Who Are We Living For?

So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Luke 12:21

Jesus told of a man who had an abundance of crops. His plan? To tear down his present barns, build bigger ones, hoard the harvest for himself, and basically live the good life in retirement. What is missing? Any thought or mention of God and what He would have him do. He does not know that even as he speaks the words of his “plan”, they are spoken on what will be the last day of his life. God calls him a fool. What he thought to keep for himself will be passed on to another person.

The question running through my mind this morning is, “What am I doing with the excess things in my life?” What is being saved for myself, what is being used for others, and what is being given to God? Not just in the area of material things, but also in the area of my time, acquired knowledge, and usage of talents. If I knew that my life would come to an end in the next year, month, week, or day, how differently would I view these things and how differently would I use them? Would I be more prone to give away what I otherwise would have kept for myself?

While God does not tell me the amount of time I have left on this earth, He does tell me my life is but a vapor compared to eternity. I have a daily choice to live my life for myself or to live it for God’s design and purpose. How many people will cross my path today with whom I can invest something? What is it that I hold in my hands or in my heart that can be given to God as I am giving it to another person?

Being rich toward God has nothing to do with the amount of things we are able to do but rather with what we choose to do with what we have. I do not want to come to the end of my life here on earth and find that I lived my life with a “hoarding” mentality. May I learn how to give away what God so graciously gives to me. The list of His gifts is impressive as He lavishes on me grace, mercy, love, forgiveness, material goods, attention, and a host of other blessings. May I learn to be a distributor in God’s kingdom. What I choose to do with the things I have will keep them temporary or make them eternal.

Father, help me to see that being rich in You and being rich in this world are two different things. What I give away, I give to You. Make me a willing and joyful giver. I choose to follow Your example! Amen.