Rich People – Poor People

I grew up what many would consider poor. We didn’t have a lot of things that money can buy. We did, however, have a lot of things in our family that others didn’t have. We had lots of love. We were taught strong values. I remember one Christmas; our family was a recipient of gifts from one of the civic clubs in town. I believe that poor is a matter of perspective and attitude, but broke is the state of my bank account. I see now that we were really rich. After going several places in the world – Africa, Mexico and Nicaragua – we were definitely wealthy.

I’ve had the opportunity recently to get to know some people who are really wealthy. They are humble, loving and kind people. I believe that they realize that they are very blessed by the Lord to have what they have.

Jesus speaks to a rich man, who loved his riches. After the man walked away from Jesus, the Lord said some strong words about rich people. Check this out….

²³ Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. ²⁴ I’ll say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” (Matthew 19:23-24 NLT)

I am helping facilitate a class called Financial Peace at our church. I’m reminded that money does what I tell it to do. It is hard to break bad habits – period. It seems harder to break bad money habits. Managing every dollar takes great discipline. I must practice delayed gratification. Dave Ramsey says, “Live like no one else now and you’ll soon be able to live & give like no one else”. (My Paraphrase).

I want to be a good giver in God’s Kingdom. I want to be known as a generous person. I want to be wealthy to be used by the Lord. I want to ALWAYS be grateful to the Lord for all I have. I want to be rich in spiritual values. I’m ok if I can build up some savings and retirement, while being a good giver too. I understand that the Lord really owns all that I have – I’m simply a manager of His resources.

Pressing On!

Dwayne