Exodus 35:4-36:7 (excerpts) tells a beautiful story about the offerings that were brought to build the Tabernacle. And there is a lesson in this for each of us today,
“And Moses spoke to all…the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the LORD commanded, saying, “Take from among you an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to the LORD.”’…Then everyone came whose heart was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and they brought the LORD’s offering for the work of the tabernacle of meeting, for all its service, and for the holy garments. They came, both men and women, as many as had a willing heart…” (see also 1 Chronicles 29:14)
Each person brought from what they had—fabric, wood, precious metals, jewels, spices, oils, etc. And some women used their skills to spin yarn with their hands. The artisans who were appointed to do the work reported to Moses saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do…And the people were restrained from bringing, for the material they had was sufficient—indeed too much.”
Do you have a willing heart to give to the Lord this year? What do you have to give Him? If you are paying your tithes faithfully, that is only the basic command, the minimum. But is your heart stirred to do more than a monetary gift? Do you have a skill or talent that would be a blessing to your congregation? Do you have time to invest in teaching or cleaning or caring for babies or setting up for events or helping the pastor with a project? If everyone had a willing heart to give or serve their congregation, the pastor would have to be turning people away saying, “It’s already too much!” Sadly, I don’t see this happening in any of the congregations I’ve been a part of.
I encourage you to assess what you have to offer the Lord this year. Even the smallest acts that your hands find to do will be a blessing! Don’t just go and sit in a service to have your spirit fed. Get involved! Plug in to whatever needs to be done! Yes, it takes effort, time, and maybe even your material investment, but both your heart and the congregation and the Lord will be blessed in the process. After all, as Paul exhorted the believers in Romans 12:1,
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”
And this is easy to do if you have a willing heart.
–dmrf