Women In Discipleship
Weekly Devotionals for 2008
WALK OF GRACE - My Spiritual Service of Worship
(Taken from the Walk of Grace Study by Sandra J. Mikler Davis)
December - Week 2: God demonstrates His friendship to us through His grace, love, and kindness. Gratitude from the heart for the grace lavished upon us is exactly what is required of man from God. Humbly acknowledging our complete dependence on God keeps us from becoming self-absorbed and proud.
From 2 Corinthians 9:10-15, we see a dialog between Paul and those who were giving tithes to the church in Jerusalem. These people were humble and desired to show their love of Christ in their giving of tithes to the hurting Church. Gratitude for those gifts was manifested to those givers to the glory of God, because the givers were not giving to be "self glorified." Instead, they were giving so that God would be glorified. Their poverty produced a harvest of blessing, and God saw to it that they were provided for through their willing sacrifice of giving out of their poverty. From verse 14, we see that these givers were actually prayed for by the needy church because of this generosity:
And they will pray for you with deep affection because of the overflowing grace God has given to you.
The church works well when needs are met in accordance with the overflowing grace of God to the brethren.
APPLICATION:
What am I facing today that requires God's hand of mercy because of the extreme need? Like the church in Corinth, what is my desire for blessing those who are in need today? Sandra Davis, for the team at Women in Discipleship
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