Recently I saw a western made-for-TV movie with Robert Duvall called "Broken Trail". At one point Duvall says to his young cowboy protege, "Never measure wealth in dollars." In our country we don't just measure wealth in dollars, we use dollars as the yardstick for overall health and wellbeing. Sometimes it seems our whole life revolves around making dollars, borrowing dollars, wishing we had more dollars. We tend to evaluate our worth in dollars when we know we shouldn't. A career that produces lots of dollars is seen superior to one that makes less. Infomercials on TV tout the possibilities of mysteriously making thousands of dollars working from home (doing who knows what). But these dollars are all nothing more than a mirage, because as you approach them they don't provide the satisfaction anticipated. As we give ourselves to dollars, we miss the real treasures of enjoying relationships, appreciating the Lord's creation, and contentment with life. Isn't it good to have it resolved that our worth was measured for us by one great life stretched out on a heavy, splintered cross nearly 2,000 years ago? We know that dollars are one way that the Lord provides for us, but that the purpose of being provided for is to know Him and to live for Him! I know that what Robert Duvall meant in that movie was that true wealth is measured in character. Here's one of my favorite verses about money:
Matt 17:27 "But so that we may not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours."
blessings,
Rob Smith
No comments:
Post a Comment