Deuteronomy 26

The joy of bringing your first

You shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground, which you shall bring from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. ~ Deuteronomy 26:2

What comes to your mind when you hear the words tithes and offerings. Do you see it as an obligation, or do you see it as an opportunity. Have you ever stopped to consider that giving to God is not only about finances, but also about trust and gratitude. What would change in your heart if every gift you brought to God became an expression of worship rather than a routine act.

In today’s scripture reading, God instructed His people to bring the first portion of their harvest to Him. This moment was not simply about giving resources. It was a reminder that everything they had came from the Lord. Their harvest was evidence of His provision, and their offering was a declaration of gratitude and trust in His provision.

As children of God today, we have been given the same opportunity to worship through giving as God’s people did in so many years ago. When we give our tithes and offerings, we are acknowledging that God is our provider and that our lives are sustained by His hand.

Below are some powerful truths from this passage that can strengthen our perspective on giving.

1. Giving starts with remembering God’s promises and provision

When the Israelites brought their offering, they were instructed to recount the story of how God delivered their ancestors and brought them into a place of blessing. Their gift was connected to remembering what God had done for them.

Take a moment before you give to thank God for the ways He has provided for you. Consider the income you have, the opportunities you have received, and the ways God has sustained you through the years of your life. When gratitude fills your heart, giving becomes an act of joy rather than pressure to perform.

2. Giving gives God first place in our lives

The offering in Deuteronomy was the first portion of the harvest, not the leftovers. By bringing the first fruits, the people demonstrated that God held the first place in their hearts.

Decide ahead of time that the first portion of what you receive will be given to the Lord. Instead of waiting to see what remains after expenses, make the decision that honoring God will come first and the tithe and offerings will be from the first place of your income not the end. This step strengthens your trust in His ability to provide for the rest expenses.

3. Giving becomes an act of celebration

After presenting their offering, the people were instructed to rejoice in the goodness of the Lord. Their giving was connected to celebration because it reminded them of the relationship they had with Him.

View your giving as moments of worship. When you give, take time to thank God for His faithfulness and invite Him to use your gift to bless others and expand His kingdom in this world. This simple act turns giving into a joyful response to His goodness.

I didn’t always understand the principle of giving. For many years I viewed it as something I would do if there was enough left over. Giving felt more like an option rather than an act of worship.

As I grew to know what Scripture taught about honoring God with the first part of my income, something began to change in my heart. I made the decision to trust God by placing Him first in this area of my life. Over time I noticed my financial situation shift from barely having enough to get by to consistently having what I needed and often more than enough.

It was not until I truly began honoring and worshiping God with the first fruit of my increase that I saw Him move in ways I could not explain. My finances began to experience overflow in unexpected ways. I started to see that the miracles were not the reason for giving. They were simply the result of trusting Him.

Now I understand the joy that comes from worshiping God through giving. He has faithfully provided again and again, often in ways I never could have arranged on my own. There were moments when it seemed easier to hold tightly to what I had rather than release it to the Lord. Yet each time I chose to give, I was reminded that everything I had was already a gift from Him.

Over time I noticed something beautiful happening in my heart. Every act of giving strengthened my trust in God. Instead of worrying about what I might lose, I began to see how faithfully He continued to provide. I came to understand a powerful truth. God can do more with the ninety percent that remains than I could ever accomplish with one hundred percent on my own.

I know now that giving was never meant to be a burden. It was meant to be an opportunity and a declaration of faith in my faithful heavenly Father.

Today I want to encourage you to approach tithes and offerings with a heart of gratitude and trust. The God who provided for His people in Deuteronomy is the same God who provides for you today. When you bring your first and best to Him, you are showing that your life rests in His care and that your provision comes from His hand.

Today’s scripture reading: Deuteronomy 26

1 “And it shall be, when you come into the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you possess it and dwell in it, 

2 that you shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground, which you shall bring from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. 

3 And you shall go to the one who is priest in those days, and say to him, ‘I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the country which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’

4 “Then the priest shall take the basket out of your hand and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God. 

5 And you shall answer and say before the Lord your God: ‘My father was a Syrian, about to perish, and he went down to Egypt and dwelt there, few in number; and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous. 

6 But the Egyptians mistreated us, afflicted us, and laid hard bondage on us. 

7 Then we cried out to the Lord God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and looked on our affliction and our labor and our oppression. 

8 So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, with great terror and with signs and wonders. 

9 He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, “a land flowing with milk and honey”; 

10 and now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land which you, O Lord, have given me.’

“Then you shall set it before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God. 

11 So you shall rejoice in every good thing which the Lord your God has given to you and your house, you and the Levite and the stranger who is among you.

12 “When you have finished laying aside all the tithe of your increase in the third year—the year of tithing—and have given it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled, 

13 then you shall say before the Lord your God: ‘I have removed the holy tithe from my house, and also have given them to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten them. 

14 I have not eaten any of it when in mourning, nor have I removed any of it for an unclean use, nor given any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the Lord my God, and have done according to all that You have commanded me. 

15 Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land which You have given us, just as You swore to our fathers, “a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’

16 “This day the Lord your God commands you to observe these statutes and judgments; therefore you shall be careful to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul. 

17 Today you have proclaimed the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will obey His voice. 

18 Also today the Lord has proclaimed you to be His special people, just as He promised you, that you should keep all His commandments, 

19 and that He will set you high above all nations which He has made, in praise, in name, and in honor, and that you may be a holy people to the Lord your God, just as He has spoken.”

Journal:

• How has God provided for you in ways that remind you of His faithfulness.
• What emotions do you usually experience when you think about giving to God, and how might gratitude reshape that perspective.
• What practical step can you take to place God first in the way you manage your resources.
• How could viewing your giving as an act of worship change the way you approach tithes and offerings.
• In what ways has trusting God with your resources strengthened your faith in His provision.