prosperity and responsibility
CAUTION: This blog is 100% my still-being-formed opinion. It bears no true authority, and yet I'm wondering if there is something to it.In our household as of late, we've been contemplating the necessity of a move in the distant future. For some this may be a no-brainer, a family of four in a two-bedroom condo with no basement or storage other than a one-car garage is madness. Yet Joc and I have been struggling to know whether we should really entertain a move or whether we should dig in for the indefinite future.
"Perhaps God has blessed us because we're His people" that's an explanation I hear sometimes. It implies that God rewards those who are faithful to him with wealth. Maybe I'm ignorant but as I think back over the history of the world, there seems to be a grain of truth to this, that some followers of Jesus Christ were gifted with a level of prosperity superior to many other people (admittedly this wealth was acquired through questionable and immoral methods to be sure which calls into question the original assumption, have we really, EVER been faithful?)
Still though, in my mind, at least, there is this connection. But if such a connection is real, our rationale for its reality is totally corrupted.
I don't think God desires to make the "faithful" rich. I look around this country in which we live and I see how wealth has drawn us away from God and not brought us closer.
One thing I DO know is that throughout the Bible God blesses people with various blessings not as a reward for good behavior but because he has an expectaion, even a hope that we'll be faithful with it.
If God has blessed his western followers with wealth, he surely has done so in the hopes that we would be trustworthy with it. And I'm almost certain that we've failed him in this arena. Rather than letting his blessings flow through us, administering them with his wisdom, mercy, and justice, we've consumed them all ourselves and in our self-indulgence we've borrowed even more. We've become more self-centered and less G0d-centered and other-centered. We've turned God's blessing into an asphixiating curse because we've taken for ourselves what we were meant to manage and distribute for God's glory.
And here's where I probably sound like a total wack-job... perhaps globilization and the woes it brings to our prosperity is God removing his blessing from people who were unfaithful with it. I know it's foolishness to try to describe with certainty the movement of God in the world on matters which he has not himself spoken about clearly, so i say this with great uncertainty... but perhaps God is on the move in the world, in search of those who can be faithful with his blessing in the ways that we haven't?
It's a sobering thought, especially for my family who is thinking about taking more of what God has entrusted to us to spend on ourselves (the house issue). Frankly, I'm not sure where the balance is on this one, I'm not sure that God has a problem with us moving, but I know it calls for slow, prayerful action...
People all over the world live in squallor, my family is more than comfortable. Children every bit as intrincially-valuable as mine are made to suffer with abuse and devestating want.
In the end will God praise me for being faithful with what he entrusted to me? That's a question I hope we'll all have the guts to ask.
Labels: contentment, poverty, the world
posted by Dion @ 7/16/2007 09:05:00 AM
8 Comments
8 Comments:
Unless God speaks otherwise on this issue I don't know if I could disagree.
As a people we are becoming, in my observations, less faithful. I see this not just in America but in it's church bodies. I wonder if God will send us a reminder (like with Martin Luther or an OT Judge).
What you say is plausible. So, my follow-up thought is what should this lead us to do as individuals, a local community church, and a member of a denomination?
Great questions! And isn't this exactly what God wants us to do...to seek His will on everything and not take for granted our blessings?
We struggle constantly with this question in our family. God has blessed us with so much - and there's always the question of how much of it we should keep for our own enjoyment and security - almost every time we consider a new "need" in our lives.
We make mistakes in our decisions, yet God keeps blessing us with a secure financial future, so far.
I don't know how much He wants us to sacrifice - or if we're even close to getting it right. We can only pray for His guidance. It seems like He often shows us a need or a blessing He's given us the priveledge and ability to provide.
is it enough to tithe and to also meet the needs He presents us with - to be a ready and able resource? Or should we be be giving everything to all the needs around us, so that we live with the same needs as the poor around us??
Living in His Grace, is it enough to know we're following Him the best we can? At some point should we joyfully thank Him for the abundance He showers on us and for the blessing of being His resource where He directs? Is it ok to then enjoy some of the financial blessings for us and our family?
I guess we've kind of accepted the latter, with constant prayer. It seems like maybe we should do that with joyful gratitude as long as we do it with hearts surrendered to His will. Is that ok?? I guess we figure God will show us if we have it wrong.
Not much help here, I guess. Just more questions.
But I wonder if maybe God would be pleased to provide at least modest security and good living conditions for a pastor and his family as they serve Him. It seems He would want what is best for you and your family, and even delight in blessing you a bit as you serve Him. (Maybe not with a big fancy house, but at least with a nice modest one that is not fancier with the average congregant's home??)
A pastor and his family often give up so much in terms of family time, security, and the simple pleasures that their flock so take for granted. If God provides the ability to move to a home that blesses their family time and security with a few modest pleasures along the way, doesn't that seem just like what God's love might do for His faithful servants?
Praying for God's blessings for you as you seek Him!
matt-i'm not sure WHAT should be done, maybe because i haven't fully come to grips with the balance on this one.
Anonymous- i so appreciate your perspective, thanks for writing it down. And you're right this is exactly what God wants us to do in everything, that's for the encouragement.
You helped me sort out one other thing, maybe for those who AT LEAST tithe, they are "safe" in the faithfulness-arena :) And i'm now seeing that my question goes beyond that (for myself personally)
Most Christians don't even tithe, i'm not even talking about tithing to their local church, but most Americans don't come even close to giving 10% of their money away even when you include random things like the american red cross or the salvation army... even toss in the tax-deductible clothing donations and most americans still aren't close. This demonstrates a major lack of faithfulness to the TRUST that God has put into us.
You've helped me understand that i'm actually pushing this question further, for myself personally. Is faithfulness ever simply doing the bare minimum? With all the money i make for being a pastor in this country (don't get excited, i mean in comparison to those who serve God in other places) hasn't God given me more than i really need? And shouldn't that extra be used for him too?
I know it's more expensive to live in this country too, so that has to be considered. And i'm not talking about making my family impoverished, which is an important distinction.
I think you're also right, anonymous, that moderation in lifestyle is key, but i honestly feel like i'm losing my bearings on what moderation IS, because of the excess that surrounds me (us).
One other thing, though i make these personal struggles public, i'm not calling everyone to be like me, perhaps this is something God is making me wrestle through for our own sakes, and the implications for us are unique.
One thing that i would love to see happen in my life and at st. matthew is a real devotion to one, or even a couple places in the world, where we work hard to make a deep impact with them using our great resources (time and money)...maybe that would be a good start to begin a greater level of faithfulness, but also to help our people see our excesses more clearly. thanks.
Good discussion. Your last paragraph in your follow up post hits home.
PLEASE give us something worthy of our further sacrifice! Some way we can help our church make a real difference in people's lives.
I think a lot of people might feel the same way. If the need is clear, there are a lot of us out here just waiting for the opportunity to make an eternal difference, rather than just meet a budget that makes everyone happy. Wixom ministry was one of those opportunities when it first began. I don't think we've seen anything compelling since then, except a few missionary support needs.
Tithing is easy. Bring on the REAL challenges - the ones that compel us to give up some of our comforts for the sake of Jesus' mission!
I often struggle with the guilt of being of comfortable means. My husband and I do volunteer work with the poor and then come home to our comfy and spacious abode leaving behind those who are struggling. We give our tithe and then some. I wonder sometimes if we should be in a smaller house in the inner city so that all of our resources can be used for the Kingdom. Jesus, after all, had no place to lay his head. He lived among the outcasts of society; the poor, prostitutes, lepers, and tax collectors. I often think that is where we(my husband and I) should be. The get-more-and-spend-it-on-me mentality has so permeated our culture and unfortunately the Church. Do Christ-followers who have more money or a bigger house really have the greater blessing in the Kingdom of God? I look at those who have given up everything for the cause of Christ and count themselves blessed beyond measure. My prayer is often the same as Isaiah’s: “Here I am Lord, send me.” Being open to God’s will makes all the difference. We aren’t holding on to our material possessions for dear life when we are in that frame of heart. If the Lord asks us to give it all up tomorrow, to be truthful,I would find it difficult, but I know it is in giving up all that I have for the sake of the Kingdom that I will be truly blessed in this world.
well said Patti...
I try to live cautiously, perhaps too cautiously, so that i never get into a place where God answers the "here am i, send me" prayer and says, "go here" and i say, "sorry God i can't... i'm stuck financially"
I'm not sure how that affects real decisions like living in a modest 3 bedroom place as opposed to a modest 2 bedroom place, especially in a season of life where GOd doesn't seem to be calling me and joc to something extreme.
Great discussion...thanks to all of you.
Any serious, thinking Christ-follower living in "the West" has to give consideration to the question "How much is enough?" St Paul came to terms with that question in his letter to the Philippians, "I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." So, how much is enough? Perhaps what the Lord provides in the circumstances he has placed us. Even then, that doesn't mean we can consume on ourselves all he provides. The principles of faithfulness in tithes, offerings, gifts to the poor, the orphans, and the widows also applies. Inevitably, this means that we will probably living more modestly than our neighbors. The idol of "the West" is that wealth displayed proves our status and wealth hoarded provides our security. The trap (the idolatry) is to depend on wealth rather than God for status and security.
Ascetism in and of itself does not necessarily please the Father. It is possible to give everything we possess to the poor, but not love them as fellow human beings in God's image. God determines the exact time and place where we should live (Acts 17:26). To live in that time and place may require a certain level of income. So the question is not: "should we have nicer place to live?" The question is: "are we in the place where God wants us to live?"
i like this al, great thoughts.
Last night we went for a walk down to the new DQ in wixom, it was neat how many people were out also. It gave jocelyn and i the sense that whatever kind of house God wants us to live in, this seems like the "place" we should be, in this community. so these kinds of thoughts you offer are perfect.
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