If you have gained some wealth in your life, that is a blessing, and it is right that you should enjoy the fruit of your labour. But remember that you belong to God. Your time and your effort belong to God. You are not the ultimate owner of what you have or even of yourself. You are a steward of what belongs to God. God wants you to enjoy what you gain materially in this life. He will not ‘muzzle the ox that treads the grain,’ as the law says (Deuteronomy 25:4; 1 Corinthians 9:9). But he also asks you to be a good steward and to put aside part of the fruit of your labour as seed to sow into something bigger than yourself. A farmer will always make the distinction between what can be eaten and what must be used as seed for a further harvest. Every businessman makes the distinction between profits that can be kept and what must be reinvested to create more profit. You may enjoy what you have but do not eat what is seed. Part of what you have is seed for the Kingdom of God. As you show yourself to be a faithful steward of God’s material blessings, he will entrust more to you. Put aside that which is seed, at least ten percent of what you earn, and sow it into the work of your church. Show yourself faithful to God in this and he will bless you richly.
Be faithful and generous in your giving.
Read 2 Corinthians 9
