⁹ You hoped for rich harvests, but they were poor. And when you brought your harvest home, I blew it away. Why? Because my house lies in ruins, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, while all of you are busy building your own fine houses. ~Haggai 1:9

Does it ever seem like you’re doing everything you should be doing, and seeing no results? You’re sowing, you’re serving, you’re sacrificing, and still . . . you reap nothing. You say to God, “God in Matthew 6:33 it says if I seek your Kingdom first, you’ll add all these things to me. I’m doing that and getting no results!”

If you’re in that position, I would reevaluate whether or not you’re REALLY putting His Kingdom first.

God’s been pressing me with a question that I want to challenge you with: “Are you focused on building your kingdom or God’s?

If we’re not reaping like we should, getting our needs met, and walking in God’s best, I’m willing to bet that we’re not focused on building the right Kingdom, odds are, we’re trying to build our own, and all of our efforts are and will be in vain.

Let’s all make a commitment that everyday we’ll have one focus: Building God’s Kingdom. If we do, I promise, that God will follow through on His promise of having “all these things will be added to you.”

Giving Away Experiences and Opportunities Will Produce Vision in Others

Tomorrow I’ll be leaving for vacation in North Carolina – so pumped! I’m going with a family that offered to take me for free. A free vacation… Such a blessing. It got me thinking though… This family is choosing to love me and allowing me to have an experience that I wouldn’t have been able to have on my own. Here is what I know about Experiences and Opportunities in my life:

• Because someone introduced me to Starbucks, I now enjoy the Starbucks experience

• Because people have taken me on vacation with them I’ve been to places I would have never gone in my life: NYC, Chicago, Bar Harbor, Maine, DC, etc.
  

• Because someone gave me an opportunity to speak and develop my gifting, I’m now able to speak to large audiences often.
  

• Because people modeled what an awesome Godly family looks like, I now have a vision of how I’ll raise my family.
  

• Because someone was willing to share Christ with me, I’m now able to experience God everyday.
  

These experiences and opportunities all expanded my vision for my life. My vision for what life could be like, what a relationship with God could be like, what wearing nice clothes would be like, what raising a Godly family would be like, what annual vacations with my family would be like,  the list goes on and on.Edit Post ‹ BubbaSmith.net — WordPress

What’s my point? Some people have never experienced a cup of coffee at Starbucks, have never been on vacation, have never owned a pair of nice clothes, have never got to use their gifting, have never seen what a healthy family looks like, or have ever experienced God in their lives.

All too often we take these things for granted, not recognizing that if we’d share our experiences with people or giving them an opportunity that they wouldn’t normally have, that we’d increase their vision for their life and ultimately, their quality of life.

Imagine someones life being changed forever cause you shared Christ with them or someone getting a vision for their future,  or career, or family, etc. because you shared your own experiences with them. Imagine someone changing the world with their gifting because you gave them a chance to use it. Is there any greater privilege?

What experiences are you sharing? What opportunities are you giving?