Whom Shall I Fear?
What are you so worried about? David begins Psalm 27 with these words: “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” Those words are worth repeating: “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” Maybe we should read them again, this time out loud! “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” David had his enemies. He had his foes. He had those who would betray and forsake him. He had those who wanted to do him harm. Yet he could say, “Whom shall I fear? Of whom shall I be afraid?” We have our enemies. We have our foes. We have those who have betrayed us, forsaken us, or who are about to. We have those who would do us harm. So we ask, “Whom shall I fear? Of whom shall I be afraid?” David’s response would be, “No one! If the Lord is your light and your salvation and the Lord is the stronghold of your life, then you have nothing to fear. No matter whom the enemy is, no matter what foe you come against, you have no reason to be afraid.” So, why do I fear? Why do I allow myself to get worked-up and whacked-out and worn-down? If “the Lord is my light and my salvation” and if “the Lord is the stronghold of my life,” then what is keeping me from living courageously and confidently and fearlessly? I forget. I forget the promise! “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” I forget that no foe has a chance against my Lord. I forget that there is no enemy who can come close to overcoming the stronghold of the Lord. I forget that God is strong enough, powerful enough, wise enough, loving enough, resourceful enough, and is determined to protect me from anything or anyone that may try to harm me. When life gets dark, I forget that He is my light. When I am in the midst of battle, I forget that He is my salvation. When I feel weak and weary and worn-down, I forget that He is my stronghold. I forget, so I must learn to remind myself that “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” When others are afraid, or discouraged, or weary, or near defeat, I must remember to remind them, “The Lord is your light and your salvation – whom shall you fear? The Lord is the stronghold of your life – of whom shall you be afraid?” So, just in case that description fits you, I remind you, “The Lord is your light and your salvation – whom shall you fear? The Lord is the stronghold of your life – of whom shall you be afraid?” Through His servant, David, God is speaking to us. “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?” If I try not to forget that this week, and if I try to remind others this week, and if you will do the same, by the end of the week, maybe we will be able to say what David said at the end of the Psalm, “I am confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” We have our message. Now, let’s live it. For a powerful promise of God related to this theme and displayed graphically, check out the following Heartlight Scripture graphic:http://www.heartlight.org/powerpoint/2205.html About the author: Tom Norvell is the author of “A Norvell Note” — Thoughts and reflections on God, life, people, and living as a follower of Jesus. He has ministered with followers of Jesus for four decades and loves Jesus, his family, and those seeking Jesus, passionately.
The ARC of Grace
What does grace really look like in real life? Isolated. Alone. Forbidden. Labeled. Diseased. Terminal. Forsaken. Forgotten. Desperate. For a variety of skin conditions thought to possibly be leprosy, the Torah had clear instructions. These instructions were for the safety of the many – especially the community and the family. For the one with this disease, life was nearly unbearable if a cure wasn’t quickly found and restoration to normal life wasn’t quickly accomplished. Living outside the city gates, wearing clothing (rags of desperation) showing they were diseased and outcast, crying out their warning to others who came nearby, life was barely human (Leviticus 13:1-46). This, then, is the background of our story told by Mark: Jesus: It’s time we went somewhere else – the next village, maybe – so I can tell more people the good news about the kingdom of God. After all, that’s the reason I’m here. So He traveled to the next village and the one after that, throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and casting out unclean spirits. A leper walked right up to Jesus, dropped to his knees, and begged Him for help. Leper: If You want to, You can make me clean. Jesus was powerfully moved. He reached out and actually touched the leper. Jesus: I do want to. Be clean. And at that very moment, the disease left him; the leper was cleansed and made whole once again. Jesus sent him away, but first He warned him strongly. Jesus: Don’t tell anybody how this happened. Just go and show yourself to the priest so that he can certify you’re clean. Perform the ceremony prescribed by Moses as proof of your cleansing, and then you may return home. (Mark 1:37-44 The Voice) Grace is what happens in this story. Grace is what Jesus gives this man. Grace! We talk about it freely. We depend upon it completely. We love to believe we’ve received it. And, I fear much like Jesus’ brother Jude warned (Jude 1:4), we have abused and distorted it frequently. So I wonder, have we taught much about how Jesus shared grace frequently and calls on us to do the same? Over the last few years as I have immersed myself in the story of Jesus in the gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – I’ve noticed a pattern repeating itself in the interactions of Jesus with people he helps. I like to call this the ARC of grace: Acceptance Relationship Community Jesus has a mission to accomplish and he has set out on this mission (Mark 1:35-39). Yet this man with leprosy approaches Jesus as he walks along the road – something the man is forbidden by the Torah to do. What does Jesus do? What does grace look like in this situation? The ARC of grace begins with acceptance. Jesus sees the man, hears his cry, knows from his garments what his desperate condition is and Jesus accepts the man right where he is and as he is. Jesus had every right – maybe even a social obligation – to keep on moving past the man and stick with his mission agenda. Yet the Lord paused and fully accepted the man into his presence and heard his request. Notice that Jesus directly responds to the man’s request: “If you want to, you can make me clean.” “I do want to…” (Mark 1:40-41). Jesus didn’t give the man platitudes. The Lord didn’t avoid the conversation. The Teacher didn’t give him a lesson on the requirements of the Torah. The Son of Man didn’t throw him some money and keep moving on his way, keeping a safe distance. Jesus listened to the man’s request and validated that request with the words and actions of his response. Jesus gave this man afflicted with leprosy grace – the grace of acceptance. Yet the ARC of grace doesn’t end with verbal, social, and physical acceptance. Gracious acceptance leads to relationship – personal relationship. Before Jesus heals the man with his verbal command, Jesus does the most humanizing thing possible in this moment. “Jesus was powerfully moved. He reached out and actually touched the leper” (Mark 1:41). Jesus shares this man’s uncleanness and enters into a deep, personal, relationship of grace. While it is hard for us to imagine the depth of this move from Jesus, I have seen it demonstrated. More than twenty years ago, when AIDS was deeply feared, drugs were just being tried to combat HIV, and the few hospitals that really treated AIDS patients kept them in dedicated wards for AIDS patients. Visitors were few and fear was high. There was a young man in his twenties in the last stages of the disease. The young man had long before expressed deep regret for his IV drug use that led to his infection and turned his life around. He had been reading the Bible again and taking communion each week with one of the men at church who had said this young man desperately needed a visit from church leaders. This young man had lesions all over his frail stick of a body. His breathing, even in the oxygen tent, was heavily labored. Human touch was forbidden. I went there with an elder in my church who was immunosuppressed and should have been the last person to do what he did. Yet as we offered this young man communion and prayer, this elder unzipped the tent, gave this young man the Body and Blood of Jesus, called him brother, placed his hands on this young man’s chest and prayed over him to know that his church family and his Father in heaven loved him. Tears flowed. Grace made sure relationship was experienced. The words of the prayer were powerful, but the young man said that what meant most was that this was the first skin to skin contact he had received from anyone but a nurse in months. This young man lived less than two more
Facing Evaluations
How can I survive this with my fear of layoffs? It takes a lot of courage, to put things in God’s hands,To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hopes, our plans.To follow where God leads us and make His will our own.But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone! (Betsey Kline, “Trusting God”) Many of you have been or will be evaluated by someone. You feel anxious. You work to prepare a report that accurately reflects what you do. On the day of the meeting you pay more attention to the way you dress in order to look professional. You may even practice saying several of your statements out loud. For most, your fears were greatly exaggerated. The evaluation went well. For a few, your fears were accurate and there are disappointments to be faced and dealt with. Being evaluated can be a genuinely frightening experience. I know because I am evaluated regularly. My supervisor is kind and gracious but she has high expectations for me and the churches I serve. But truthfully, the real evaluation doesn’t come at work. The real evaluation comes within our relationship and our service to God. All of us answer to God. How are we doing? Paul wrote a letter to a young minister named Timothy and in the midst of the letter provided evaluation standards to be measured by: If you explain these things to the brothers and sisters, Timothy, you will be a worthy servant of Christ Jesus, one who is nourished by the message of faith and the good teaching you have followed. Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly. “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it. This is why we work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers. Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them. Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. Until I get there, focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers, and teaching them (1 Timothy 4:6-13 nlt). Paul gives Timothy nine standards worthy of evaluation: Explain these things to the brothers and sisters. Be a worthy servant of Christ who is nourished by the message of faith and the good teaching you have followed. Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas. Train yourself to be godly. Work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God. Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them. Don’t let anyone think less of you. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. Focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers, and teaching them. I don’t know about you but measured by those standards, I definitely come up short. Here is the lesson though. Paul did not write to point out our shortcomings. Paul illustrated the standards we are to strive for and to point out, we are not alone in our journey. God is with us in the midst successes, failures, good evaluations and not so good evaluations. A few years ago, I copied the following poem: It takes a lot of courage, to put things in God’s hands,To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hopes, our plans.To follow where God leads us and make His will our own.But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone! You already demonstrate great courage by putting your life in God’s hands. In so many ways, you give yourself completely: your life, your hopes, your plans. Good evaluation or bad, you are called to follow where God leads and make His will your own. Finally … You are not foolish because you are never, ever alone. There are many who love you, pray for you and support you. There are others who are greatly impacted by your life and ministry. There are more in the future who will be impacted by you. Finally, God called you, continues to strengthen and encourage you, and always walks with you. To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hopes, our plans. To follow where God leads us and make His will our own. But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone! After writing this, I confess to still feeling anxious about evaluations. After knowing God’s standards, feeling God’s grace and receiving God’s promise to always be walking beside me, I am no longer afraid. About the author: Larry Davies is a used-car salesman turned preacher. He serves at Timberlake UMC, and is the author of several books and the online devotional site Sowing Seeds of Faith.
Live Simply
How simply can you live? Thanks to Elaine St. James for writing this: “Living fully doesn’t mean having it all and going everywhere and doing everything and being all things to all people. Many of us are beginning to see that too much is too much; it gets in the way of being able to enjoy the things we do want in our lives and to simply be who we are.” Achieving a level of inner simplicity makes it possible to choose intelligently the things that are meaningful in our lives. And they contribute to our peace of mind if they ultimately mean that we do fewer things and have less stuff. But that decision will not come so much from self-denial, but from wisdom that comes from taking the time to figure out what is important to us, and letting all the rest go. The message today: learn to live simply with peace. Yet true religion with contentment is great wealth. After all, we didn’t bring anything with us when we came into the world, and we certainly cannot carry anything with us when we die. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. (1 Timothy 6:6-8 NLT) About the author: Dr. Faulkner was the very first person of note and influence who shared his content with us at HEARTLIGHT.org beginning in 1996. Paul Faulkner taught on the Abilene Christian University campus full-time for 35 years. He was honored in 1982 as the university’s Teacher of the Year. He has written several books and was a much sought-after speaker and seminar leader along with his Marriage Enrichment partner, Dr. Carl Brecheen. Dr. Faulkner mentored many ministers and church leaders, shared his loving homespun humor and wisdom through many channels, and endeared himself to thousands. Our dear friend and mentor went to be with the Lord in 2022, but his legacy lives on in the lives of those he touched and made better.
Groundhog Day
Is it Groundhog Day again? “That’s right, woodchuck-chuckers – it’s … Groundhog Day!” You may or may not recognize that line from the Bill Murray movie “Groundhog Day.” And if you don’t live in the United States, you may not even know that February 2 is Groundhog Day, the day when the superstitious look to a small mammal to determine how soon spring will arrive. In the movie, Phil Connors (Bill Murray) is trapped in a 24-hour time period that seems to repeat itself endlessly. Nothing he does allows him to move forward with his life. Once Connors realizes what is going on, he gives himself over to pleasure: gratuitous sex, crime, and selfishly trying to woo Andie MacDowell’s character. Eventually he learns that all of this leaves him empty inside, and Murray begins to find ways to better himself and serve others. This being Hollywood, Connors eventually ends up with the girl, and they set off to live happily ever after, beyond Groundhog Day. Phil Connors’ quest reminds me of one we find in the Bible, in the book of Ecclesiastes. This writer, a king, tells of some of the things in which he sought fulfillment: a quest for knowledge dedication to pleasure possessions commitment to work rivalry with others political power unrivaled riches children long life food and drink In the end, he admits that none of these brought lasting pleasure. It was all, in his words, “a chasing after the wind.” He only found one thing that could give him the sense of meaning that he sought: “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Some of us feel like Phil Connors, trapped in an endless routine. All of our attempts to find purpose and meaning in life leave us right back where we started. In the end, most of us learn what he learned on Groundhog Day: happiness begins with looking outside ourselves. But I want you to know that your journey isn’t complete until you learn what the writer of Ecclesiastes learned, all those centuries ago: only by basing our lives on God and His teachings can we be truly fulfilled. So this Groundhog Day, don’t let your life continue to be a series of meaningless days. Look to God, and let Him fill your life with a sense of purpose. To find out more about how that works, contact me at tarcher@heraldoftruth.org or visit our www.hopeforlife.org web site. (Expressed written consent must be obtained prior to republishing, retransmitting or otherwise reusing the content of this article. Contact us at info@hopeforlife.org) About the author: Tim Archer is the author of Church Inside Out and leads a seminar by the same name on behalf of Hope For Life, a Herald of Truth ministry.
Living Beyond the Formula
Jesus > You + X (all your dos) + Y (all your dont’s)! Dear Church People, I used to be a math teacher. You might think, based on this whole writing gig, I would have been an English or Reading teacher… neh eh. I just cannot grade all those essays with all those words. Me? I really like a clear formula. I like a DEFINITE right or wrong answer, no wondering, no questioning. I like that 2+2=4 and will always equal 4. I will never have to ponder if it’s right or wrong. It’s black and white. Objective. You can’t argue it. I grew up in a faith that loved itself a clear formula. I grew up knowing all the rights and all the wrongs, all the dos and all the don’ts, all the get-into-heavens and all the heading-straight-for-hells. Don’t dance. (You’ll get pregnant.) Don’t drink a DROP of alcohol. (You’ll get pregnant again.) Don’t cuss. Don’t have sex. (For obvious aforementioned reasons.) But seriously, don’t touch boys. And I get it. It was a formula. It was a simple, easy-to-follow, surefire way to determine an outcome. X (all the dos) > Y (all the don’ts) = Z (eternity in heaven) It’s simple. Easy to understand. No gray areas. So I grew up tallying marks for and against, learning blacks and whites, and always worrying whether my X > Y. Now, I totally get how this happens. We humans love control. We crave to feel in control of everything. We plan and rationalize because that makes us feel safe and protected, in control of our lives and our destinies. We don’t want to ACTUALLY place something so significant in the hands of something or someone we can’t see or hear or touch. So we construct a formula that makes sense, gives us something concrete to refer back to. But the older I got and the more scripture I read, the more I wondered about the formula. Because the formula seemed to be missing something pretty big. What about Jesus? What about grace? What about my heart? What about the Holy Spirit? (Yikes, the Holy Spirit. Don’t go all willy-nilly.) The problem with formulas (one of them) is that it allows us to take credit for our own salvation (if we do enough and don’t do enough, we win. YAY.) which leads to pride, which leads to judgment, which leads to separation and division, which leads to being Literally The Worst. If you have been following the formula like I did for so long, don’t forget: you need Jesus. Maybe even more than the sinners you’ve been so quick to condemn. Jesus quoted Isaiah when he said to formula-keepers in his day: “‘These people [the Pharisees and teachers of the law] honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men’” (Mattew 15:8-9). Rules taught by men = The Formula. Jesus continued: “Listen and understand. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile [that person], but what comes out of [that person’s] mouth, that is what defiles…” (Matthew 15:10-11). – – – – – I have a feeling the formula isn’t working for you. Maybe you can’t figure it out, or the anxiety of it all is pressing down against you, or you feel like you’re buried in Ys and will never be able to stack up enough Xs to climb out, to make you feel like you’re worthy. Or maybe you feel like you’ve mastered the formula but in the meantime have found it hard to connect with people. And your heart feels less full of joy and more full of anger and resentment because the world is going to hell in a handbasket and IF EVERYONE WOULD JUST LIVE THE WAY YOU DID… Jesus is saying that what you do or don’t do, what you DID or DIDN’T DO, isn’t what makes you unclean. It isn’t what sanctifies you, purifies you, or makes you worthy of love or redemption or heaven. It’s your heart. And you know how to make your heart clean? Well, YOU can’t. You cannot cleanse yourself. But if you bind yourself, attach yourself like a vine is connected to a branch, your fruit will be good, your heart will transform. You will produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). If you can’t see the production of those things in your life, it’s time to reattach. If you see a sinner and your initial reaction is fear and condemnation rather than love and compassion, it’s time to reattach. If you feel angry at everyone, it’s time to reattach. And probably detach from social media because this place will not always restore your hope in humanity. And for those of you who still need a formula, here’s a fool-proof one: Jesus > You + X (all your dos) + Y (all your dont’s)! – – – – – [Jesus told his disciples,] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing [NOTHING!!]. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (John 15:5-8). Special thanks for the use of images related to Jesus’ ministry from The Lumo Project and Free Bible Images for use on this week’s post.
Neighboring
Who is my neighbor? “So just who is my neighbor?” This question was launched by an expert on the Old Testament law to test Jesus. While it may seem innocent enough at first glance, underneath it was the push to find out just what is needed to qualify for eternal life (Luke 10:25). To put it crassly, “What’s my minimum requirement on being neighborly?” Jesus addressed the question in three powerful ways, never letting the “expert in the law” off the hook . Jesus was going to make sure this expert had to “own” his answer. Jesus asked the man to state his understanding of God’s truth twice, rather than Jesus giving the “expert” an answer (Luke 10:26; Luke 10:36). First, Jesus made clear the issue is about “neighboring”: intention and emotion are important, but godly compassion always involves action (James 2:14-17; 1 John 3:16-17). Jesus made this powerfully clear by answering the question by telling the story of “the good Samaritan” (Luke 10:30-35). The question is not, “Who is my neighbor [who I must serve]?” Instead, the question is, “Who needs neighboring: who needs my help and support?” And Jesus frames the story by the emphasis on “doing compassion” by framing the story with these two phrases: (1) “Do this and live” (Luke 10:28 TNIV), and (2) “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:35). Second, Jesus demonstrated what it means to “love your neighbor as yourself.” A simple scan of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – the books in the Bible that tell the story of Jesus – help us understand just what “neighboring” means. We meet men and women, religious and non-religious, leaders and powerless, rich and poor, able-bodied and those who are sick, dying, and dead. Jesus simply ignored the categories we so easily force people to fit. He broke social barriers, gender barriers, and religious stereotypes. He did not meet someone who was not his neighbor and he calls us to live the same way. Third, Jesus always kept the command to “love your neighbor as yourself” connected to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” (Luke 10:27). We become like the One we love! We cannot love God and not love others (1 John 4:7-21). So what’s the point of all of this? Simple: it’s not about figuring out who is our neighbor, but about neighboring those around us in need! Make a list of all the different kinds of people Jesus served – take a quick scan of the gospels to remind yourself of all the different kinds of people Jesus’ life touched in a redemptive way (Matthew 8:1-38; Mark 9:1-50; Mark 3:1-64; Luke 7:1-50 are a good start). What do you think the message is for you and how you are to “neighbor” others based on Jesus’ example? How would you describe what “neighboring” others means in your daily life? What leads you to keep from “neighboring” those who need our help? What makes it hard “neighboring” others you may not know? What makes it hard “neighboring” those you do know? About the author: Phil Ware has authored 11 years of daily devotionals, including VerseoftheDay.com, read by 500,000 people a day. He works with churches in transition with Interim Ministry Partners and for the past 21+ years, he has been editor and president of HEARTLIGHT Magazine, author of VerseoftheDay.com, God’s Holy Fire (on the Holy Spirit), and aYearwithJesus.com. Phil has also authored four books, daily devotionals on each of the four gospels.
A Walk with Our Shepherd
What does it really mean for us? I’m not sure on what David originally wrote down the famous shepherd psalm. It probably was sung in the field to calm his sheep before it finally made it into written form. Yet this psalm has brought comfort to millions over the years. With the words to the psalm are simple reflections on the meaning of each phrase. No one is quite sure of the origins of these simple reflections. Hopefully the words and the reflections will be a reminder to each of us how much God loves us and longs for us to build our lives around our his grace. The Lord is my Shepherd … — that’s relationship! I shall not want … — that’s provision! He makes me to lie down in green pastures … — that’s rest! He leads me beside the still waters … — that’s refreshment! He restores my soul … — that’s healing! He leads me in the paths of righteousness … — that’s guidance! For His name’s sake … — that’s purpose! Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death … –that’s testing! I will fear no evil … — that’s protection! For You are with me … — that’s companionship! Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me … — that’s security! You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies … — that’s hope! You anoint my head with oil … — that’s consecration! My cup runs over … — that’s abundance! Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me … — that’s blessing! All the days of my life … — that’s faithfulness! And I will dwell in the house of the LORD — that’s home! Forever! — that’s eternity!
Have You Caught This Aroma?
What do you smell like? But thanks be to God! For through what Christ has done, He has triumphed over us so that now wherever we go, He uses us to tell others about the Lord and to spread the Gospel like a sweet perfume. As far as God is concerned there is a sweet wholesome fragrance in our lives. It is the fragrance of Christ within us, an aroma to both the saved and unsaved all around us. (2 Corinthians 2:14-15 LB) In February our thoughts turn to love as Valentine’s Day approaches! Can’t you smell the aroma of perfume and the fragrance of the roses that will be in abundance? Beautifully decorated boxes of sweet chocolates will be given to our cherished ones. Hearts of every color and size will be splashed across those gifts so carefully selected in love. We can be grateful for these delicacies God has given us to enjoy, but the aroma that pleases Him most is the fragrance of Christ within us. That is the sweet perfume that He desires we spread to those all around. This year as that special day of love arrives again, I pray that our lives will send forth the pleasing aroma of Christ to both the saved and unsaved. May these hearts that beat deep within us be full of the sweet wholesome fragrance of Christ, as we allow Him to use us to help spread the good news of Jesus around the world. About the author: Melva Cooper is a member of the Just a Minute writing team.
It Doesn’t Fix Everything
What can money fix in your life? Money fixes things. At least, it fixes some things. It keeps a roof over your head and puts food on the table. It makes possible things such as education, medical care, and travel. If yours is a generous heart, it allows you to grace other people with blessings and opportunities they would miss otherwise. Contrary to the opinion of some, the Bible isn’t negative toward wealth and the things it can do. In the very same context where Paul gives his famous and oft-quoted warning about the “love of money being a root of all kinds of evil,” (1 Timothy 6:10) he affirms that it is God “who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.” (1 Timothy 6:17) But money has its limits. While it has the potential for fixing certain things and providing gratification, it won’t fix everything. It can also create a special set of problems unique to substantial wealth. Take Jack Whittaker as an example. Whittaker, 57, burst onstage on Christmas Day, 2002. He won the biggest-ever undivided lottery prize when he hit a record $314.9 million Powerball jackpot. There he was on everybody’s TV screen. Smiling. Big cowboy hat. Already a successful contractor. Ready now to donate ten percent of his lump sum payout of $113 million after taxes to his church and to help other good causes. A picture of the same man two years later hardly looks like the one we saw back then. He looks old. Tired. Whipped. And there are reasons for the change. Whittaker has had hundreds of thousands of dollars stolen from his cars, house, and office. He has pleaded no contest to assaulting and threatening to kill a bar manager. He has been arrested twice on drunk-driving charges and ordered into rehab by a judge. He faces charges of groping women at a racetrack. Shortly before Christmas, his 17-year-old granddaughter disappeared. She had been there on the day of his big win. The apple of Whittaker’s eye, he was going to make everything possible for her. She said she wanted a car. She wanted to meet her favorite hip-hop star. Life was going to be wonderful! She was found dead – her body wrapped in a tarp outside her boyfriend’s house. Press reports say she died of a drug overdose. No wonder Whittaker looks whipped and confused. Who wouldn’t be? His story isn’t so much a warning about quick wealth or the dark side of gambling as it is simply a tragedy of major proportions. God help him to get himself together. The next time you are tempted to think money would fix everything for you, remember Jack Whittaker. And focus again on what really matters. True religion with contentment is great wealth. After all, we didn’t bring anything with us when we came into the world, and we certainly cannot carry anything with us when we die. So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is at the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:6-10 NLT) Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone. But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and should give generously to those in need, always being ready to share with others whatever God has given them. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may take hold of real life. (1 Timothy 6:17-19) About the author: Rubel Shelly preached for decades, been a professor of medical ethics, Bible, and philosophy at multiple universities and a med school. He is currently Professor of Philosophy & Religion at Lipscomb University. He is the author of more than 30 books and hundreds of inspirational articles.