2This is what the Lord Almighty says: “These people say, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord’s house.’ ”
3Then the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai: 4“Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?”
5Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 6You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
7This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 8Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. 9“You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. 10Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the olive oil and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
12Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord. (Haggai 1)
Thoughts: Haggai listened faithfully to the Lord and this is what he heard: it is not fair to neglect God and others while you try to grow more and more wealthy. Haggai says if you give yourself to yourself you will find that nothing satisfies and God withholds His blessing. The Lord says to these people who focus only on their wealth- "You eat but never have enough, you drink but never have your fill. Your clothes don't keep you warm and your money seems to go wasted. The Lord asks basically, How can you pour everything in on yourself and not care about the glory of God? If we believe God blesses, then we must seek to honor Him and glorify Him. Faithfully listening to God means to pay attention to Him.
Prayer: Lord, may I honor you. Help me to give myself fully to you- even if it means less temporary glory for me. Pleasing you, Lord, pleases me.
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