Day 1 of 21-Day Challenge: Don't Give God Your Left Overs!

Honor the LORD with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase (Proverbs 3:9 NKJV)

The best of all the firstfruits and of all your special gifts will belong to the priests. You are to give them the first portion of your ground meal so that a blessing may rest on your household. (Ezekiel 44:30 NIV)

“As you harvest your crops, bring the very best of the first harvest to the house of the Lord your God.” (Exodus 23:19a NLT)  

  

FirstFruits – the firstborn of the flocks and the first vegetables and grains to be gathered at harvest time. The Hebrew people thought of these as belonging to God in a special sense. They were dedicated or presented to God on the day of the firstfruits, a part of the celebration of Pentecost (Numbers 28:26; 2 Chronicles 31:5). The counterpart today is the “first” of our income or profit, and may be expressed in the worshipping of God with our tithes.

When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord.  Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.   “Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”  (Genesis 4:3-7 NLT)

When I did my Bible reading yesterday this passage struck a chord with me. GOD Himself warned Cain about sin and he refused to listen. Abel’s gift to GOD was accepted because it was his firstfruits, the best of the best; showing GOD that HE was worthy, that HE was elevating GOD above all else in his life. I imagine Cain was coveting his crops, he was clinging to what he valued more and giving to GOD only what was left over. That made me think, do I give GOD my left overs?

When Cain started off putting his worldly treasures above GOD, he showed his faith wasn’t in GOD, but in himself and what he could do instead of counting on GOD. When Cain didn’t listen to GOD’s warning, he took offense, he let his heart get hardened, and he kept his mind on what GOD didn’t do for him and let his thoughts go where they didn’t need to be; he allowed sin to control him.  

The problem here is not wealth; the problem is putting wealth, possessions, ourselves or anything else before GOD. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to start a 21-day challenge of waking up early and starting my day with GOD before I did anything else. I want to put GOD where HE belongs in my life, in all of our lives – FIRST!