Great Gain (Daily Reflections on 1 Tim. 6:6-10)

I hadn't been out of college too long when I begin to realize that their was a real world out there. I had left home two weeks after graduating from High School and had been on my own basically since that time. But I had still been really protected from the pull of world. I had already discovered that "paid ministry" wasn't all that lucrative as a profession. My first full time ministry paid less than my part time milk route and dock experience at a local dairy where I worked during my college years. My friends who had also recently graduated with business degrees were in starting jobs that paid three to four times what my first ministry job paid. I've noticed that most of those professional jobs still pay about three times ministry.

After leaving my first ministry, I was trying to enroll in a clinical psych program at a major university. While I was waiting to get into the program, I went to work for a retail chain. I quickly moved up the ranks when they discovered that I had a college degree. It wasn't long before I found myself in management. A few short successful months in that position of getting three out of my four assigned departments out of the red, that I was suddenly being groomed for executive training within the company. 

When the top company execs showed up one day to talk with me, I suddenly realized that this was a crucial moment in my life. All my friends that I grew up with were already doing well financially and now I had a chance. Yet, something kept haunting me. It was my call to ministry. I knew if I took the position being offered me, it was off to a different life that would center around me. But my calling was to a life centered around serving others.

The world is constantly beckoning us to chase after it's goods. It flashes it's glitter and shiny things at us, tempting us to grab onto its empty promises. Things, stuff, material possessions are alluring. And to be honest, there is nothing inherently wrong with having wealth. It's the pursuit that's the problem. In this text, 1 Timothy 6, the Apostle Paul talks about how the love of money is the root of all evil. He says it leads to destruction and people to ruin. Chasing after the accumulation of wealth is a trap. And many people have fallen into the trap thinking that this will lead to happiness and end all our problems.

Paul encourages us to pursue godliness and contentment in God if we want to find great gain. All the things in this world that we could accumulate have to stay here on this planet when we die. It's impossible to take stuff with us. It's just stuff and the only place it has value are to people here. But the things of true value, lasting value, lie beyond this place. That's why Jesus tells us to lay up our treasure in heaven where thieves can steal it or things depreciate or decay or can and will be destroyed. 

Why do we kill ourselves trying to get stuff? This consumeristic world we live in seems get more and more rabid. The more stuff we try to consume stuff, the more we get consumed by it. 

I almost fell into the trap. I came close, but I walked away. I knew it wasn't the financial reward that I really wanted. I just wanted my life to be used fully of God to carry out His mission in the world. For some, accepting that job might be exactly what God wanted them to do. God uses people in all positions of life. But I knew for me, I was having to face building my life around me and chasing after material things or giving my life completely over to God and finding my contentment in Him.

God, the allure of the world is very strong, especially in our culture. Get, get, get seems to be the order of the day. Somehow the world convinces us that having stuff gives us personal value. God, I'm still trying to find my contentment and value only in you. I want the great gain that can only be found by pursuing you. Keep me on the path that leads to you.

Seek First (Daily Reflections on Mt. 6:19-34)

The New Year is a natural time for reflection. It's a perfect time do a quick check on our current status and general direction and tweak our path or practices or habits or diet or financial investments. Each year in January the health clubs get an overflow of new membership signees. Yet studies show us that many of those eager enthusiasts lose heart and drop out of sight within six weeks. Staying focused on our newly established priorities often gets derailed by old habits and daily routines.

It's one thing to announce a new set of priorities or values or even direction. It's quite another thing to pull them off. Newton's Laws may have some impact on the personal patterns of our life. And perhaps the old cliche is right that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Or maybe the one that says, "Old habits die hard." (Sounds like the theme of a new Bruce Willis movie.)

As I was reading through the end of Matthew 6 again it began to occur to me that our vision might have something to do with the inability to get to where we need to go with our life or to become what God would want for our life. In this section of Sermon on the Mount, Jesus starts addressing the base issue. He talks about where we store up our treasure. We can either store up treasure on earthly things or we can store up our treasure on heavenly things. Vision. Where are we looking? What has the greatest appeal to us? What pulls us in for a second look and third look and captures our focus?

In Tolkien's, Lord of the Rings, Smeagol becomes so enamored by the Ring of Power that it consumes his life and transforms him to the hideous life of the creature Gollum. He refers to the rings as, "My Precious." In his own words, "he has to have it." Gollum can no longer see anything else. In the end it destroys him.

Jesus urges us not to store up our treasures on the corruptible things of this earth. He commands us to change our focus to heavenly things, things of His Kingdom which is incorruptible and eternal. He urges us to set our sites not on wealth and materialism and power and position and things that the world considers of great value. Because, what you set your vision on, you will pursue and it will consume you.

And what's interesting is that Jesus goes on in Matthew 6 to talk about the eyes. He says the eyes are the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, he says, then your body will be healthy. If your eyes are unhealthy, then your body will be full of darkness. He's not talking about pink eye or cataracts or glaucoma here. He's talking about our vision, what we set our eyes on. What we set our focus on is what we will become or what will eventually consume us. Focus on the things of this world and in the end we will be consumed by them.

And ironically, Jesus' next twist takes a direct stab at our desire for riches, wealth, money, mammon, personal gain or whatever other word you want to insert there that draws our focus away from heavenly things. He proclaims that it's impossible to serve two masters. And without beating around the bush just comes out and says, "You cannot serve God and money."

It goes back to the eyes and vision and focus and motivation and priorities and the distractions of old habits and daily routines. When we set our eyes on the things of this world, our focus moves off of God and His Kingdom and heavenly things and then our life falls back to ultimate destructive forces. Nobody sets down to gain 40, 50, 60, 100 pounds after finishing high school or college or after getting married or having a baby. Somehow it just grows on us. Nobody after getting married sets out to see if they can ruin their relationship. Nobody tries to purposely overextend themselves financially when the get that job. Yet over time it happens. It's about our eyes!

That's why Jesus tells us not to focus on material, worldly stuff. Is there anything inherently wrong with houses or cars or boats or cell phones or tablets or clothes or having a portfolio? Absolutely not. It's the focus on getting, having, accumulating stuff that pulls us downward and corrupts our lives.  

Jesus says, don't worry about stuff. Do not preoccupy yourself with material goods or gain. Focus on Him not climbing the corporate ladder or adding tallies to your life. Focus on "seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness." God knows what you need. He will meet your needs.

Some of the biggest issues people bring to me or complain about or struggle with are finances, stress and time. And usually the stress has to do with time and/or finances. And time because they are involved in four hundred million things or have their kids in those activities so that some day they can get ahead and have things. And often finances are wrapped in those things too. Of course many time finances are an issue because people haven't managed their resources well because they had to have stuff.

It's no wonder our world fills up with darkness, our hearts fill up with darkness, our lives fill up with darkness and stress and heartache and burdens and those feelings of being overwhelmed overwhelm us. It's the eyes. It's our vision. It's our focus. Seek first HIS Kingdom and HIS righteousness.

God, help me to keep my eyes only on you. You direct me my path, my life, my heart, my thoughts, my finances. I want to be full of light. I don't want those dark feeling to overwhelm me.