"...to whom much is given, of him shall much be required."- Luke 12:48
No need to point out the irony there, quoting B.I.G. and the gospels on the same page, but they are both in the same line of thinking. I have been broke for a while now and in hindsight, I have enjoyed it. Not all of it mind you. I have never been comfortable without a twenty in my pocket, you know, for emergencies like a soda at the gas station or a spontaneous movie. I feel really awful having to pay for gas with a handful of nickels. But I have had little to no responsibilities to care for in that time. God provided what I needed and I had to count on that. That whole waiting on God thing is pretty cool.
I used to have stuff. I had a huge house and nice cars. I had nice clothes and a credit line on a card that I never had to check (turns out you do by the way when you share it with someone else). I had a truck that I loved and a pirate chest in the middle of my living room (ok, not a real one, but that's what it looked like). I never really thought about giving to those around me because I assumed everyone was ok. I did projects for people and I love to give gifts, but to poor people? What poor people?
In the last few months, I have been paying off the credit cards and with not having money, I had nothing to offer the homeless guy at the corner I suddenly noticed, so I had to make the decision to offer them a ride if they were headed somewhere or offer them the two bucks I forgot about in my center console. Now That I have, I now have to offer. Puts a little more pressure on you in those moments.
Don't get me wrong, it isn't like someone is paying me to write or my job is a real cash cow, but I am no longer in debt and making money for the first time since I was 14 instead of handing it directly over to some corporation or loan office. With God providing for me all that time, it's time for me to keep doing my part.
What a great reminder!
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