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Growing up, I was never a fan of leftovers. I think we all can agree that they just don’t taste the same as the original meal. When food is prepared fresh, you can tell a huge difference between that and when it has been left overnight.
One thing I noticed about my dad growing up was that he absolutely detested leftovers and refused to eat them. I don’t recall many times growing up that I saw my dad eat leftovers. He once told me that when he was little, all they had were leftovers. So he was forced to eat them up to three or four days after a meal was prepared. Because of his upbringing, he simply refused to eat them in his adulthood.
A freshly prepared meal can be excellent, but that same meal the very next day is usually below average. The thing I’ve noticed since coming to Christ is that most Christians base their lives off of serving God leftovers. We claim to love God with all of our heart, but we constantly offer Him what is left over from our lives.
Our days are spent doing whatever we want and going wherever we please, and God gets a short prayer at the end of the night before bed. Perhaps even the way we do church is an example of our lack of commitment to God - spending the week doing whatever we want to do, and giving Him one day that’s left over.
21 "I can't stand your religious meetings. I'm fed up with your conferences and conventions.22 I want nothing to do with your religion projects, your pretentious slogans and goals. I'm sick of your fund-raising schemes, your public relations and image making.23 I've had all I can take of your noisy ego-music. When was the last time you sang to me?24 Do you know what I want? I want justice - oceans of it. I want fairness - rivers of it. That's what I want. That's all I want. Amos 5:21-24 MSG
Can you imagine how enraged you would be if you went to a restaurant and they brought out leftovers? The audacity for a human to bring us food that has been left over. So wouldn’t it be hypocritical for us to hate leftovers but offer them to God and expect Him to be happy?
15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither [c]cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.[d] Therefore be[e]zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelations 3:14- 22 NKJV
Isn’t it interesting that we claim to have given God our entire lives, but with our finances He gets ten percent? Basically, we are saying “Here God, you can have all of my soul for free, but you can only have 10% of my finances.” Imagine if we lived our entire lives and our biggest investments were our houses, cars, and vacations, and saved what was left over for the Kingdom of God…
32-33 The whole congregation of believers was united as one—one heart, one mind! They didn’t even claim ownership of their own possessions. No one said, “That’s mine; you can’t have it.” They shared everything. The apostles gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Master Jesus, and grace was on all of them.34-35 And so it turned out that not a person among them was needy. Those who owned fields or houses sold them and brought the price of the sale to the apostles and made an offering of it. The apostles then distributed it according to each person’s need. Acts 4:32-35 MSG
Have we ever considered putting things of God on a payment plan to make sure that the Kingdom is being advanced continually? Or does this only make sense to do with our houses and cars which are merely temporal?
A question comes to mind — If we live our entire lives and invest millions into our houses but only what's left over into the Kingdom, does this not show God what our priorites actually are?
33 So then, any of you who does not forsake (renounce, surrender claim to, give up, [j]say good-bye to) all that he has cannot be My disciple.34 Salt is good [an excellent thing], but if salt has lost its strength and has become saltless (insipid, flat), how shall its saltness be restored?35 It is fit neither for the land nor for the manure heap; men throw it away. He who has ears to hear, let him listen and consider and comprehend by hearing! Luke 14:33-35 AMPC
The Question of the Day: With this mentality, would we spend eternity with the saints who gave everything to God? Or would we, ourselves, become leftovers?