But I'm Not Rich!

Come now, you rich, weep and howl 

for the miseries that are coming upon you. 

Your riches are rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 

Your gold and silver have corroded,

and their corrosion will be evidence against you 

and will eat your flesh like fire. 

You have laid up treasures in the last days. 

James 5:1-3

My first thought as I read this passage is, "But I'm not rich! What does this have to do with me?  How can I apply it to my life?"  And then I remember two things.  First, I am an American.  Compared to most of the rest of the world, I am rich.  Secondly, I am responsible for what I have, not for what someone who has more than I has.

How do I use my resources?  Do I place a pittance in the offering plate on Sundays, a token to God?  Do I pay fairly those who might do some work for me  or do I try to get away with paying as little as possible, leaving them without?  What about the waiter who serves me a meal when I go out?  Do I tip generously, leaving myself the opportunity to see her read the gospel tract that I may leave with her; or do I put a pitiful few coins on the table?

What do I do with the little treasure that God has granted me?  Do I "lay it up for the last days?"  Or do I use it generously to advance the kingdom of God?

As I read these verses I am soundly reminded of what Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 6: " Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also...“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." (verses 19-21, 24)

Searching my heart,

Gloria