God Called Israel to Give Their Very Best
Daily Scripture
Exodus 23:19, 2 Chronicles 31:5-6
Exodus 23
19 Bring the best of your land’s early produce to the Lord your God’s temple.
2 Chronicles 31
5 As soon as the order was issued, the Israelites generously gave the best of their grain, new wine, oil, honey, and all their crops—a tenth of everything, a huge amount. 6 The people of Israel and Judah, living in the cities of Judah, also brought in a tenth of their herds and flocks and a tenth of the items that had been dedicated to the Lord their God, stacking it up in piles.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
Today’s readings reflected a consistent theme in Israel’s giving: they were to give God “the best.” Sacrifice instructions reinforced this—worshippers couldn’t offer damaged animals they could easily spare (cf. Deuteronomy 15:21, 17:1). Since most of us don’t offer produce or livestock today, it’s worth reflecting on what giving God “the best” means for our own generosity.
- Giving cash or clicking “transfer” online feels different from bringing your finest lamb or best grain. But the principle remains: do we give what we can easily spare, or do we give sacrificially? What would it look like for you to bring “your best” to God—not just convenient leftovers, but gifts that genuinely cost you something?
- King Hezekiah’s call to support the Temple unleashed remarkable generosity—the people gave “the best” of everything in “a huge amount.” Their giving flowed from grateful hearts, not grudging obligation. Why does God care about our motivation in giving? Have you discovered the surprising joy that comes from giving generously out of love and gratitude rather than duty?
Prayer
A daily reminder from Pastor Hamilton: Our hope is that tonight or tomorrow morning, continuing through Christmas, each of you will, either in the morning or at night, take the time to write down three things you are thankful for. You might write these in the form of a thank you letter to God, or simply write down a journal entry.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, it’s too easy to give you only the equivalent of unwanted items from the back of my closet. Teach me how to give you my “best” in ways that matter in my life. Amen.
GPS Insights
Amy Oden
Dr. Amy Oden, who serves as Adjunct Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality at the Oklahoma campus of Saint Paul School of Theology, wrote today's Insights, which we first published in 2021. Teaching is her calling, and she looks forward to every day with students. Her book (Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness, Abingdon Press, 2017) traces ancient mindfulness practice for Christians today.
Do you want to live tight-fisted or open-handed? Close your hand into a fist. Now squeeze it closed even tighter. Count to 20. Notice the energy it takes to hold it tightly closed.
We often do this spiritually. We grip our blessings tightly and, usually unbeknownst to us, that takes a lot of energy. A closed fist requires us to maintain vigilance, rarely relaxed into trust. It’s exhausting to cling to our resources, misunderstanding them as prizes for our efforts.
What if we lived open-handed? What if we saw our resources, not as prize, but as blessing poured into our lives for the sake of others? For the sake of the world God so loves?
If we allow the resources that flow into our lives to flow through us and out into the world, we find ourselves more free. We are more available to receive God’s good gifts and more able to release them for God’s purposes in the world.
Of course, like so much of the gospel, this is upside-down thinking, counter-intuitive. We assume that we will be secure and happy only when we grip tightly to what we have. But Jesus invites us to the Way that leads to Life.
Today, let’s try living open-handed, ready to receive and ready to give. Amen.
