Your will and Your purpose for me in this life, Father.
COMMAND (verses 1-3): I read these verses as almost a double-sided command. On the one side, You are telling us to forgive the debt others have with us in the seventh year which that debt has been owed. It doesn’t matter if they still owe me anything, because You have commanded me to forgive their debt by the end of the seventh year. One the other side of things, I see this as a command to the person with the debt as well. In order to remain faithful to You, we are to repay our debts. In order to maintain this as well as a proper relationship with those I am indebted to, I should show them enough respect by affording them a full return on their investment and trust in me by repaying my debt with them by the end of the seventh year. I have not been wise in my finances over the years, unfortunately, even though You have blessed my family greatly with this. Help me to be wiser at following this command from both sides of it, Father. Help me to no longer hold things against another for longer than You have commanded, but at the same time help me to be a better steward of my finances and debts, so that I can pay debts off quicker and eventually maybe even no longer need to borrow at all as You have said in verse 6.
EXAMPLE (verses 4-6): I find these verses an interesting example as it pertains to our faithfulness and obedience leading to an even greater blessing in this life. If we truly live an obedient, faithful, and trusting life which is pleasing to You, then there is an even greater possibility of blessings from You in this life which I cannot even fathom. In current society, we live in a way that is typically heavily dependent on debt. You want to own a home? Well, they’re so high-priced nowadays that you either have to rent someone else’s home or get into a large amount of debt for decades in order to do so. You want to buy a car? Well, if you want one that isn’t too old or too broken, then you will likely need to acquire a loan to do so and repay on that loan for several years. You want to go to college? Well, get ready for the potential of some massive student loans. In high school we were taught that we should get some low-level credit cards and loans almost immediately after turning 18 to begin to establish good credit, so that when we apply for a loan (debt) then our credit score will afford us a better interest rate to reduce our payments. Why aren’t we teaching each other to be good stewards of our finances in a way that we are working to save for our expenditures instead of living in a debt-driven society? Help me to break this cycle, Father. Help me to be better at my spending, but also my saving. Help me to be better at paying off my debts early in this life, so that I am able to do more giving with the blessings You have given to me, Father.
*DAILY NOTE: You’re really hitting me this week with regards to my finances. I do need to get them in order that’s for sure. I’m hoping that my transition into military retirement and into a more lucrative financial position helps with that if we can start to achieve and remain in a mindset of financial discipline. Please continue to teach me Your ways on this topic, Father. Continue to sharpen me and hone me in the ways I need to be in order to pay off all my debt and become more financially secure and mature for Your kingdom. I want to have a more giving heart, but I cannot do so with all the debt we currently have. Help me along the way as I go into this career transition to discover more disciplined ways at paying off my debts, Father.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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