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Day 10 – Daily Sacrifices
by Sarah Micula

“No I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing.” 2 Samuel 24:24

Everyday offerings are in the ordinary, everyday things you do, the coming and going, sleeping and eating. They are in the simple and mundane parts of life, but they are also in the challenging parts of the day that stretch you and keep pushing you forward toward obedience.  A few months ago, someone that worked down the hall from me was transferring to another Salvation Army location and ministry position. A few departments came together and had a lunch to bid farewell. Days later, when she was finally leaving, another co-worker popped her head in my office door and quickly said, “Sue* is leaving for the last time.”  “Okay,” I thought. “Thanks for letting me know.” I sat there for too many moments, and then realized, “Oh, I should go say goodbye and give her a hug.” I’m not an introvert and I’m not totally clueless either, but I do need sometimes to be pushed. I often need a nudge to do the next right thing. It wasn’t a major sacrifice to leave my office that morning, but it was a reminder to get out of my comfort zone and do the next right thing. To do the next right thing in my marriage, with my extended family, in my church, in the grocery store, at work. The idea to lay down my comforts and my safe places—the spaces and people I cling to because I know they won’t reject me—for the benefit of someone else feeling valued, loved, missed, thought of, remembered and cared for. Make the call, send the text, step out of your office, say good morning, say thank you. Start making small ordinary sacrifices that take you out of your comfort zone so that when God calls you to make bigger sacrifices you’ve already started the habit of obedience that a big sacrifice won’t seem so scary.
In 2 Samuel 24, Araunah offered to give David the threshing floor and oxen to use for his offering. But David rejected his offer and insisted on paying. He didn’t want any short cuts in his offering; he wanted to experience the full sacrifice and display to God he would give his all to make things right in His sight.
Feel the stretch, the discomfort and sacrifice, like David did, as you make your daily offerings to God.
*name changed
Thoughts to Ponder:
Where are your comfort zones (at church, at work, in friendships)?
 
What do you learn about our Creator from 2 Samuel 24?