And of thine own have we given thee.
 |
| http://graceslo.org/site/post.aspx?li=More-on-Gods-Providence |
All---things---come---of---thee--O Lord! It means that we are entirely reliant, our very existence is dependent, on God. Without him we would not breath. Our hearts would not beat. We would not have our children, our jobs, our homes, food to eat, or possessions to own.
Pick up that favorite souvenir from your last vacation, or treasured possession, and ponder what it means: God has allowed you to have it. Think on your children or siblings. Think on your relationships with those you love, friends and family. God has indeed given them to you. And they are irreplaceable.
Many people will say to themselves that through their own hard work they have earned their position and possessions. We have a mentality in our country that says work hard and your dreams will come true. There is of course some truth to working hard. But there is a contrary narrative to that truism. There are other people out there, just like you, that worked equally as hard, but did not receive the same reward. They even may have received or earned less than what you have. How do you account for those people who worked equally as hard or faithfully but did not receive the same accolades?
There are other people out there who didn't work at all, and they have received more of a reward than those who worked. These are the ones mentioned so frequently in the psalms. These are the ones we are warned: Do not envy or follow their examples.
Why is there this disparity? I believe it is because all things come from God. And we are each challenged to do the work he has given us to do and to accept his graceful reward no matter what it is. It does not mean we should stop working harder or less. It means simply that we live faithfully. Doing the things he has called us to do. And our response is the next phrase in Chronicles:
And---of---thine---own---have---we---given---thee.
In return we speak of giving all these things back to God. Everything that we have and everything that we are is his. The breath and blood of life are his. If we believe that everything comes from him, then we also trust that the portion we return to him is our faithful and obedient response to his generosity.
The reason God teaches us to give back is not so that we can run the church, pay the utilities or salaries of staff. It is not solely for the purpose of benevolent causes. The reason God teaches us to give back is a reminder that we are dependent upon him and we are the benefactors of his generosity. We cannot account for the riches of his blessing based on our own works or efforts. Even if those works and efforts are very noble.
He makes the sun to shine and the rain to fall on both the righteous and the unrighteous. So either way we respond to his generosity with our faithfulness that he has cared for us and will continue to do so.
Let us all give great thanks to him for the blessings that he has bestowed upon us!
Blessings,
Fr. Stephen+
No comments:
Post a Comment