“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’” (Deuteronomy 26:3)
When the Israelites came into the Promised Land, they each were to take in a basket some of the first produce of the land which grew from their individual land inheritances they had received, and bring that to the priest and say the words in the above verse (Deuteronomy 26:1-3). Then the priest would set the basket of produce before the altar of the Lord and the individual Israelite would then recount the history of His people from the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to their deliverance from Egypt, and finally, to their entrance into this land “flowing with milk and honey” (Deuteronomy 26:4-9). The basket of first-fruits they had brought was a symbol that they recognized God had fulfilled His promises to them and they were rejoicing in this fact (Deuteronomy 28:10-11).
They were to take time to recognize the promises that God had fulfilled to them. God was so wise to have His people do this. God understood that it was essential for His people to take time to reflect how He had blessed them and fulfilled the promises He made to them. This would encourage them to grow in their faith in Him and encourage them to remain faithful to Him.
As Christians, sometimes we can get wrapped up so much in the affairs of daily life that we fail to take time to reflect on God’s fulfilled promises to us and how He has blessed us. When this happens, our Christianity becomes nothing more than a set of rules we follow. Our relationship with God suffers and we feel ourselves becoming distant from Him as the joy slowly slips out of our lives and we find ourselves grumbling as we try to serve Him.
Do I take time to reflect on how God has blessed me, answered my prayers, and fulfilled the promises He has made to me? God has saved me from the lost sinner I was through the promise of salvation He kept through the centuries which He fulfilled through Jesus Christ. God has blessed me by sustaining me through this point of my life and seen me through various trials. God has fulfilled numerous prayers which I have made to Him. Today, I will take time to let His joy fill my life as I rejoice in how God has fulfilled His promises to me!
“When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches. Because You have been my help, Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice” (Psalm 63:6-7).