Pray Thru the Bible

God Speaks

 “When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you as a special possession and you have conquered it and settled there, ² put some of the first produce from each crop you harvest into a basket and bring it to the designated place of worship—the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored. ³ Go to the priest in charge at that time and say to him, ‘With this gift I acknowledge to the Lord your God that I have entered the land he swore to our ancestors he would give us.’ ⁴ The priest will then take the basket from your hand and set it before the altar of the Lord your God.

⁵ “You must then say in the presence of the Lord your God, ‘My ancestor Jacob was a wandering Aramean who went to live as a foreigner in Egypt. His family arrived few in number, but in Egypt they became a large and mighty nation. ⁶ When the Egyptians oppressed and humiliated us by making us their slaves, ⁷ we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors. He heard our cries and saw our hardship, toil, and oppression. ⁸ So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and powerful arm, with overwhelming terror, and with miraculous signs and wonders. ⁹ He brought us to this place and gave us this land flowing with milk and honey! ¹⁰ And now, O Lord, I have brought you the first portion of the harvest you have given me from the ground.’ Then place the produce before the Lord your God, and bow to the ground in worship before him. ¹¹ Afterward you may go and celebrate because of all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household. Remember to include the Levites and the foreigners living among you in the celebration.

¹² “Every third year you must offer a special tithe of your crops. In this year of the special tithe you must give your tithes to the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows, so that they will have enough to eat in your towns. ¹³ Then you must declare in the presence of the Lord your God, ‘I have taken the sacred gift from my house and have given it to the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows, just as you commanded me. I have not violated or forgotten any of your commands. ¹⁴ I have not eaten any of it while in mourning; I have not handled it while I was ceremonially unclean; and I have not offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God and have done everything you commanded me. ¹⁵ Now look down from your holy dwelling place in heaven and bless your people Israel and the land you swore to our ancestors to give us—a land flowing with milk and honey.’

¹⁶ “Today the Lord your God has commanded you to obey all these decrees and regulations. So be careful to obey them wholeheartedly. ¹⁷ You have declared today that the Lord is your God. And you have promised to walk in his ways, and to obey his decrees, commands, and regulations, and to do everything he tells you. ¹⁸ The Lord has declared today that you are his people, his own special treasure, just as he promised, and that you must obey all his commands. ¹⁹ And if you do, he will set you high above all the other nations he has made. Then you will receive praise, honor, and renown. You will be a nation that is holy to the Lord your God, just as he promised.”

Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com

We Respond

Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Deuteronomy 26:

1. What does this chapter tell me about God?

2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?

Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.  

1. God is the ultimate source of all that we have.

2. People who belong to God are to proclaim His praise, fame, and honor among all the nations.

Prayer:

3. How might I pray regarding Deuteronomy 26? 

Dear gracious LORD God, thank You for all that You have promised and provided for me (both material and immaterial). Thank You for the ability to obtain all that I possess by hard work and sacrifice. I hereby bring back to You at least a 10% return on Your investment. I confess that I do not deserve all that You have given me. Another way I will express my thanks is by obeying the laws, commands, and decrees You have placed in Your word, the Bible. Although I have wandered far from You at times, You, Jesus, came from Heaven, died, and rose again so that I could be free from my own sin nature’s powerful yearnings, the devil’s entrapment, and this wicked world’s control. Thank You, Holy Spirit that Your presence in my life enables me to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength and to willingly treat my fellow human beings the way Your laws, commands, and decrees require. Thank You, Triune God, for treating me as Your treasured possession. I hereby dedicate myself to spreading Your praise, fame, and honor to all those around me, both near and far. For Your glory, LORD. AMEN

Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)

4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Deuteronomy 26? With the help of God’s Holy Spirit:

• I will list and thank the LORD for the “successes” He has given me during the past 12 months.
• I will bring to my church leaders at least a tenth of what the LORD has enabled me to earn.
• I will give a special offering through my local congregation to support widows, orphans, and those unable to work.
• I will examine my life daily to see if I am truly consecrated to the LORD and am behaving as His treasured possession. 

Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.