Put God First In Our Giving & Put God First In Our Living

CHALLENGE: To have the Courage to say that ‘I WILL put God first’ and the RESOLVE to make it happen!

'If you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time!'  As a believer, when you make a resolution, you don't have to do it by yourself.  Philippians 2:13  God will help you when you rely on him.  I am going to rely on the Lord and resolve to live right.

4 Ways to Live Right: - Psalm 101:2-4

You will not accomplish any goal unless you have determination!  Four times in this verse, David states, “I WILL”.  He didn't say he would try or he might.  That means absolutely nothing.  There is no determination or intention whatsoever.  David was determined to
put first things first!

1. Live Right Among Others - I WILL behave wisely, in a perfect way

To 'behave wisely' means "to act circumspectly" - 'circumspectly' means "to encircle, to see or inspect something".  “The Perfect Way” is God’s way of living.  We are not perfect, but we are being perfected.  We are being transformed by the renewing of our minds. Romans 12:2

2. Live Right at Home – I WILL walk within my house with a perfect heart

At home there are many distractions that make it difficult to live right.  We let down our guard due to familiarity; but we can't let our flesh rule!  “Perfect Heart” (vs. 2) DOES NOT mean ‘without fault’.  It DOES mean ‘Completely Committed to Doing What is Right’.  "I'm gonna commit my life to doin' what's right, both day and night!"

QUESTION:  How do we walk with a Perfect Heart?

• Take time to pray each day! - Ps 119:147 Just pray - it's a great way to start your day.  It's the First Fruit of your day!
• Be quick to forgive one another! - Col 3:13 Allow people room to grow - not an excuse for bad behaviour, but grace to change.  We all grow at different speeds in different areas.
• Be quicker to admit when you’re wrong. - Isa 57:15; Eph 4:26,27   Don't let the sun go down on your wrath.  It will give a foothold to the devil and a foothold becomes a stronghold!

3. Live Right With Your Sight - I WILL set nothing wicked before my eyes.

'Wicked' mean 'worthless, unprofitable, unbeneficial'  Putting God first requires removing anything that qualifies as 'wicked' from your eyes.

• The Law of Gravity states “what goes up, must come down”
• The Law of Garbage states “what goes in, must come out”

What you look at long enough is what you think about, talk about and then live out in your life.  When you learn something by visual, you double your chances of retaining it.  That goes for both good and bad. 1 John 2:16  Impure visual images will stimulate impure thoughts and actions.

4. Live Right in your Thoughts - I WILL NOT know wickedness!

“I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil!” Psalm 101:4; "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Proverbs 23:7

Sometimes we're sinking because of our stinking thinking!  When we change our thinking we can change our life! 

Scriptures on right thoughts: Joshua 1:8; Psalm 119:97-99; Philippians 4:8 These scriptures all come with a promise!

CHALLENGE: Have the Courage to put God first - and RESOLVE to make it happen!  Live right among others, at home, with your sight and in your thoughts.  This week, journal your journey with the Lord and reflect on what God is doing as you resolve to 'LIVE RIGHT'!

The Purpose of Firstfruits

"But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him.  For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]."
- Hebrews 11:6

"But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides."
- Matthew 6:33

The word 'SEEK' means, 'to aim for or to strive after'.  In the year of Exponential Increase, we at HWC need to PUT FIRST THINGS FIRST!  "My first goes to You & I will trust You all year through!"

Scripture: Deuteronomy 26:1-4, 8-11

'FIRST FRUITS' simply means 'the first and best part'.

PURPOSE OF FIRST FRUITS:

1. Offering of APPRECIATION – Deuteronomy 26:8

Proverbs 3:9 "Honour the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops (increase)."

We’ve got to give God thanks for where He’s brought us from and where He’s taking us to.  When you trust God and give Him your all, you can thank Him for where He's taking you because you know it will be good!

'BROUGHT OUT' means 'to move forward to something'.

2. Offering of ANTICIPATION – Proverbs 3:9

Your barns will be filled with plenty. - Proverbs 3:10

'BARNS OR STOREHOUSE' means 'a depository for goods, a warehouse'.

3. Offering of CELEBRATION – Deuteronomy 26:11

It is a time of teaching your children how you are thankful and how you celebrate God's faithfulness and goodness.

PROMISES OF THE FIRSTFRUITS OFFERING:

• A Blessing will rest on your house - Ezekiel 44:30
• Give God the best and the rest will be blessed! - Romans 11:16

What We Do With the First - Will Establish the Rest!!!

Get ready for:        BLESSING!  Ÿ  FAVOUR!  Ÿ  INCREASE!

YOU’RE SETTING THE PATTERN OF PROVISION...
FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR!

Increase & Multiplication

Exponential Increase is not something that we have to wait for. It’s something we simply need to activate by our faith!

3 IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT GOD'S BLESSING! - Psalm 115: 9-15

1. His Blessing is For You! – Psalm 115:12

MINDFUL – 'to mark something or someone for future purposes, specifically for recognition!'

People might be impressed with your performance but God is impressed with your obedience!

FEAR - 'to reverence to the point of obedience'  When you passionately put God first, it marks your life with blessing!

2. His Blessing Is For Now! – Psalm 115:15

God's blessing is not for someday; it's for today! It's more than just having stuff.  We are connected to an almighty God.  Sometimes we get distracted by what's happening around us and we get stressed.  We need to confess: I’m Not Stressed – I’m Blessed!

In John 10:10 Jesus said, "I have come to give you life to the full!"  When we confess stress, we loose our peace.  When we confess we are blessed, we don't allow stress to steal our peace.

3. His Blessing is for Increase! – Psalm 115:15

BLESSED – 'divine or supremely favoured by God'  You may know someone who has great connections, but when you are blessed of the Lord, you have the best connection in the world - God!  You can call in a favour any time when you have God's favour on your life!

This specific word BLESSED is always connected with increase and multiplication!  Reflect on these scriptures on increase: Genesis 12:2; Genesis 22:17; Psalm 67:6.  Get ready for increase and multiplication in every area of your life.

Isaiah 51:2 says, “Look unto Abraham.... for I called him and blessed him, and increased him”.  The word 'called' means  'set apart'; the word 'blessed' means 'God’s favour on your life';  the word 'increased' means 'every part of your life prospers'.  The first area God wants to increase us is spiritually! Matthew 6:33

CHALLENGE: In a society as busy as ours, it is so easy to get distracted.  If you get distracted, it can be very stressful.  In the year of Increase, it is important that you focus on the blessings of the Lord and not allow stress to distract you.  Meditate on today's word and ask the Lord to help you to stay focussed on His blessings so that you can experience increase & multiplication in all you do.

CONFESSION:
His blessing is for me, for now, for increase!  God has called me - I am set apart to obey God; God has blessed me - His favour is on my life; God has increased me - Every part of my life prospers; I am marked for blessing!

Exponential Increase: A Chain Reaction

NO LIMIT to what GOD CAN DO – IN AND THROUGH YOU!

1. God is a Covenant God

A covenant is a formal agreement or promise made between two people.  Both parties have a part to play.

GOD’S PART: (Psalm 115: 9-12)

• Provision  - He is your helper
• Protection  - He is your shield
• Increase  -  God will bless us

OUR PART:

• Obedience
• Trust

The Bible says we need to Fear God.  Fear in this context means "reverence to the point of obeying".

2. God is a God of Increase.

To increase is to move forward, to advance , to proceed, and to profit by the hand of God.  As much as God has done for you... He still wants to increase you more!  Are you ready for a Release of Increase?  Here’s HOW God wants to Increase you:

• EXPONENTIALLY
• GENERATIONALLY

Exponentially: MORE AND MORE - a repetitive, perpetual action.  An example of what happens when you experience exponential increase can be seen at this link: Folding Paper in Half 12 Times

God is going to remove the limits from your life in 2011!  You will know no boundaries in the year of Exponential Increase!

A video example of a chain reaction to your action can be seen here: Chain Reaction

Get ready for a chain reaction of God's blessing in your life.  Your capacity to receive is directly related to your obedience and action.  Set off the trigger of Exponential Increase in your life right at the start of the year by getting 'Under Cover'.

The word 'Capacity' means 'The maximum amount that can be contained'.  God wants to Increase our capacity in 2011!  In order to experience Exponential Increase in every area of our lives, we must increase our capacity in every area of our lives.  God has set everything up for us to experience Exponential Increase.  However, our action is required to increase our capacity to receive.  We have a part to play.  We've got to pray and lead the way!

Generationally: 'CHILDREN' refers to natural offspring AND spiritual offspring.  We're buildin' for our children!  God gives a Generational blessing of increase.  Your children will do greater things than you did. Ps 90:16 - "Lord, let our children see your glory at work."

CHALLENGE: In order to experience Exponential Increase in every area of our lives, we must increase our capacity in every area of our lives! We must increase our time spent in the Word; we must increase our time spent in prayer; we must increase our service in ministry and we must increase our giving. Where do you want God to increase you more and more? Spend time increasing your capacity in your walk with God and watch Him exponentially increase you, your children and your children’s children!
In 2011, you will truly know no boundaries.