Living the blessed life has truly been an adventure for Debbie and me. From the beginning of this journey, God has asked us to give in ways that required instant obedience and trust in Him. We’ve given away multiple vehicles, our retirement savings, and even our home. As a result, God has blessed us more than we could’ve ever imagined, and He wants to bless you too. It all starts with understanding and applying the principles in this devotional. But first, I want to tell you the story of how it all got started for us.
Long before we started Gateway Church in my living room, I was a traveling evangelist, and all of my income came from love offerings I received from churches when I preached. It could be $800 one week and $200 the next, so it required us to trust God for our finances. There was a month during which I was only scheduled to preach at one church, so this presented a potential budget challenge for us. After I preached, the pastor brought me an envelope and told me it was the largest love offering his little church had ever given. I looked at the check and it was exactly what we needed for our monthly budget. I was so relieved and grateful, but then God spoke to me about a missionary who had given a brief update to the congregation earlier that night. The Lord said, “I want you to give him your offering—all of it.” I began to panic, and I tried to rationalize and bargain with the Lord, but I knew I had to obey. So I signed over the check to the missionary and as I handed it to him, I asked him not to tell anyone about it.
An hour later, Debbie and I were at a pizza place with some of the church members. I found myself seated across from a well-dressed man I barely knew. He leaned across the table and asked, “How much was your offering tonight?” I was a little flustered by the question, especially because he was a near stranger. I told him the amount, hoping that would be the end of it, but he responded with another question: “Where is the check?” I couldn’t believe his nerve! I’m not proud to tell you this, but I lied right through my teeth. I told him my wife had it. “Go get it. I want to see it.” I got up and pretended to get it from her. When I returned, I lied again: “She left it in the car.” He leaned across the table, got uncomfortably close, and said, “The check’s not in the car, Robert.” I responded, “How do you know that?” “Because God told me,” he said. “And He told me something else.”
I will never forget what he said next: “God is about to teach you about giving so that you can teach the body of Christ.” With that, he slid a check across the table.The amount was exactly 10 times what I had given away only an hour earlier. That night was the beginning of this incredible adventure.
Whether you’re just starting your blessed life journey or you’ve been practicing biblical principles on giving for years, when you apply these truths, God will cause you to prosper. More importantly, He will do an amazing work in your heart. It’s my hope that this devotional encourages you and helps you discover a life of generosity and abundance that so few ever dare to live.
Pastor Robert Morris