DAY 15: Trust God

Reading: Proverbs 3:5-12
‘Honour the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops’
v9
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways submit to him,    and he will make your paths straight.[a]
    fear the Lord and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body
    and nourishment to your bones.
    with the firstfruits of all your crops;
then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
    and your vats will brim over with new wine.
    and do not resent his rebuke,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
    as a father the son he delights in.
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Honor the Lord with your wealth,
My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline,
    and do not resent his rebuke,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
    as a father the son he delights in.


No doubt this is a passage that many people will have encountered on
more than one occasion. It starts with the call to trust God and rely
on Him and not our understanding. For true wisdom lies in knowing
the will of God and not relying on our own or a worldly understanding
of things. Part of trusting God is to set apart from our own income a
gift that will honour Him. In the Old Testament world this amounted
to a tenth of all things. What we set apart will be something that we
prayerfully decide and over time this may change. Does what we give
honour God? One way to judge this might be to ask the question, ‘if
you received back what you gave to the work of God would it make a
difference to your life?’ In other words would you feel honoured and
blessed by the gift?
The wisdom writer adds a rider, ‘then your barns will be filled with
plenty’. This is not the prosperity gospel that some espouse, but the
simple promise that as we are faithful to God, He is faithful towards His
children and honours their childlike trust in Him.
Even so, true wealth is not to be found in earthly riches but in the
wisdom of God and a life spent serving Him.

For Further Reading: Micah 6:6-8 - what does God require?
To Ponder: What are you setting apart each week or month for the Lord’s
work? Does that gift honour the Lord?
To Pray: Heavenly Father, I know that true riches are found in your
wisdom. Help me to always seek your wisdom and place my
trust in you. Amen.


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