"Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may hold eternal life."
Just a short thought on our riches here in America... We have SO much when some have so little. Paul is commanding those that have money and resources to be rich in works with their money here, and I believe we ought to do the same. As I was reading this morning in a book titled The Good and Beautiful God by author James Bryan Smith, I came across a few paragraphs that deal with our wealth and how we handle it. So my encouraging thought for the day comes not from my own mind, but from Mr. Smith's book. Here is what he shares:
Generosity happens when a person is living from a condition of abundance or when a person is moved by the needs of others. If I have three hundred tomatoes, it is easy for me to give dozens away. I have more than I need. I am giving out of my surplus. Webster's New American Dictionary defines generous as "free in giving, sharing, abundant, ample, bountiful." But I can also be generous even when I have little. I may only have one tomato, but if I see a poor woman who has none, I may very well be moved to give my last tomato to her. Generosity then flows from either a sense of abundance or a feeling of compassion. God is moved by both. God is generous because he lives in a condition of abundance -- his provisions can never be exhausted -- and God is moved with compassion because he sees our need.
Love and forgiveness, acceptance and kindness, are not commodities that diminish in their giving. When we offer forgiveness we do not have less of it, nor do we diminish our capacity to forgive each time we forgive. So why do we so seldom live generously? We live from a condition of scarcity. We never got enough love from our parents, enough toys on our birthday and enough affirmation from those who know us. Our checking account is limited, and often our money is spent before we earn it. Living from a condition of scarcity, we learn that we must protect what we have. If we give it away, we might end up in dire straits.
I am constantly amazed by how tightfisted and uncharitable we are when it comes to our churches. I had lunch with a pastor who was enraged about the prospect of a new church being built only a few miles from his. He said, "How dare they. Don't they know that this new church will steal some of my people away?" He was operating from a condition of scarcity. He feared their success would make him look like a failure. He was unable to see that the success of this new church was also his success because we are all on the same team. The church is often a place lacking in generosity: All other churches are wrong. Only we have it right. Our church must succeed. Who cares if theirs fails?
Our God, however, is constantly generous. Everything we have is a gift. We were made without any effort on our part. We breathe undeserved air. The sun gratuitously rises and warms our planet and, along with the unmerited rain, nourishes the land, yielding delicious fruits and grains. It is all manna, the unearned provision of a lavish and loving God. We have never been and never will be in a place where we can turn to God and say, "You owe me. I deserve this." We do not deserve anything we have been given. We have earned nothing. Yet God continues to give. That is because God is interested in something much more important than our good works.Wow, great stuff! You should read that last paragraph again (if not the whole excerpt). I
encourage you to live in such a way that shows God's generosity to the world. You may say, "I am generous because I give to the poor! I have earned my living and can use the rest of it in whatever manner I choose." Well, I could not think of a much more selfish attitude to have. What resources you have are not yours, THEY ARE GOD'S. And the moment that you take full credit for such blessings is the moment where you have gone astray. God has given what He has to you, and by the same measure He has given, He can very well take it all away. Therefore, I encourage you all to live with the generosity of God.
