Prayer of the Wise: Don't Give Me Too Much

How much is too much when it comes to wealth? Even though most of us have more than what we need to sustain a basic lifestyle, we are typically clamoring for better than what we have right now. It's unthinkable that we would pray to God to limit his blessing to us but it's exactly what we discover in Proverbs 30:7-9. Two things are asked for. The first is the protection from falsehoods but it's the second part of the request that I find most intriguing - "give me neither poverty or riches".

“Two things I ask of you, LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:
Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God"

This is presented to us as the prayer of a wise man, yet I would venture that most (if not all) of us have never even considered praying such a prayer - "give me neither poverty or riches, but give me only my daily bread". We would never consider to ask God to only give us what we need for today and no more - no "rainy day" fund, no nest egg for retirement, no set-aside for dream vacation, etc... Popular preacher Francis Chan elaborates on Proverbs 30:7-9 in this short, provocative video.

Is this a blueprint for how we ought to pray and live? How does this mesh with the conventional wisdom of saving and planning? Would you have the courage to pray this prayer and how would you respond if God actually answered?

It's easy to get lost in the myriad of questions that arise but don't lose sight of the God-centered motivation of this prayer request. It's all about God - not having too little so as to avoid the temptations that come with being impoverished - yet, not having too much such that God is no longer desired and possibly forgotten. This passage is about treasuring God and the worth of His name and not letting anything get in its way. Perhaps that's the kind of motivation we might be wise to incorporate into our prayers.

Why Boasting in Your Humiliation is Good for Your Soul

"Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation..."

I've been pondering the seeming irony of this verse for the past couple of months. To the lowly, James instructs to boast in their exaltation but the rich are told to focus on their humiliation. It's counter-intuitive to way this world works but it's the way the invisible, other-worldly kingdom of Christ.

Many of us will, at times, find ourselves either as lowly or rich, depending on the circumstance. The focus of my meditation however, has been on what it means for the rich Christian, to "boast in his humiliation". The idea of humiliation in this context is stark and extreme. Boasting or making much of our humiliation does not come naturally to any of us, even less so for those who are rich or powerful. Yet, it's exactly the prescription James offers for those who are rich in the assembly of the church.

More importantly, how does one boast in his humiliation. Here are four ways that you may find helpful if on occasion and circumstance, you find yourself counted among the rich.

1. Consider our own mortality and finitude -

Reading James 1:10-11 in entirety sheds light on this -

"Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation and the rich in his humiliation because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits"

The rich person ought to boast in his humiliation because he will pass away - his wealth, fame and power will not last. Boasting in your humiliation means reminding yourself and anyone around you) that your wealth and power is finite and will pass with time. It also means that you want live to as to demonstrate that this is true.

2. Live to pursue God, not wealth, power or fame

The admonition assumes that the rich man is pursuing wealth as the aim of his life. But boasting in our humiliation means demonstrating the folly of this approach. The wise rich believer who chooses to do this, will pursue God instead of wealth or self-aggrandizement of any kind.

3. Make plans with deference to God's will

James 4: 13-16 speaks to the mindset that undergirds this kind of plan-making. It is the kind of plan making that not only seeks to discover God's will but also depends on God's power to accomplish the objectives of the plan.

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"- yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

The temptation for some of us is to invest trust not in God but in our ability to execute well-crafted plans. When you're in a position of relative wealth or power, you might not be aware of your daily need for God's provision. God calls such presumption - evil boasting. Rather, we ought to make our plans with deference to God's will and with an awareness of our need for His blessing.

4. Remember your true identity.

Boasting in our humiliation means keeping in mind our true identity as sinners saved by the grace and generosity of God. While there isn't a particular verse in James that clearly illustrates this, it is unquestionable that James himself understood this. He chose to address himself as "...servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ" even though he was, humanly speaking, the brother of Jesus. In the words of Paul, James chose to count his familial relationship "as loss" for the sake of knowing Christ Jesus. Whether rich or poor, we were spiritual orphans, adopted into God's family and now we enjoy full privileges only as a result of God's kindness.

Quote of the Week

"Everything material we have, including money, is either a tool or an idol. If we fail to use it as a tool for God's intended purposes, it mutates into an idol."

Randy Alcorn, Money, Possessions and Eternity, p. 42

We Are Slaves Of What We Crave

You've probably heard about how "money can't buy happiness" but seldom from folks as wealthy as Austrian millionaire, Karl Rabeder. Mr Rabeder came to this realization and proceeded to put together a plan to give his $4.7M fortune away... all of it.

"My idea is to have nothing left. Absolutely nothing."

Like many, Mr Rabeder used to pursue material wealth as a means to a happier life -

"For a long time I believed that more wealth and luxury automatically meant more happiness,"

Even though he knew better, over the years he never had the courage to give up the trappings of the "good life". However, over time, he came to a new and counter-cultural conclusion - he was enslaved by his possessions.

"I had the feeling I was working as a slave for things that I did not wish for or need...there are lot of people doing the same thing."

His conclusion upholds an unequivocal principle - "we are slaves to the things we crave".
We don't actually have to possess things to be enslaved by them... we only have to want or crave things for them to have a hold on our lives.

Jesus' words from Luke 12:15 serve as a sobering reminder for us -

"Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

It's not simply possessions that we are to guard against but rather against "all covetousness". We can be poor and yet covet. Unguarded, we could find ourselves placing our hopes of a better life in the riches and possessions of this world. The problem with coveting is that the treasure we pursue is not worthy of the purpose for which we were made. On the contrary, if we desire fellowship with God, we will find ourselves joyfully and satisfyingly captive to Him.

If like Mr Rabeder, we find that "we are slaves of what we want", then perhaps it would be appropriate to ask - "what is it that you really want and is it ultimately satisfying to your soul?"

Are You Living in Abundance or Scarcity?

It's a question of perspective - how do you view the world around you? Do you see a world limited by scarce resources or overflowing with abundance? This is a matter of huge importance for most of us. Living under the rule of scarcity can lead us to a hording, selfish mentality If we believe that success, wealth, ideas and valued resources are limited, we can be tempted to think "me first" and be less inclined to share.

But the Bible paints a picture of God as loving and generous to His creation.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights

Psalm 36:7-9

This is fundamentally important to us - if we believe that God created this world to be overflowing and abundant, our approach to life changes dramatically. We can rest knowing that God has provided this world with more than we need. Seeing God as gloriously generous and ultimately creative, shifts our perspective from hording to sharing. We can imitate our Creator by being generous with our time, our money or our success. Imagine the kind of life we would live as a result of believing in a loving and generous God who has created a world of abundance -

We would share accolades with others.
We would give generously to those who lack.
We would volunteer our time to worthy causes.
We would rather serve than be served.
We would value community more than privacy.
We would rather give than receive.

Is Ambition Wrong?

This morning I had the opportunity to lead a discussion on the topic of ambition with a group of friends from my church. The dynamics of ambition in the workplace can be a thorny issue for many Christians. It raises some challenging questions like - "is ambition wrong?" or "what does godly ambition look like, especially if you're not a pastor or minister?"

I'd like to share and extend the discussion on this blog post by addressing the first question - "is ambition wrong?" Ambition is often defined as "an earnest desire for achievement or distinction...and a willingness to work for its attainment". Many would equate that achievement to wealth, fame or power but does it really have to be so? For Christians, the seeds of ambition are often the dreams, desires and goals that God places in our lives. Seen from that perspective, ambition isn't just "not wrong" - it's normal.

However, the Bible does warn us about certain kinds of ambition that are unfruitful or even sinful. Two kinds of wrong ambition come immediately to mind -

1. Selfish ambition - where we measure opportunities (think: career , ministry, etc...), primarily in terms of "what's in it for me". James 3:16 warns us of negative consequences when selfish ambition is played out in real life.

"For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice."

2. The pursuit of wealth - where we measure opportunities, primarily in terms of material gain. The reality is that many of us might not even consider the "desire to be rich" a problem to grapple with. Yet scripture couldn't be more plain in 1 Timothy 6:6-10.

"Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs."

Here's the main point of this post -

"Ambition isn't wrong but there is such a thing as wrong ambition and scripture warns us to be on our guard against it"

In the next post, I'll share our discussion about what godly ambition looks like

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Have you wrestled with ambition in your life?
Have you identified the presence of selfish ambition?
What does the pursuit of wealth say to the world around us about the value of Jesus Christ?

Please share your thoughts on this

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Speaking Good News in Financial Turmoil

This week was an especially tough one on Wall Street. The demise of Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and AIG headlined news for most of the week. Even if you don't make your living in the financial industry, you'll feel the effects of its turmoil. Your nest egg might look just a little smaller this week or perhaps your company might be cutting back spending. If you're looking for a new job, it might seem just a little harder going. Or maybe you're doing just fine but your neighbors aren't.

How do you deal with tough financial problems? What tempations do you experience in such times?

Anxiety, perhaps? It's not uncommon for some of us to be tempted in this area. In the midst of mounting bills without corresponding income, we can be tempted to anxiety. How we can sustain such financial drain, we wonder?

How about unbelief? I remember when I was out of work in 2001. It was the post dot-com bubble era - it seemed like companies were shutting down every week and employees were being laid off daily. After several months of not finding work, I began to wonder if I'd ever get another job again!

A couple of weeks ago, I heard a message on Sunday by CJ Mahaney about how many of our struggles stem from spending much of our time listening to ourselves, instead of speaking to ourselves. Sounds a little confusing, doesn't it? The point of the message is that we spend much of our time, listening to our own negative, sinful thoughts -anxiety, unbelief, anger, etc... instead of actively speaking God's truth and promises to our own souls.

Here's how it might be applied in times of personal financial turmoil - instead of passively listening to our own thoughts of anxiety ("we'll get crushed by this mounting bills") or unbelief ("I'll never find a job"), we can actively proclaim to our own souls, God's unfailing promise to provide what we need -

"Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:31-32

or

"Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack! The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing." Psalm 34:8-10

Speaking good news - that's what we need in the midst of any turmoil.

How Rich Are You?

You are rich! If you don't believe me, check out the Global Rich List to find out how you rank relative to everyone else in the world. Chances are, you'll rank in the top 10% or so.

But remember, it's just one measure of whether you're rich...and a temporal, limited measure, at that. Here's another, more significant perspective on what true wealth is all about -

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight" (Eph 1:7-8)

In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. (Eph 1:11-12)

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." (Eph 2:4-8)

"Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!" (Rom 11:33)

Build to Gain the Reward

Commenting on my last post, Mark Goodyear posed a couple of interesting questions. Rather than paraphrase, I'll let his comment speak for him -

"...the only success that has any significance is whether we are transformed into the image of our Creator. Still, I imagine an entrepreneur trying to build a business wants to do more than conform himself to Christ. He or she wants to do both--conform to Christ and build a financially successful business. Is it wrong to want both? Are they incompatible?"

Mark's questions dovetail with an important point in the "how to build" series of posts - Build to Gain the Reward. I find Mark's first question particularly intriguing. How do we think about pursuing success and pursuing God simultaneously? I think at different points in our lives, we've all experienced the inherent tension between both pursuits.

Here's how I think about this in my life - I'm building to gain a reward. Whether we're building a business or working on a project, the aim is to receive a reward from God. This might include the satisfaction that comes through using our creativity and completing a task. It might also include monetary reward that comes from having a successful enterprise.

Yet all these rewards pale in comparison to this - the reward of knowing and experiencing Christ. It is by far, the greatest gain we can receive because it is of greatest value and eternally lasting. A passage that captures this for me is found in Psalm 73.

Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

(Psalm 73:25)

I love Psalm 73 because it captures this tension between pursuing success in this life and the treasure of knowing Christ. To me, verse 25 is the pinnacle of the psalm because the psalmist resolves the tension by concluding two things -

1. There is no treasure that compares with knowing God.
2. Knowing the living God is sufficient for all his desires.

This verse has become a wonderful guide as I build and pursue success. The truth is I want rewards of all kinds when I work and build. I love rewards and I don't think there's anything necessarily wrong with that. Yet by God's grace, most of all, I want the everlasting reward of knowing God. He is the Treasure of everlasting value.

What do you think? How would you answer Mark's questions?

The Test of Prosperity

If you've found yourself thinking - "no worries, life is good", here is something to sober you up. From Randy Alcorn's bestseller Money, Possessions and Eternity, comes the following quote -

“In my experience, 95% of the believers who face the test of persecution pass it, while 95% who face the test of prosperity fail it.”

In the past, I've posted on how to face adversity at work...actually twice. Perhaps, the greater challenge for most of us is actually learning how to live with the abundance of blessings. Even you don't feel like you're prosperous, simply living in the United States qualifies you as among the "rich" in this world. Here's another way of looking at this - reading this post on your own computer means you probably have access to wealth that is uncommon to many in Third World countries.

Although we often equate prosperity with material wealth, prosperity isn't just about money. For some, being prosperous may be primarily about enjoying good health or comfort. For others, it may take the form of recognition or acknowledgment of success. However, regardless of the specific form, all prosperity is accompanied with a testing of our hearts.

Here's the problem - we are too easily overtaken by our own desires to delight in the gift, rather than the Giver. We place our hope in the abundance of our wealth, rather than in God who gives the power to get wealth. We love too much the recognition for our accomplishments rather than prefer the commendation from God. I know this because it's what I do.

Here are a few questions I'm asking myself as I'm thinking and praying through this at the start of 2007.

1. What does it mean to pass the test of prosperity?

I'm intruigued to understand what that looks like for someone living amidst such abundance. I wonder if passing this test can be measured by externals such as a modest standard of living, eschewing designer labels and levels of charitable giving. Or is it more of an attitude of our hearts?

2. In the midst of prosperity, am I keeping the cross of Christ central in my thoughts?

The cross of Christ offers me a perspective I desperately need. Meditating on the cross reminds me that the greatest blessing I enjoy isn't measured by dollars or accolades but in the eternal life I've inherited, purchased by the currency of his Son's sacrifice. It's somewhat counter-intuitive but in some ways, I need greater awareness of the gospel when "life is good".

3. Am I actively aware that blessings from God are meant to point us to God?

Pleasures and blessings from God are mere props to showcase the God we serve. C.S. Lewis makes this point -

“I have tried since that moment to make every pleasure into a channel of adoration. I don’t mean simply by giving thanks for it. One must of course give thanks, but I mean something different…. Gratitude exclaims very properly: ‘How good of God to give me this.’ Adoration says: ‘What must be the character of that Being whose far-off and momentary coruscations are like this!’ One’s mind runs back up the sunbeam to the sun.”

4. Do I recognize the temporal nature of all prosperity and pleasure we enjoy in this life?

Our enjoyment of prosperity and pleasure is tempered by our experience in a fallen world. Regardless of how great the wealth we accumulate or how lavish the accolades we receive, these riches will not satisfy our souls nor will the delight in them last. They are temporal and fleeting. Furthermore, our indwelling sin makes the wise Christian handle prosperity with some caution. We understand the admonitions from scripture to guard our hearts from the love of money and the love of praise.


Perhaps like me, you could use some help passing this test of prosperity - I'd love to hear your thoughts and questions.

Does God Want You To Be Rich?

The current issue of Time magazine poses a provocative question as its cover story - "Does God Want You to Be Rich?"(Hat Tip: ThinkChristian). The article by David Van Biema and Jeff Chu is thoughtful, well written and balanced. It tackles the question by surveying the broad spectrum of answers coming from the Christian community. It has already provoked responses from various Christian leaders such as Al Mohler who has provided an insightful commentary.

I think this is interesting for a number of reasons. First, it's interesting that a mainstream publication like Time is devoting a cover to this issue. Evidently, they must see this as a key point of differentiation or segmentation within the church at large. Noting the varying views represented by different Christian leaders, one would have to conclude that Time is at least partially correct. Views range from those espoused by "prosperity gospel" proponents such as Joel Osteen to more cautionary, qualified answers from those in the traditional evangelical camp.

Second, I believe that our interaction with money on a daily basis makes this a vital question. Whether we're earning it, spending it, saving it, craving it or losing it altogether- we're interacting with money each and every day. Yet we spend so little time discussing this daily interaction from a biblical point of view. Some of the answers represented in the article indicate that more biblically centered discussion on this topic is sorely needed. So perhaps this question is a timely one (no pun intended, really!)

Finally, how an individual chooses to answer the Time magazine question really revolves around his/her understanding of the gospel and in particular, the intent of the gospel. While most Christians would agree that Jesus' death on the cross atoned for the sins of every believer, the ultimate purpose of this work is not always in view. This is how the apostle Peter understood this purpose in 1 Peter 3:18 -

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God" [emphasis mine]

The ultimate benefit we derive from the atoning work of Jesus Christ is a reconciled relationship with the living God. It's not enough just to acknowledge or even assent to the gospel. If we don't treasure or value that reconciled relationship, we will end up "loving" the gospel for all the wrong reasons. We may in fact acknowledge that Christ died for our sins but if we value other benefits like financial prosperity, health, etc... as equivalent or superior to the treasure of knowing God, we're worshiping the gift rather than the Giver.

The answer to whether God wants you to be rich, may well rest on whether you think the prize of our salvation is God Himself or simply a million dollar stock portfolio.