Be sure to give to the Lord the best portions of the gifts given to you. (Numbers 18:29 NLT)

I find myself thinking during the day, “Am I doing my best?”. With that last project, “did I give it my best effort?” With the last email I wrote, “was I polite enough, thorough enough?”

In Numbers, God directs Moses to tell the people that the first 10% of everything they do or have belongs to Him.

“However, you may not redeem the firstborn of cattle, sheep, or goats. They are holy and have been set apart for the Lord. Sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord.” (Numbers 18:17 NLT)

What is interesting is that God tells them to not even count that possession, they do not have to redeem it. It never belonged to them. It was never theirs in the first place, it belonged to God.

How many times do we grumble when we “have to” give to the Lord a portion of our “hard-earned money”? How many times do we complain about spending time in service to others from our “busy” schedule?

We forget that they were “gifts given” to us, and that they never belonged to us in the first place. They were the firstborn, the first 10%! I know I appreciate being able to keep the other 90%!

Soli Deo Gloria!