Evening
January 14

Haggai 1:4-6 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 have 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."


The Lord says that the circumstances in our life are His call for us to consider our ways. If there is a lack of blessing or provision, then there is something we need to think about. There is some reason. That reason is often to have us consider the condition of our heart.

After the exiles returned, they rebuilt the altar and the foundation of the temple. Then the enemy attacked with accusations. The people moved their efforts to their own homes. They became comfortable in this switch of emphasis, therefore God gave them some discomfort. It reminded them that they had forgotten their original focus. Problems in life should cause us to seek God. They should call us to give attention to what God is saying to us. It is the faithfulness of God to get us back on track.

Do you see circumstances as a natural set of occurrences, coincidences? 'Coincidence' merely means that two events coincided. The question of why they coincided remains. If your god is small, he had nothing to do with it. If your God is the Sovereign Lord of all, He, at least, allowed it for a reason. Jesus taught something very similar to Haggai's message. "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33 Give careful thought to your ways.

Consider: Have I been ignoring the powerful hand of God in my life today? How should I respond?