The Right Thing To Do

“If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the widow of the dead man shall not be married to a stranger outside the family; her husband’s brother shall go into her, take her as his wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her.
And it shall be that the first born son which she bears will succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel.” Deuteronomy 25:5-6

What I noticed in this, and the other laws God set forth, is His desire for His people to do the right thing. And the right thing to do wasn’t usually the easiest thing.

Oh Lord, we desire to do what is right in Your sight above what is right in ours. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Doing Right In His Sight

It might be rather humbling
require a letting go
maybe a difficult forgiveness
but He wants you to know
He sees you in this moment
even though it’s hard
making the right choices
because He’s in your heart.

God’s Economy

“When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” Deuteronomy 24:19
“When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.” Deuteronomy 24:20

None of the above makes good business sense.

Oh Lord, please school me deep in the economy of You. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Leave It

Could I leave a sheaf
without going back

or forget a few olives
and be okay with that?

Oh may I trust You
to keep and cover me

whether I be blindly blessing
or gathering for free.

A Rejoicing Tithe

” . . .you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household.” Deuteronomy 14:26
“”At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates.” Deuteronomy 14:28
“And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance among you and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, they come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.” Deuteronomy 14:29

I received a different look at the tithe in this chapter, seeing more of God’s heart for us in it, to rejoice and bless others.

Lord, thank You for how You work in our work or lack of it, in our finances or need, as we give or as we receive help from others. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Satisfied

You bless us
as we bless others
storing up
in order to give
knowing You provide
the tithe and increase
and the every breath
we need to live.

Out of Poverty

“So He said, ‘Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all;
for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty has put in all the livelihood that she had’.” Luke 21:3-4

Jesus sees us at our lowest points as precious vessels of His grace.

Thank You, Jesus, for always turning things upside down. Please help me pour out of those places in my life that I feel are bankrupt. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Jesus Sees

When you feel you can’t go on
but for others you somehow do

when you are brokenhearted but still love
because Jesus is loving you

when the bad news comes
and you’ve lost all happiness

yet rejoice and praise Him
Jesus sees you and is blessed.