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Hear the devotional right here: https://bit.ly/35nsEqC
1 When you have come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, 2 you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. 3 You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, "Today I declare to the Lord your God that I have come into the land that the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us." 4 When the priest takes the basket from your hand and sets it down before the altar of the Lord your God, 5 you shall make this response before the Lord your God: "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. 6 When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, 7 we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors; the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. 8 The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; 9 and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O Lord, have given me." You shall set it down before the Lord your God and bow down before the Lord your God. 11 Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house. (Deuteronomy 26:1-11 New Revised Standard Bible)
Happy Wednesday, ConCafe Family. In fact, may this be a reflective and worshipful Ash Wednesday. I chose not to address any Ash Wednesday text so that you might be surprised today! May God speak to us as we begin this 40 day journey. You can do it, Friend! Let God guide you! Prayers for The Rev. Isabel Gomez; he's starting treatment for cancer in Dallas.
Firstfruits is a wonderful word in my opinion. It is a great Bible word. We first find it in the first book, Genesis 4, verse 4. It's when we read that Cain brought to God "an offering" of his fruit, and Abel brought to the Lord "The first and fattest" of his herd. Most can see the difference. Cain remembered he had to bring God something, and so he brings something. Abel knew to give God of the first and best, and does so. God had regard for Abel's offering, but not for Cain's. And as a result we have the first murder in the Bible. And a fraticide, meaning brother killing brother. I am almost sure the teaching from this passage mimics what Adam and Eve might have taught to their sons. Give to God the first of what you produce in your land and give it to God in gratiude and remembrance for what God has done. The passage shows the response one should recite, "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down to Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous." I was not yet familiar with the phrase, "A wandering Aramean was my Father (in Revsied Standard years), and my Old Testament professor said it to us all as we entered his class. By itself it caught my attention and has always stayed with me. It was a self-declaration of identifty with pride and remembrance of where he/we had come from and where we ended up. There's also the truth of shared ancestors; I honestly truly believe that we all share common ancestors and instead of dividing us, it unites us.
Quite honestly, the more we remember where we came from and Who brought us thus far, we can't help but be thankful. Not everyone does that, and not everyone has a thankful heart; but for those who acknowledge God and God's role in our lives, we know that God loves us and provides for us. As we enter into the season of giving up in our fasts, we should first remember Who brought or gave to us that which we willingly part with. We should also know that He who blessed us also shares that which we can take up as part of our spiritual nourishment to make us stronger.
PRAYER: Loving Provider of all things; thank You for all You have shared with us. Grant to us the wisdom to be thankful and mindful of all things. Help us to fast in ways that make us stronger and more grateful. And gracious Lord, help us take up new ways of spiritual nourishment that makes us truliy appreciative of Jesus. In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Remember we are dust and to dust we shall return. But in the meantime, we have much to do to help others.
Receive my blessings of hope and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
