*** I still need $1000 to be fully funded for this trip, and only have four weeks left to raise the support. If you would like to help me cross the finish line you can support me here, on this site by clicking the support me” tab on the left****
The Rich Man
Walter was an Italian man in his late 50’s. He had just retired from his career of 25+ yeas as a pilot and was proud to share with us that he was only 38 countries away from having been to all 196. The team was impressed with Walters lifestyle, proceeding to ask him a series of questions regarding his experiences; where he’s been, or his favorite food and country. When a girl asked him what the cheapest way to travel was and he responded, “I used to have a little money, but now I have a lot of money,” I had had enough. Our fascination with his “adventurous” life was obviously feeding his ego. I decided to go down a different trail. “So, how many children do you have?” The scowl on his face revealed his confusion. “Oh no, I don’t have any children. I’m not married.” Prying further I asked, “Walter, you’ve seen so much of the world. Have you gained any sort of world view? What are your thoughts about people and how the world interacts?” There was a long pause then he replied, “There is good in the world, and there is some very bad. People fight, and it is not right. There are poor people and there are very greedy people.” He finished speaking and ordered a beer.
“…Jesus replied, ‘go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ When the man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great wealth and many possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, ‘it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.’” –Matthew 19:16-26
The Gypsy
Melody was in her early 30’s; sun tanned, rough but beautiful. She wasn’t like the other street venders. She didn’t yell out for attention from the people passing by. Rather, she quietly twirled her drapery flag like batons, patient and content in her thoughts. While she kindly entertained those who stopped to look at her jewelry display. Painfully indecisive, I had stopped by her table a couple times to consider the various steel wool cuffs she had handmade. By the third time I stopped by her table we had become familiar acquaintances; I was just as curious of Melody as I was her jewelry. I asked her where she was traveling next, and if she ever got tired. In broken English, her response was always the same, “I go up and down central America. Sometimes I get tired, but I enjoy life.”
Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart do you good. You may walk in the ways of your heart and in the things seen by your eyes, but know that on account of all these, God will bring you into judgment…for relishing in your youth and the prime of your life is self-love. Remember your Creator now, before the harder days arrive. Because when you say, “I have no desire for selfish pleasures” after these days have arrived it will be too late. The conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole obligation of man. In relation to every hidden thing, whether it is good or bad, God himself will bring every work into judgment. -Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:1, 13-14.
The Lifeguard & the Rebel
Struggling with my asthma this past week, I stayed behind from ministry. I decided to watch the movie, The Lifeguard. The main character is a 29 year old journalist. Though young and successful, she is unhappy with the outcome and direction of her life. She decides she wants a “do over,” quits her job, and moves back in with her parents. She goes as far as taking back her high school job as a lifeguard at the community pool. In the time she spends working at the pool she befriends some high school boys. Though the boys are miserable in their hometowns, and could care less about being in school, the lifeguard longs to be back in their shoes. The irony is that while the lifeguard took all the right steps in order to attain the “American Dream,” she was still unhappy. Furthermore, even though she was unsatisfied and was seeking more for her own life, when the boys threaten to drop out of school and try something different, the lifeguard tells them they are foolish. She encourages them to follow the same steps she took.
For we are His masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. -Ephesians 2:10
I took interest in each of these people because though they are very different from one another, I think they lack one common thing: A Purpose. I was first drawn to the “rich man” and the “gypsy” because I was jealous of them. I would love to travel the world like Walter, but money is obviously an obstacle. On the contrary, Melody, does the same with very little money. I strangely admired her for depending on her jewelry trade alone to live and to freely wander. But then I started to think the opposite. Would I really be happy to experience the world just for the sake different cultures and personal pleasure? Would I be excited to make and sell bracelets to strangers so that I can get to the next location where I’d do the same thing again? I think I would feel more like the lifeguard and the rebel boy, desperately searching to add some sort of weight to my seemingly empty life.
Without glorifying God as the end goal, I can see the unsatisfied lifeguard ending up with a life similar to that of the wealthy retired man. I imagine the rebellious high school dropout living like the free roaming gypsy. Thankfully, God gives a purpose for our lives; to seek and know him, to praise him, and share his glory with all people. Because God is the the source of all good, without knowing God we cannot live in the fullness of his goodness, and therefore, we couldn’t have a good purpose for our lives at all. We cannot live in fullness without acknowledging the one who fills us up. Yes! I do want to travel the world, but I don’t want to do it apart from God’s purpose. And yes! I want to live freely and confidently like Melody, but I could never live independently of God. For without Christ, there is no life at all.
“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. 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
*** I still need $1000 to be fully funded for this trip, and only have four weeks left to raise the support. If you would like to help me cross the finish line you can support me here, on this site by clicking the support me” tab on the left****
