Plant the Seed
by Shellie R. Warren

SCRIPTURE

"As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.

And she said, As the Lord your God lives, I have not a loaf baked but only a handful of meal in the jar and a little oil in the bottle. See, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may eat it- and die.

Elijah said to her, Fear not; go and do as you have said. But make me a little cake of [it] first andbring it to me, and afterward prepare some for yourself and your son.

For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: The jar of meal shall not waste away or the bottle of oil fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.

She did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days.

The jar of meal was not spent nor did the bottle of oil fail, according to the word which the Lord spoke through Elijah."

--- I Kings 17:11-16

QUOTES

"No one has ever become poor by giving." Ann Frank

"We are rich only through what we give, and poor only through what we refuse." Anne Swetchine

DEVOTION

If you're like me, the last thing you are probably thinking right now is who you can give to---because you simply don't have it. With this being the case, if you're like me, God will probably call you to be among the first to give to someone else.

That's just how God is. Think about it. Isn't it funny how when you have alot, more times than not, giving to others is not an issue, but when you are low on funds and resources, suddenly it seems that the principle on giving, which God gave to all of His children, doesn't apply to us?

"I'm sorry, I know there are people worse off than I am---I know there are those in need, but shoot, I'm in need and what little I have, I need to hold on to. Besides, I don't see anyone jumping to make sure that I am okay. If I don't take care of me, who will?"

Believe me when I say that this mentality is what will keep you in need---and in want, for a very long time. You must plant seeds of prosperity in another's garden to reap a harvest in your own. God reminds us of this fact in Galatians 6:7:

"Do not be deceived and deluded and misled; God will not allow Himself to be sneered at (scorned, disdained, or mocked by mere pretensions or professions, or by His precepts being set aside.) [He inevitably deludes himself who attempts to delude God.] For whatever a man sows, that and that only is what he will reap."

And again in Luke 6:38:

"Give, and [gifts] will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will they pour into [the pouch formed by] the bosom [of your robe and used as a bag]. For with the measure you deal out [with the measure you use when you confer benefits on others], it will be measured back to you."

No where in either in these verses does it say that you are to give only when it is convenient for you to do so, or when it will not be a sacrifice on your part. As a matter of fact, it has been my personal experience that I am called to give at the times when it hurts me the most and when my faith has to be the strongest.

I think this is also why God calls us to give the firstfruits for our tithe as well:

"Be not wise in your own eyes; reverently fear and worship the Lord and turn [entirely] away from evil.

It shall be health to your nerves and sinews, and marrow and moistening to your bones.

Honor the Lord with your capital and sufficiency [from righteous labors] and with the firstfruits of all your income;

So shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine."---Proverbs 3:7-10

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