Sat.’s Devo - A Transference of Wealth

Read: Joshua 16:1-18:28; Luke 19:1-27; Psalm 87:1-7; Proverbs 13:11
The names of the towns they inherited described the blessing on each tribe. Joseph means “let him add”. He had two sons - Ephraim which means “double fruit” and Manasseh means “causing to forget”.
Ephraim’s inheritance was all about crowns and opportunity to prosper. They even had a people that were called “let him escape” and the next one was “the consumer’s house”. This sounds like a transference of wealth from the consumer’s house to the godly.
Manasseh’s inheritance was quite different. He had a group of men listed that had to do with the proclamation of a new man: “I shall be the prince of God” to a group of women who have no covering that seem to point to what God was “causing them to forget”. Their names were: “shadow of fear,” “sickness,” “the feast has languished.”
Sadly, both tribes were not able to drive out all of their enemies. It was the Canaanites that they both had a problem getting rid of. The Canaanites mean “traffickers”. They were the salesmen that traded with them. They weren’t going to leave a place they could make money at.
There were some tribes who hadn’t gotten their territory so Joshua asked them what they were waiting for. He told them to send out spies and have them map out what they saw and what area they wanted. They were to bring the report to him and he would take it to the Lord to get the final okay.
This reminds me of our prayers. We complain and daydream of a better life but have we put the pencil to the pad and drawn out our desires? If we would do more than just talk about it or complain about our situation, maybe we would see the answers. God is not Santa Clause. He wants us to put our skin in the game also. He wants to partner with us. (I am preaching to me!)
In Luke, Jesus told Zacchaeus that he must eat with him. Zacchaeus was a wealthy tax collector which means that he had no friends except the lowly. God wanted to invest into the poor of the city and he knew just how to do it and who he would do it through. Zacchaeus gave away half of his riches and paid back those he had cheated 4 times. I would say that was a great day for the whole town.
Then Jesus told the story of how he invests his money in the ones he knows will use it the best. Zacchaeus was one of these people. Once he heard the good news he was a changed man and helped more people than the righteous teachers of the law were doing. We have a president who is a great example of this.
Lord, help us to understand that nothing in this life is worth holding on to. You are the only thing that is eternal.