High Paying Faith

I've heard the argument many times and I used to agree. "you cant be rich and still be following God's will" its always been something to that extent. Money is the root of all evil and God is not evil, how can those people build these huge bank accounts and mega churches while kids are dying from preventable diseases and a significant percentage of the world's population lives in severe poverty. Jesus would be appalled. How can these people live this way and call themselves Christians? Every great example of Christ's love has come, in human form, from simple people living simple lives doing things Jesus would have done in his time. Mother Theresa hung out with lepers, Martin Luther corrected the tyrant church doctrine, and Martin Luther King Jr. showed white people that all people really are created equal. These people lived far from the lap of luxury and we admire them for that, because its something we'll probably never get close to.

So what would the world look like if all Christians looked like this, right now. A call to action occurs that prompts us all to sell everything we have and just love people. what would that look like? Utopia. The domino effect would catch on for sure. No one could resist the opportunity to be genuinely happy just by living simply and relying on God for your well being. Phenomenal.

Call me a skeptic but that'll never happen.

The idea is novel but if we could do it we probably would have done it in Eden. Adam and Eve could even put their fig leaves on before they had a son dead and their entire family was in uproarious shambles (flood anyone?) They could even love their own family enough to get past murder, deception, and greed. So why, thousands of years later do you think that getting everyone on the same page is going to make everyone see things the same way?

Diversity is one thing everyone can like about America. No matter who you are you like walking down the street seeing people of all races, sizes, opinions, occupations, and intelligence walking with you. And if you don't, in 2008 you'd never admit that in a public place. We like to learn, be challenged, agreed with, provoked into deeper thought. You cant do that when everyone has the same past and projected future, where will those stories go?

I heard a story about the CEO of Eckerd drug stores. When he became a Christian he felt God call him take all adult magazines out of his stores. So he did, and after much argueing over whether he was right, wrong, or crazy, the public began to catch on and harshly worded letters and boycotts began of the drugstores that still carried these materials. Today no Drug store carries any adult content magazines. Needless to say the only reason action was started on this issue is because it came from the CEO himself. If i had come to this man, Christian or not, and made a case there is no way I could take the money out of their pockets that playboy was making them. Everyone knows that personal conviction is the only thing that makes a person truely change.

So I want to know what would have happened if the moment he became a Christian that he sold everything and lived with the poor, or even if he had waited until after taking porn of his shelves, do you think we would still be seeing the effects of his choice today? No, probably not. But you cant tell me this high paid business exec wasn't a Christian following the call of God on his life. So why do we consider him less of a Christian because he has money to throw around? This is how I've been judging rich Christians, but I don't even know them!

The conclusion that I have come to is that God calls us all to different things, lifestyles, and people. That's obvious, but what doest that mean for a world where we're all supposed to be working together to further the kingdom and love one another? Answer: It doesn't make a damn difference how much you're making to Jesus. He could care less if you're making $1,000 or $1 million a year. (As long as whatever you're doing to make that money is legit, you're fine.) His concern is what you do with your money. And when its said that way Im as guilty as any rock star who lives in excessive luxury. Live the life you are called to live by God, whether it's simple or fancy the world will judge you accordingly but God and those close to you know your heart. I believe the more you are blessed with the more you are responsible for.

But even though my opinion an the acquisition of money has lightened I still think everyone should experience the poverty of their brothers and sisters not blessed with half of what we take for granted. I still think living in luxury and shoving the silver spoon down your newborn's throat is bullshit. Example: God calls me to be a surgeon, I will have less time physically to be the hands of God because of work so the money i make from that job in the extra hours i could be helping those in need for free must go directly to whom it belongs, God's people. I don't know if that made a lot of sense but I feel like that sums it up best. We work with what we are blessed with. Whether it be time, money, compassion, or logic, our purposes vary. So we can be of different social circles and income brackets and still love and serve the same God and he will be just as pleased with all of us if our hearts are in the right place.