There’s a tasty little sandwich in the Old Testament deli. We find the savory description in Haggai 1:5-7.

The meat is piled neatly between two introspective slices of bread.

Place Your Order

For the sake of a sandwich, let’s first dissect the two pieces of bread. “Consider your ways.”  This message came from God as preceding and following His spiritual meat. But there’s a wealth of spiritual nutrition here, before even getting to the meat.

What does “Consider your ways” mean? Several translations render it differently, yet with the same meaning. Look at your life. Look at the result of what you are doing. Conduct a self-evaluation of your motives. Set your heart on your ways. Take a moment and look at your life. Take a self-inventory. What do you have to show for your efforts?

Keep in mind, that God lovingly forewarns us our brief time on earth is like vanishing vapor (James 4:14). Our days are like a breath or a passing shadow (Psalm 144:4). God encourages us to, “Number our days” (Psalm 90:12) when realizing how brief life is. “Make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am” (Psalm 39:4). Our time is too short to waste. “Consider your ways.”

Now let’s sink our teeth into the meat.

You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes.”

You may think, “Well, that doesn’t taste very good!” But get beyond the initial taste. Allow God’s loving encouragement to permeate your spiritual taste buds. This sandwich has an incredible aftertaste.

Here’s Your Receipt

We all work hard. We passionately pursue our goals and ambitions. Do better. We not only work harder, but we also work smarter. We study our craft. Be better. We hone our skills to become the best at what we do. We keep our eyes on the prize. Good, better, best—never let it rest. Shoot for the stars.

Yet God lovingly reminds us, “Consider your ways.”

Our best efforts fall short if we miss two key ingredients. Seek and obey God in every endeavor (Proverbs 3:5-6). Glorify God in everything (1 Corinthians 10:31). God’s blessings hinge on these two crucial elements (Matthew 6:33).

Enjoy your sandwich!

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Nate Stevens.

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A lifelong student of Scripture, Nate Stevens has also enjoyed a banking career in a variety of leadership roles. He is the author of Matched 4 Life and Deck Time with Jesus as well as a contributing author on several of the Moments Books (Billy Graham Moments, Divine Moments, Spoken Moments, Christmas Moments, Stupid Moments, Cool-inary Moments, etc.). He writes online devotionals for ChristianDevotions.us and SingleMatters.com as well as articles for several other publications. Additionally, he leads Fusion, a Christian singles ministry he co-founded. A popular speaker and teacher at conferences, seminars and Bible study groups, he speaks on a wide variety of topics. He currently lives near Charlotte, North Carolina, with his beautiful wife, Karen, and is a proud dad of two awesome kids, Melissa and Mitchell.

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