Rejoicing in generosity

My quiet time this morning included 1 Chronicles 29. David is doing a hand-over to Solomon, his soon-to-be-king son. The number one task for Solomon will be to build the temple, and so David outlines the preparations he's already made - all the wood, gold, bronze, silver, iron, onyx etc that he's stock piled in readiness.
And then the people make their freewill offering, and it's a massive offering.

Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly. (v9)

Oh that we could all have that attitude in the church today! How will such a church (i.e. the true church - the people of God, we're not interested in stone structures) be built? Well, keep reading...

   Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.
    “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you.
(1 Chronicles 29:10-17 ESV)

The people gave wholeheartedly, willingly and freely because they understood the everything we have comes from God, and they understood the temporary nature of this life. When we truly believe this, thanks to God rises within us and overflows into generosity, praise and joyful self-giving.

But the next verse is telling:

O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. (v18).

And we know that the people of Israel failed to keep their hearts directed towards the LORD. We also know that under the New Covenant, God gives us his Spirit to write his laws in our hearts (Jer 31:31-34 cf Heb 8). Yet we persist in our hard-heartedness and grieve, quench and resist the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:30; 1 Thes 5:19).
Our sinful nature finds the temporary, glittering things of this life terribly attractive; not so much the onyx and bronze, but the i-pad 2, or the i-phone 4, or the new collection in White Stuff, or 2 weeks in the sun and so on and on and on. All these things really are terribly attractive. Terribly attractive because they are so deceptive and an unhealthy desire for them is so destructive.
And the deception is this: 'all things come from God' - "they're good things to be enjoyed now, and a foretaste of the better things in heaven." And there's a certain truth in this. But it's not that simple. This life is short (the parable of the rich fool, Luke 12:13-21). And then there's judgement; judgement for how we've used what God's entrusted to us as his servants (the parabl of the talents, Mat 25:14ff; cf 1 Cor 3:10-15).
So what's the cure?  A number of key ideas from 1 Chronicles 29:

• A focus on the eternal greatness, power, glory, victory and majesty of God.
• Truly believing that everything in heaven and on earth belongs to God.
• Remembering that God's Kingdom is the only kingdom that will last. To be engaged in building this kingdom is to be engaged in an eternal project.
• Acknowledging that anything we do have is from God even though we may think we've worked hard for it and have used our skill & talent to earn it - the strength, skill & talent were given us by God.
• Remembering that we are sojourners and strangers in this world and that 'our days are like a shadow, and there is no abiding' - how fleeting and temporary is a shadow in an English summer! (cf 1 Peter 1).

If we truly believed all this, surely we could work and give and pray and praise and worship God with a whole heart and great rejoicing!