Life in a Dry Place

Life in a Dry Place

Fifth after Trinity

Collect Grant, O Lord, we beseech thee, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance, that thy Church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Psalter: 63 (Coverdale)

1 O God, thou art my God; * early will I seek thee.

2 My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh also longeth after thee, * in a barren and dry land where no water is.

3 Thus have I looked for thee in the sanctuary, * that I might behold thy power and glory.

4 For thy loving-kindness is better than the life itself: * my lips shall praise thee.

5 As long as I live will I magnify thee in this manner, * and lift up my hands in thy Name.

6 My soul shall be satisfied, even as it were with marrow and fatness, * when my mouth praiseth thee with joyful lips.

7 Have I not remembered thee in my bed, * and thought upon thee when I was waking?

8 Because thou hast been my helper; * therefore under the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

9 My soul hangeth upon thee; * thy right hand hath upholden me.

10 These also that seek the hurt of my soul, * they shall go under the earth.

11 Let them fall upon the edge of the sword, * that they may be a portion for foxes.

12 But the King shall rejoice in God; all they also that swear by him shall be commended; * for the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.

I live with a disciplined woman. When Susan has housework to do, she will make herself a glass of ice water. But she will not take even a sip till she has finished her work. The ice water is her reward.

It’s one thing not to drink water when it’s abundantly available. It’s another to be in a dry place where there is little or no water. When David wrote Psalm 63 he was in a desert area.

1. David’s Wilderness

How did David get there? Here’s the story in brief.

• When David sinned with Bathsheba the Lord told him that one of the consequences of his sin would be that “the sword would never depart” from his household. There was a particularly distasteful instance of conflict in David’s family.

• One of David’s sons, Amnon, fell in love with a daughter of David, his half-sister, Tamar. She resisted his advances. So eventually he tricked and raped her. Immediately he despised her and banished her from his house. Tamar had a full-brother, Absalom. He was enraged by what Amnon but he bided his time and two years later he tricked and murdered his half-brother. He was banished from Jerusalem, and he was gone for 3 years.

• David loved Absalom and eventually allowed him to return. He did not see him for 2 years, but then he allowed Absalom to return to the court. But Absalom had his eye set on better things that life a court. He wanted the throne. So he tricked his father and worked at winning over people’s hearts.

• When Absalom thought he had won the the loyalty of enough people, he went to a place called Hebron and proclaimed a coup. Leading the army he had raised, he marched on Jerusalem the capital city to take the throne of the kingdom.

• David assessed the situation and concluded it was unlikely he could defeat Absalom. If he tried to defend Jerusalem, he and his people would be killed and the city subjected to a bloodbath. So he abandoned the capital taking with him his advisors, his general, and the army that remained. There is a poignant scene of David’s climbing the Mt. of Olives, weeping, barefoot, and his head covered - all acts mourning. David and those who followed  went as far as the fords across the Jordan River where they rested. Then they crossed the river and went into the Judean wilderness.

• There David composed this Psalm.

2. David’s Longing

David longs for God.

• David does not long for the unknown - “someone in the great somewhere.” Nor does he long for help - for deliverance of his life or restoration of his kingdom. There’s a difference between “wife” and “my wife” and so it is with God. David says, “Thou art my God.”

• God himself is David’s most urgent need and deepest desire. A child wakes up early on Christmas morning because he can’t wait to find out what Santa left him. So David wakes early in the morning with God on his mind. In this land where there is little vegetation and no ready supply of water his whole being - soul and flesh - longs for God. David’s relationship with God is not a purely spiritual thing, but a whole person thing for he is made body and soul in the image of God. As person longs for water and seeks after water in the desert, so David seeks after God.

• What would you miss most if you suddenly had to leave Roanoke and go live in a tent in the Arizona desert? Right now, it might be airconditioning! There is your house and all its comforts. And there are all the advantages of living in a city with ready access to medical care, food, clothing, cultural activities. It is interesting that though David is sleeping on the hard ground in a tent David does not mention his palace with its luxuries and servants or the other advantages of life as a king.

Rather the thing David misses most is the sanctuary, the tabernacle dedicated to the worship of the Lord,  where he has seen God’s power and glory. David thinks about the place of worship where the priests carry on their ministries of sacrifice and prayer, where the Lord reveals himself in the Most Holy Place by filling it with the bright cloud of his glory. What David misses is public worship.

When you thought about leaving your home and going to live in a desert, did you think about missing gathering with God’s people here at Covenant Church to share with them in Morning Prayer and Holy Communion, to hear God’s Word, to sing God’s praises, to offer prayers? Did you think about missing the unique friendship and fellowship of God’s people? The truth is that public worship is the principal thing, the most important thing in our lives if we care about God and our own welfare.

• The reason David has such an intense longing for God and desire to worship at the tabernacle is because he has found that God’s lovingkindness - or God’s steadfast, unchanging love - is better than life itself. There is nothing David more important to David, nothing more valuable to David, nothing more delightful to him than the love of God. The truth is that unless we know that God loves us every other joy is empty and if know will not, cannot stop loving us, every sorrow is mitigated. David’s loves to say and sing the praises of the Lord and his lovingkindness.

3. David’s Comfort

As David’s longing is for God, so his present comfort is in God. David feels acutely the loss of public worship at the tabernacle, but that does not mean he without fellowship with God and comfort from God.

• David finds comfort in worshiping the Lord in the wilderness  where he is in the ways he can when he cannot go to the tabernacle. He blesses the Lord and lifts up his hands to the Lord in praise and prayer. This is an aspect of the life of faith we often miss. One of the best ways to experience the comfort of the Lord is not just to ask him to help and comfort us, which we should do, but to praise him for himself and for his goodness to us. Remember that St. Paul said, “Fret not about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6,7 KJ21). We often ignore the “with thanksgiving” and thus we do not experience the peace of the Lord as we could.

• Because the Lord is his God whom he blesses, he finds that his soul is satisfied “as with marrow and fatness.” I am afraid that David did not know about the food rules of avoiding things like fat. For people like his day the marrow and the fat were the best parts of the animal. So he says, “Just as my palate is satisfied with marrow and fatness, so my soul is satisfied by the communion of God I can experience even here in the wilderness. Because he is satisfied by the Lord he praises him with joyful lips. One of the reasons we deprive ourselves of the comfort of the Lord is because we look things that cannot satisfy long to satisfy us. But when we learn that the Lord truly can and will satisfy our deepest and most persistent needs and praise him for that satisfaction we experience that comfort.

• Because David finds satisfaction in God his thoughts go to the Lord when he is wakeful during the night. There are few things I hate more than not being able to sleep. I hate it when I can’t go to sleep, and I hate it when I fall asleep, then wake up and can’t go back to sleep. David was well past his years as a young warrior when he had to flee to the wilderness. He found it hard to sleep on the hard ground. But when he was wakeful, rather than becoming anxious about what was going to become of himself and his kingdom, he turned his thoughts to the Lord, and there he found something to stay his mind.

• He knew by faith that the Lord was his helper, so he felt safe and could sing the praise of the Lord. A little bird finds shelter beneath his mother’s wing. When winds are blowing the the rains is falling outside, he is in a warm and safe place, so for him the weather might just as well be calm and sunny. So for David and for believers when we take shelter in the Lord, we can feel safe even when the storms of life are raging. The Lord is our Helper, our Protector, our Security, our Comforter.

David finds comfort in knowing that the Lord whom he worships at the sanctuary is with him even in the wilderness.

4. David’s Confidence

Despite David’s precarious position - Absalom in Jerusalem and soon to pursue him, David in danger of losing the kingdom and his own life - David is confident.

David clings to the Lord, and the Lord’s powerful right hand supports him. David knows that those who seek to take his life will fail, will be totally defeated, and David will triumph. How does David know this? It is not just because he is David but because he is the king of God’s kingdom, and God’s kingdom will not be defeated but will always be victorious.

When you and I are in the life’s dry places and wildernesses, we cannot know how things will turn out for ourselves personally or in the short term. What we can know is this: We are citizens of Christ’s kingdom, and Christ cannot be defeated. His kingdom is forever and must be victorious. So, if we are Christ’s we cannot be ultimately defeated or destroyed. We must win because Christ wins.

And though this world, with devils filled,

should threaten to undo us,

we will not fear, for God has willed

his truth to triumph through us.

The prince of darkness grim,

we tremble not for him;

his rage we can endure,

for lo! his doom is sure;

one little word shall fell him.

That Word above all earthly powers

no thanks to them abideth;

the Spirit and the gifts are ours

through him who with us sideth.

Let goods and kindred go,

this mortal life also;

the body they may kill:

God's truth abideth still;

his kingdom is forever!

He Went Out Not Knowing

He Went Out Not Knowing

Fourth after Trinity

Collect

O God, the protector of all who trust in thee, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy; Increase and multiply upon us thy mercy; that, thou being our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we finally lose not the things eternal. Grant this, O heavenly Father, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Old Testament: Genesis 12:1-9 (KJ21)

1 Now the Lord had said unto Abram, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.

2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.

3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

4 So Abram departed as the Lord had spoken unto him, and Lot went with him; and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.

5 And Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls whom they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan, and into the land of Canaan they came.

6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Shechem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanites were then in the land.

7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram and said, “Unto thy seed will I give this land.” And there built he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him.

8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.

9 And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south.

We had some good friends (the husband is now deceased) who were adventuresome travelers. They decided on a destination and then took whatever roads they wanted and whatever excursions they liked. They ate when they got hungry and stopped for the day when the were ready.

God called Abraham to take a trip - not even knowing the destination.

1. Call

1.1 Ur. Abram spent the first part of his life in a place called Ur which is 186 miles south of Baghdad in modern day Iraq. The family included Abram’s father, Terah, Abram’s wife, Sarai, and his nephew Lot whose father had died. As places in the ancient world go, Ur was not a bad place to live. It was a prominent and prosperous city located on the Euphrates River. It was part of an advanced civilization. It was also a center of worship of the moon god.

1.2. Call. It was while Abram lived there that God issued a challenging call.

Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.

1.3. Challenges. There were great challenges in that call.

• God called Abram to leave the country and civilization where he had been born, brought up, married, and established his early adult life. It was a challenge to give up what was familiar and comfortable. We have moved quite a few times, and there is a measure of culture shock as you leave what you know and adjust to what is familiar.

• God called Abraham to leave many of his family ties. When he first answered the call his father and his nephew accompanied him, though in time he would also be separated from them. But, even at first he left behind his extended family. We live in a mobile society in which expectations are different from what they have been through most of human history. It was would have been much more difficult for Abraham and his home country and family ties.

• The Lord called Abraham to go “unto a land that I will show thee.” The writer of Hebrews tells us the call meant Abram would go “not knowing whither he went.” Our first question to the Lord’s call would have been, “Now where am I going? What is my destination?” As soon as we got that information we would have entered the destination into a GPS system to see what our route would be. Then we would have begun making motel reservations for each night. We don’t like uncertainty or unpredictability.

1.4. Cost

The temptation to us might be to think, “Well, this was unique to Abraham, the patriarch, the father of the faithful.” But then we have to to take into the account our Lord’s call to his original followers. St. Mark records,

Now as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. And Jesus said unto them, “Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.” And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed Him. And when He had gone a little farther thence, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. And straightway He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him (Mark 1:16-20).

Then we might think: Well that was for the first disciples all of whom would serve as Apostles. But there was a time when many people were following Jesus, and he turned to them said:

If any man come to Me and hate not his father and mother, and wife and children, and brethren and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple... whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:26-27,33).

Our Lord’s call to us all is to follow him as our Savior and Lord - to leave behind anything that keeps us from following him, and, then, following him, to place him above every other love and loyalty.

2. Promises

2.1. Promises

The Lord issued Abram a challenging call. But the Lord gave Abram stupendous promises that far oustripped the demands of the call. What God would do for Abram was far greater than what God asked of Abram.

And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that

curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be

blessed.”

The LORD promised Abraham he make of him a great nation and give him a great name. that he would treat people in accordance with how they treated Abram, and not only would  bless Abram, but make Abram a blessing so that in him all the families of the earth would be blessed.

2.2. Impediments. The promises were great, but they were not easy to believe.

• Abram was one man who was called to go to a land not even identified. Yet God would make his name great and make of him a great nation. Abram’s name might attain a somewhat greater reputation than it had at the time of his call, but how could he become a great nation?  How would you respond if God said that he was going to start with you, create a new people, and make those people a great nation? If such a thing could happen it would not happen in your lifetime. That’s what Abram faced - a great promise he could not live to see happen.

• At the time the Lord called Abram to go to a land he would show him, that land was occupied by other people. It was not a land that was waiting for Abram to claim and settle. The people there would not just move out and give the land to Abram. And, as it turned out, when Abram got to the land, which was Canaan, he lived a nomadic life, never owning any more land than a burial ground for his wife.

• If the promises were going to be fulfilled all hinged on Abram having a son who would inherit Abram’s name, have children of his own, and pass the promise on to future generations. But there was a great impediment. Abram and his lawful wife, Sarai, did not have even one. Sarai had never conceived, and it looked more and more as if she were unable to do so.

• So Abram could see all these impediments to God’s promises ever being fulfilled - he was one man, the land where he was going turned out to be occupied by other peoples, and he did not have son. He was one man with a barren wife.

2.3. God has made great promises to us - that Satan and sin will not prevail, yet there is so much evil in the world. The murder of 49 people last Saturday night had dominated the news all the past week. God has promised that Christ reigns now and will reign until he has placed all his enemies beneath his feet. But the world is filled with rebellion, and it is hard to see the evidence of Christ’s rule. God has promised that death will not have dominion over us, but still we lose our loved ones, and the days of our own deaths approach. For God’s promise to be fulfilled our bodies that are laid in graves and undergo decay will have to be raised to immortal life. In other words, God has called us for forsake all and follow Christ on the promise that God we will enjoy eternal blessedness in Christ.

God has made us great promises of salvation. They are real, substantial, and sure, but they are mostly unseen and future.

3. Response

How did Abram respond to the challenging call and stupendous promises?

3.1.  Went. Abraham went as the Lord called upon him to do. He moved first to a place called Haran, far north of Ur, which is in modern day Turkey. And then, when his father had died, he move on to Canaan which turned out to be that unknown land to which the Lord called him.

How is it that Abram obeyed? It was just that set his jaw, gritted his teeth and obeyed. The writer of Hebrews says that the key to his response was faith, or trust in the Lord.

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should later receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

By faith he sojourned in the land of promise as in a strange

country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the

heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked for a city

which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:8-10).

In a sense Abram said, “I do not know where I am going and I do not see how these promises are going to be fulfilled, but I do know the Lord. I believe him. I trust in him. So I will take him at his word and go where he leads me and believe what he has promised.

3.2. Worshiped. In addition to going when the Lord called him, as Abraham traveled he built altars and worshiped the Lord. For Abram’s faith was a living faith, expressed by his worshiping the Lord. In a sense everywhere he went he planted God’s flag and said, “This land is the Lord’s. He called me here. He promised to bless me here He is with me here. I believe in him and his promises, and I will worship him.

What Abram did we do every Sunday as we worship. We hear the Lord’s promises and see them sealed to us in the Sacrament. We acknowledge we are traveling toward a land of future blessedness. We identify ourselves as the Lord’s people. In worship we say, “We are the Lord’s people. We believe him hi and his promises. By faith we travel and by faith we will arrive in the heavenly Promised land.”

The Christian's Apron

The Christian’s Apron

Third after Trinity

Collect of the Day O Lord, we beseech thee mercifully to hear us; and grant that we, to whom thou hast given an hearty desire to pray, may, by thy mighty aid, be defended and comforted in all dangers and adversities; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Gospel: 1 St. Peter 5:5b-11

Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Homily Text: 1 St. Peter 5:5b-6

I don’t think aprons are as popular as they once were, but they used to be near necessities. If you watch the family comedies from the 1950s and 60s you’ll notice that all the women wore aprons when they did housework or cooked. Lucille Ball, Donna Reed, and June Cleaver all wore aprons - with their dresses, high heels, and jewelry.

1. Wear Humility

1.1. St. Peter tells us there is a apron all Christians must wear. It is the apron of humility. Peter had a vivid memory of the last night with Jesus in the Upper Room. A pitcher of water, a basin, and a towel were provided group’s use. However, there was no servant, and no one considered himself the lowliest disciple, so Passover without the customary footwashing. However, during the meal, Jesus got up from the Table, took off his outer clothing, and tied the towel around his waist. Then he went to each of the disciples and washed and dried their feet.  

When it was all over, Jesus said to his disciples,

“Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.  For I have given you an example,that you also should do just as I have done to you (John 13:12-15).

When he came into this world, Jesus, the eternal Son of God, who possessed all the glory and power of Godhood, wrapped himself in the humility of humanity and servanthood. The very next day he submitted to the humiliation of arrest, trial, mocking, beating, and crucifixion. On this night before he endured those things he tied the towel around his waist and washed his disciples’ feet. It was a scene Peter would never forget.

1.2. So Peter calls on us to tie the apron of humility around ourselves and to show humility by submitting to one another. In this letter Peter teaches that citizens should submit to the government, that servants should submit to their masters, that wives should submit to husbands, that the younger should submit to the older.  But submission is not just for some. It is for all of us in relation to one another. We submit to each other by not standing on our honor, not insisting on our rights, not considering ourselves better than anyone, and not looking on any service as too lowly.

A person who puts on an apron is not about to sit down and wait to be served. The apron wearer serves others. We put on the apron of humility in order to serve God and others.

2. Remember God

2.1. There’s a saying we ought to keep in mind always: “God is God, and you’re not.” Pride is resistance against God’s control and God’s glorifying himself . When the devil tempted Eve, he asked if she and Adam could eat of all the trees in the Garden. Eve answered, “No, we can eat of every tree but one, but, if we eat of that one, we will surely die.” The devil said, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The devil’s appeal was to Eve’s pride. She could be like God.

What happened? When she and Adam believed Satan’s lie, God resisted their pride and rebellion. They were banished from the Garden. God is always against those who wrap themselves in the robes of pride.

If you are playing on a church softball team, and some new player usurps your place, you may selfishly resist that person. Your pride and ego are hurt. But there are other relationships. What happens when you are a parent, and your child tries to usurp your place as the parent? You resist. You “get in his face” and say, “I am the parent, and you are the child. One day you will be an adult on your own, but while you are a minor, I will not give you my place.” God is God; you and I are not God; he will not give us his place. He will not allow us to make ourselves our own gods or to try to get others to treat us as gods. God resists the proud.

2.2. But God gives grace to the humble. Humility is not the same thing as a poor self-image. Nor is it just a realistic appraisal of our abilities. Humility not only recognizes that we  are created beings who could never be gods, but also that we are sinful beings who have rebelled against God forfeited God’s favor. We merit his eternal displeasure.

Refusal to recognize this reality is one of the great barriers to salvation. We might say, “Well, I am willing to admit I am a created being and not God. But I am not prepared to say that I am a bad person. I am not going to grovel and say I am a sinner.”

But do you remember who received God’s salvation in the story of the Pharisee and publican? It was not the Pharisee who prayed, “God, I thank thee that I am not like other men. I do good things. I am not like others who are extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or like that publican over there.” The publican, however, could not lift his eyes up to God in heaven, but beat on his chest with his fist and said, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” The publican who humbled himself as a sinner before God went home right with God. God gives grace to the humble who see their sin and ask his mercy.

2.2. Peter calls us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God. We might think the next phrase would be “lest he crush you.” But, while God resists the proud, he uses his mighty hand for, not against, those who humble themselves before him. In due time - at the right time God will exalt them. There is no greater example than our Lord. He humbled himself, became a servant, and died utterly humiliated, condemned by man and apparently rejected by God. But on the third day God raised him from the dead. Forty days later he ascended to heaven and sat down at God’s right hand as King of kings and Lord of lords. Every knee will bow to him and call him Lord.

God’s people often are battered by the troubles of life. They may be disdained by unbelievers. A wicked world may oppress them. Sometimes God exalts his people in this world. In short order God pulled down proud Haman who wanted to wipe out the Jews in Persia and lifted up Mordecai whom Haman intended to hang. Sometimes his this world, always at the resurrection, God will at the right time exalt his people.

2.3. The people who received Peter’s letter were experiencing hardships - in their case, opposition and persecution. It’s not surprising that they had cares or anxieties. What would the future hold?

Most of the time anxiety leads us to try to figure out what we are going to go about the causes of the anxiety. Where find another job? How get more money? How get our spouse to be what we want him or her to be? Where get our illness treated? What do about our kids who are giving us trouble? How can we deal with our anxieties?

There is nothing wrong with taking responsibility for our lives. Some people don’t and wait around for someone to rescue them. We should always do what we can to handle the problems we face. Humility is not passivity.

The problem is that we often try to play God. We try to control everything and everyone and make things turn out the way we want. And that is a form of pride. We try to take the reins from God, and make everything fit our plan. When we don’t succeed we get even more anxious and frantic.

What should we do about all things  that worry us? Cast them on God. Humility says, “God you are in control. I am not. You know what you are doing. I don’t. I release all these things to you. I will do what you give me to do. I know my trying to force things to be a certain way often makes them worse. I know that you can and do work all things for good for those who love you and are called by you.

You cast your cares because you know he cares for you. There is hardly a more comforting word in the Bible than that. God the Creator, God who is infinitely big and glorious, God whose favor you forfeited by your sins, cares for you. He loves you. He cares what happens to you. He is not cold or indifferent. You are not a pawn in his hands. You are a person he redeemed by the work of Christ, a God who forgives all your sins, a God who is determined to have with you in eternal blessedness. He cares for you. He cares about your troubles. You can take them all and give them to him.

God is God. You’re not God. Tie on the apron of true humility. Trust and serve God. Honor and serve others.