April 7

Deuteronomy 31:1-32:27, Luke 12:8-34, Psalm 78:32-55, Proverbs 12:21-23 



Pray: Spend time confessing to God the relationships, circumstances, and “what if’s” that cause you to worry. Now, spend time telling God how He has provided and protected as a Father to you.

Read: Pay attention as you read today to God’s names and His roles revealed through Moses, Jesus, and David recounting the history of God’s people. In order to “proclaim the name of the Lord” and “how glorious is our God,” lean into whom He reveals Himself to be.

Edify: Corrie Ten Boom says, “Worry is a cycle of inefficient thoughts whirling around a center of fear.” However, when we realize that we have a heavenly Father who is great and who is good, we don’t have to have hearts positioned from a place of fear and desperation. This is Moses’ final prayer before his death. Moses multiple times calls God their “Father” and their “Rock.” It is very rare in the Old Testament for God to be referred to as a Father in the personal nature instead of a Father of the entire nation. This is a groundbreaking name for God in the Old Testament, and something Moses wanted to leave God’s people with since they were about to face great challenges and battles for the Promised Land.  And of course Jesus points to the freedom we can have when we know God as our Father. We no longer have to worry about what we will eat and what we will wear.  We no longer have to be fearful to ask God for things in prayer, because He loves us enough to give us what’s best for us. We no longer have to be fearful with our finances, and we can give freely knowing we have a Father who “owns the cattle on a thousand hills” who will protect and provide for us.

Practice: Be faithful and deliberate in your generosity. Look at your finances and each account from a position of abundance rather than scarcity. Ask God for His provision. Trust God by making a plan to give a certain percentage back to Him right away. And make a plan to increase that percentage until you’re giving a tithe or even above the tithe. Don’t let fear rule your finances. Instead, let faith in a good Father guide your giving.