Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God. [Proverbs 30:7-9 (ESV)]
There is a burden of care in getting riches; fear in keeping them; temptation in using them; guilt in abusing them; sorrow in losing them; and a burden of account at last to be given concerning them. [Matthew Henry]
Last Christmas Eve, people stood in long lines at gas stations and convenience stores to make a last-minute purchase, but it wasn’t for a Christmas gift; they wanted a Powerball ticket! Christmas morning, someone woke up to discover they won $1.817 billion and had become a billionaire overnight! By choosing the lump sum payout of $835 million, their status dwindled to multi-millionaire. Once taxes were paid, approximately $550 million remained which, in anybody’s book, still counts as a fortune!
Even though the odds of winning the Powerball are 1 in 292.2 million, Americans spent between $3.6 billion to $4 billion to get the jackpot to up to $1.87 billion. Those ticket purchasers certainly had a different perspective on wealth than did Agur—the man who didn’t want riches! After asking God to give him integrity and honesty, Agur’s second request was that God give him “neither poverty nor riches.” Instead, he asked for just what he needed.
We all understand Agur’s desire to be kept from poverty—no one wants to be poor. While I’m not sure I’d steal were I poverty-stricken, I suspect I’d complain, worry, and have difficulty believing in a loving God. Agur’s request to be free from riches , however, certainly is contrary to the American way. Wanting better, bigger, newer, and more, we strive for success, prosperity, and upward mobility.
Agur had good reasons for not wanting riches. With riches, there’s a temptation to self-sufficiency and pride. Wealth and poverty can be equal opportunity destroyers. Indeed, while their problems would be different, a person with too much could confront as many challenges as one with too little. For example, winning the lottery doesn’t buy you happiness but it does buy you “friends,” relatives, predatory “financial advisors,” and sham business opportunities! Financial windfalls tend to blow away. Whether they win $1 million or $500 million, within five years, between 30% and 70% of jackpot winners have lost or spent all their money!
Agur’s prayer doesn’t mean it’s wrong to be wealthy. His simple prayer is about what we desire. While none of us desire the desperation of poverty and need, we shouldn’t desire the power, possessions, status, self-satisfaction, and luxuries of wealth. Both riches and penury can lead us away from a relationship with God. Rather than wealth or poverty, Agur desired contentment—the ability to say that whatever God put on his plate was enough! Like him, we should desire a relationship with God that acknowledges and trusts in His daily provision—His manna or “daily bread.” Indeed, contentment is realizing that God has given us all we need.
There is nothing wrong with men possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess men. [Billy Graham]
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” [Hebrews 13:5 (ESV)]
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“He’s so young!” my husband said when my brother died at the age of fifty-six. I reminded him that my dad was the same age when he died. “But he was old!” my husband exclaimed. The difference, of course, is that we were in our fifties when my brother died but only in our twenties when my father did. Now, almost thirty years after my brother’s death, our definition of “young” includes anyone under 85!
Even though pumpkin spice lattes are available, pumpkin kringles can be found at Trader Joes, and Michael’s, Walmart, and Target are displaying their Halloween décor, here in Florida, it’s still summer and rainy season. We’re experiencing temperatures in the 90s and rain nearly every day. Sometimes, it’s a real doozy with thunder, lightning, and a torrential downpour; other times, it’s just a little drizzle. God willing, the weather should improve next month and, by the time we turn our clocks back November 1, the beautiful weather here will remind us why we moved to southwest Florida in the first place.
Although it’s been many years, whenever I read today’s verse about God going both before and after me, I’m reminded of a hiking trip my daughter and I took through the Canadian Rockies. One of our guides led and tied orange ribbons along the trail to mark the way. A second guide (the sweep) followed the last hiker and removed the trail markers. With guides both before us and following us, the group could spread out, find their own pace, and take breaks when needed, while ensuring no one got lost or left behind.
In a recent Christianity Today article, Jared Dodson, teacher of biblical studies and theology at Bushnell University, wrote about his Gen Z students. They don’t ask the age-old question of why God allows bad things to happen to good people because they expect sin and evil in our fallen world. Having seen enough abuse of power, conflict, violence, rioting, exploitation, and mayhem in their young lives, they assume the good will suffer undeservedly. What they don’t understand is why the bad don’t seem to suffer along with them!
