Without Reproach

Without Reproach                                           06-16-17

James 1:5 (ESV) ⁵  If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

Without reproach. God will answer you no matter how many times you ask without chiding or taunting you.That is what that word reproach means. But,BUT, we have to ASK.

Got a story to tell about something that happened to me this week. Where shall I begin? At the beginning I suppose. This may be a tadbit lengthy,but bear with me please.

I have been a tithe payer for the better part of 40 years. As a matter of fact it is one of only two days that I can trace back in my Christian walk. One being the day I got saved and the other the day I committed to a tithe. Easter Sunday,1978 I "caught" the truth about tithing/giving. It has become second nature to me by now. Something that I don't even think about anymore. However,this message today is not about tithing.The only reason that I am sharing that with you is for background to my story. 

As I said the paying of my tithes and offerings is ingrained in me now and has been for many years. It is a Scriptural truth that I caught long ago,and I have been the recipient of untold material blessings over the years that I attribute to the giving of my substance. It is something that I do,without reservation or hesitation. UNTIL THIS PAST WEEK! Can we talk here? O.K. Good. Let me be a little transparent here.

I had some unexpected expenses recently and found myself this week a little tight. Nothing that I had not experienced many times in the past. But, this week it came down to a choice. Chloe was going to a church camp this week and in order to  pay for it I was going to have to dip into a savings account that I had earmarked for other purposes. It was money that I was saving in order to pay off a debt coming due later this year. Money that I had COMMITTED to NOT TOUCHING. See, I had the money to send little bit to camp,but,I was going to have to raid the fund that I had promised myself I would not touch. And herein lieth the lesson.

As I searched for a way to pay for this camp,the thought entered my head."Ronnie,why don't you use your tithe this week to pay for the camp"? Hmmmmm.....Let's see here.I am not using this money(my tithe) for myself. It is a church sponsored function.Chloe will be benefiting from this camp AND I won't have to dip into my fund for paying off debt. The more I entertained the thought,the better it sounded. After a couple of days I had almost convinced myself that there was no harm in it. But, way down deep it seemed I had a check in my spirit. And here is where the story begins.

On Tuesday of this past week I was sitting in the Kroger parking lot getting ready to meet Shelley and Chloe for dinner. We were going to buy Chloe her first Bible to take to camp. As I sat in my car I prayed to the Lord for some direction. I told Him that I was planning on using my tithe money to pay for the church camp.I told Him that I thought it was O.K. but I wanted to know if my heart was in the right place. What was gnawing at me a little bit was the fact I had the money in the untouchable account,but I did not want to use it. Went through all I told you above. I ended with this final request. I said these words."Lord,I need you to speak to me plainly in this.I need your wisdom and I need it set before me in a PLAIN way.

After 39 years of giving. After 39 years of seeing God honor my tithe with His provision. I asked Him if I could now NOT give it.Not because I did not have it to give.NO,NO. BUT,Because I did not want to use funds I had sitting in a bank account. Money that God and God alone had given me the strength to earn. Ya feelin me here?Ever happen to you? Anyway here is where it gets good.

I go through the rest of Tuesday evening without incident.I awoke Wednesday morning,my off day from KAT and as is my custom,got a cup of coffee and turned on my I Pad to check my emails and whatnot. When I opened up my email the very FIRST WORD I saw In bold,black letters was TITHING!.

FIRST WORD I LAID MY EYES ON. As I read on  I realized it was Pastor Doug's Wednesday message. It was the title of his sermon that day.TITHING!!Now it was not odd that I had received his Wednesday message, but the time of day WAS odd.It normally arrives in the late afternoon or early evening. Rarely is his message out by 7:30 A.M. As I read his message it brought tears to my eyes.I was stunned. No,I was humbled. I realized that Indeed God,as only my God can, had answered my prayer.Not only that,He answered it about as PLAINLY as it could be answered. More importantly,He answered it gently,lovingly,without chiding or upbraiding. It could've been something like "Ronnie you have seen me provide for you for most of your life and now you have to ask if you should give your tithe?" But He didn't. Ya feelin me? 

After the shock wore off I decided to investigate a little bit. I called Pastor Doug and asked him about the last time he had spoken on tithing/giving. I could not remember and neither could he. Then he gave me this nugget. He told me about 3:30 or 4P.M. yesterday as he got on the treadmill that the Lord spoke to him about speaking on tithing. He even mentioned that fact in his sermon. I had spoken my prayer to Him almost the exact same time. Maybe 4:30 or so. God knew what was going on with me and He decided to use my best friend and mentor for the past 40 years to speak to me PLAINLY.

Brothers and sisters we are frail creatures. It is a great God that remembers and knows our frame. 

Psalm 103:14 (ESV) ¹⁴  For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

In spite of our frailties,in spite of all our fears,doubts and weaknesses He has compassion on us. He does not reproach us does He?

Psalm 103:13 (ESV) ¹³  As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.

Dealing with a familiar sin? Needing guidance and direction AGAIN? Being tempted to put God in second place for a pittance? Don't fret. God is waiting to hear from you. He is not going to taunt,or chide or reproach you. No matter how many times you need Him to come to your aid. All you or me have to do is ask.

Psalm 103:10-11 (ESV) ¹⁰  He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹  For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;


God Bless