“I just want you to know one thing,” she said. “God elevates some to great positions so that He may use them to humble the wicked.”
“Ok.” I said, confused about what this had to do with the eight blessings I’d just spoken about. She used the word “wicked,” a King James word, so I suspected I was about to be spanked in public.
“You said being wealthy is evil -”
“No,” I interrupted. “I didn’t say that.”
“You said being wealthy and having a big house is evil and -”
“No,” I interrupted. “I didn’t say that.”
“Being wealthy and having expensive cars and a mansion isn’t evil and you-”
“No, I disagree,” I interrupted a third time. “Being wealthy, having wealth, is not wrong. Spending the bulk of that wealth on myself when 30,000 children die every day I believe was wrong – it’s not what I believe Jesus wants me to do with the wealth He’s given me.”
“But God gives some people wealth and that doesn’t make them evil and you-”
“I agree,” I said. “God gives some of us the ability to make a lot of money and that’s not a bad thing, it’s a great thing. But when I spent the bulk of that money on stuff for me I wasn’t following Jesus. If Jesus knew 30,000 kids were dying everyday from poverty would he buy a $60,000 car when a cheaper one would get him around just fine?”
“But God raises people to positions for his purposes,” she said taking hold of my hand and squeezing for emphasis.
“Yes, but can a president be president or any leader be a leader and still drive anything he wants? Position doesn’t mean possessions.”
She pursed her lips in frustration and the crowd around us in the lobby this morning started chiming in and I’m glad they did. I was beginning to feel like I’d swallowed a crazy pill, as if I’d said things I didn’t know I’d said, really awful things about rich people like me.
“He didn’t say rich people are evil,” one observer chuckled.
“God gave Abraham wealth for a good reason,” another added.
“But read the bible,” the upset woman insisted.
“OK.” I said. “In Genesis God makes a deal with Abraham. He tells Abraham He’ll bless him and make his family a great nation…why? He says Abraham’s family is being set up like this so they can be a blessing to ALL nations. Abraham’s blessed to bless. And that’s it. Does that help you understand what I’m saying? Being wealthy is a blessing from God, a blessing that’s supposed to be passed on. When we don’t pass it on we’re not following Jesus, a homeless man, who spoke more about the poor than he did heaven or hell and told us the kind of religion God wants is the kind that takes care of people. Does that make sense?”
The conversation kept going. She kept disagreeing and the crowd around us kept telling her she wasn’t understanding what I was saying. I eventually just apologized for not communicating well enough and she walked away muttering, “Well, that’s just not in the bible.”
God, I don’t know this lady like You do. Maybe she had a bad morning or we all misunderstood where she was coming from. But I admit, God, I want to pray for this lady and I don’t know where to start. I want to pray that her son is in a hospital bed someday like Gresham was a few weeks ago. I want her to think, just for a minute, that her boy might die. And I want her to imagine 30,000 moms thinking that everyday. And then I want her to calculate, the way I do, how many children could be saved by every dollar she spends on herself, and agonize over answering the question “How much is enough?” I want to pray that she loses her wealth and becomes poor. Maybe that would do the trick. I want to pray that she has everything she wants so she can discover, like me, just how boring spending wealth on herself is. I want to pray this stuff but I don’t think that’s what You want. I don’t know what You want right now. I’m wondering this morning If I’m the one who’s wrong. Am I wrong? Am I misrepresenting you? Am I telling the truth? Am I taking the truth too far? So I guess, God, help us both. But I don’t know how. Keep us somehow from hating each other while we argue about how to love You – how ironic. Teach us both what’s true and teach us how to live it and talk about it. Amen.
Scripture Zealot says:
It’s so nice to read a heartfelt, humble prayer on a blog. That said more than anything else. Thank you.
As you know, in the Beatitudes it starts out with “Blessed are the poor in spirit” and in another gospel it says, “Blessed are the poor”.
While I wouldn’t want to pray that anyone would lose their “wealth” and become poor, I would pray that everyone or whoever you’re praying for would at some time or always, know the feeling of poverty, especially spiritually, because without this I don’t think it’s possible to reach a level of humility that’s necessary to open our eyes up to the kingdom of heaven as it is among us now.
Sorry, that sounds preachy when I read it. But like you I think it’s an attitude that is sorely lacking.
Brad says:
Hi Shaun, me again. I’ve been sick on my back for 5 days, so plenty of time to check your blog. You’re not wrong. You are actually challenging people to deny themselves, for the sake of the Gospel. I’d be very surprised if this is the first time you’ve gotten a reaction like this. In America it seems that it is OK to challenge people to give more of their excess, but once you challenge them to give up some of their comforts (smaller house, no pool, less expensive car, coffee at home instead of Starbucks!) then, to quote an old author, you’d better have your head pledged to heaven. Because you’re basically asking people to admit they’ve been greedy and too self-serving, and to repent of that. We all just want to be “blessed”. And I’m there too. I like my comforts. But the last time I heard you speak you challenged us on this, and my families priorities changed…for the better. So, don’t stop speaking the truth…in love.
Tamara Cosby says:
I’ve been working on myself in the same manner. We aren’t wealthy in finances. We are wealthy in many other ways and I believe we can use those other ways as well as wealth we are given. It is all how you use what you have. It isn’t the money, time, prayers, hugs, ears you have it is what you do with those things. Hope that makes sense. I was thinkinga bout this a lot last night while I was reading I Samuel…praying for both of you and including me in that one as well…I want to follow Him. Not anyone else.
pete says:
thanks for that snippet in time of your conversation, as well as the prayer.
i think your points are spot on—we are blessed so we can in turn bless others. yeah, that’s really hard to do and i am certainly guilty of spending more of what i make financially, and more of my time and energy, on sustaining “my lifestyle” than being concerned about those that are poor—spiritually and financially. good challenge.
www.timetochange.us says:
thanks for sharing this shaun. thanks for sharing your true emotions. i relate to you on this in a lot of ways. i wonder if i’m the one that is wrong…i wonder if i’m the one missing the point…i wonder…
Stephanie says:
Hi Shaun,
I wrote a little about your post tonight. http://thegreenlife05.blogspot.com/2007/10/on-furniture-need-and-lobby-ladies.html
truevyne says:
Dear Shaun,
I’m thinking about injustice and praying for God to be your defender. It isn’t the first or last conflict as a public figure. I see the power of the cross in your apology. God let reconcialiton begin.
Zack says:
Wow. Thanks for the thoughtful post, bro. It’s good stuff…
Voddie Boucham often says, “If you can’t say ‘amen’ then you ought to say ‘ouch!’”
Cynthia says:
Hey Shaun,
I was there. I heard you speak, and spoke to you briefly afterwards. It was the most refreshing truth that I’ve heard in years, and echoed what I’ve been feeling for a long time. I bought a copy of the talk on CD and my husband and I listened to it twice as we drove back to Missouri. I think she missed the point. It’s not how much money you make, or how little, it’s what you do with what you been blessed with. Are you using what God gave you to further the kingdom or to please the flesh? And while it sounds like I’m defending you because I was there, I’m really defending what the word of God says and sometimes that can be offensive……..and that’s okay. Being offended can sometimes turn to self reflection and conviction.
Zach says:
I think the point is that it really doesn’t matter how much we’re blessed if we don’t use it to bless others. It’s what you said, but it’s a good thing to repeat.
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Paruresis says:
Thanks for these thoughts shaun. If one lives more in the now, then the materialistic urges tend to get less and less. Actually for me it worked like that, after reading Eckhart Tolle. -suggested
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Roy says:
I think the point is that it really doesn’t matter how much we’re blessed if we don’t use it to bless others. It’s what you said, but it’s a good thing to repeat.