At work with God – Day 9

₂₂“Set aside a tithe — a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. ₂₃Then go to the one place where the LORD your God has chosen to be worshipped; and there in his presence eat the tithes of your corn, wine, and olive oil, and the firstborn of your cattle and sheep. Do this so that you may learn to honour the LORD your God always.

₄₂“How terrible for you Pharisees! You give God a tenth of the seasoning herbs, such as mint and rue and all the other herbs, but you neglect justice and love for God. These you should practise, without neglecting the others.

₄₁As Jesus sat near the temple treasury, he watched the people as they dropped in their money. Many rich men dropped in a lot of money; ₄₂then a poor widow came along and dropped in two little copper coins, worth about a penny. ₄₃He called his disciples together and said to them, “I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all the others. ₄₄For the others put in what they had to spare of their riches; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had — she gave all she had to live on.”

₆Remember that the person who sows few seeds will have a small crop; the one who sows many seeds will have a large crop. ₇You should each give, then, as you have decided, not with regret or out of a sense of duty; for God loves the one who gives gladly. ₈And God is able to give you more than you need, so that you will always have all you need for yourselves and more than enough for every good cause. ₉As the scripture says: