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In the Old Testament, the prophet Malachi boldly challenges the people of Israel to stop living sinful and morally corrupt lives, warning them to turn back to God. He then shifts his tone to reveal that the Lord longs to bless His people:

 

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it” (Malachi 3:10).

 

This verse specifically addresses God’s people and their refusal to tithe (10%) appropriately. Yet, when you dig deeper into the context of who Malachi was talking to and why he was so aggressively challenging them to tithe, you find that people weren’t dropping the ball merely in their tithing. They were blowing it in all areas of their life – refusing to follow God’s covenant. Thus, their lack of tithing, was merely a by-product of their refusal to live honest, grateful and humble lives.

 

The word tithe is used 32 times throughout the Old Testament and means “the setting aside a tenth of goods or money given as a gift or offering”. Notably, in 2 Chronicles it states: “The Israelites generously gave the firstfruits of their grain, new wine, olive oil and honey and all that the fields produced. They brought a great amount, a tithe of everything” (2 Chronicles 31:5). Thus, the key is that our tithes are not merely 10% of what we have, but it is our firstfruits (the best) of what we have.

 

As a mother, I used to struggle to wholeheartedly put my trust in God. For many years, I lived in fear, micromanaging every area of my life and the life of my family. After a very long and difficult season with one of my children – I was tired. Tired of living in fear. Tired of the constant tears of worry. I realized I hadn’t fully given the situation to God, trusting that He was in control. There was no amount of tears or anxiety that would cause God to answer my prayers any quicker.

 

The passage in Malachi gives me chills every time I read it. I think it’s partly because I realize how much I hold back from God. I’m not just talking about money…I’m talking about EVERYTHING. My children, marriage, relationships, finances, business, health, dreams – you name it, I’m usually holding onto part of it. It’s like I’ve got one foot here on earth and one foot in heaven. But, God commands that we give Him the best – our firstfruits. It’s the only place in scripture where God actually challenges us to test Him: “‘Test me in this’, says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it’”. I don’t know about you, but this is a challenge that I’m going to accept.

 

 

When we align our thoughts with God’s thoughts, our spirit with His spirit, our dreams with His dreams, we will run to Him with our firstfruits – our everything. Only then will He open the floodgates of heaven, pouring out so much of His blessings, we won’t be able to contain them. This is a powerful way to live – in faith, not fear. Let go of your worries and fears. Everything we have has been given to us from God. Our health, money, families, abilities, talents and treasures are all stunning gifts from God. When we give God our everything first, trusting He is in control, wait and see how the floodgates of heaven open up, as the rushing wave of uncontainable blessings overtake our lives, leading us to our destiny.