Proverbs 10:22
When the LORD blesses you with riches, you have nothing to regret.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Timothy Kodjo Owusu Frim, the little boy in Ghana whom we sponsor through Compassion International often writes that he is praying for us. How humbled I am by this! I recently read that in Ghana, most of the children who get an opportunity to go to school are those sponsored by people like my husband and me. And the schooling is slow… ten and twelve-year-olds are often just completing work in kindergarten and first grade. So when our ten-year-old Kodjo asks me to pray for him as he studies in school and at his church, I am very humbled and honored.
The average income in Kodjo’s village is around $32 a month… the amount my husband and I spend for his monthly sponsorship. We are allowed to send additional monetary gifts for Kodjo’s birthday and at Christmas… but there are dollar limits so that one child does not have more than his/her peers. We can send $25 to buy new clothes, a soccer ball, or a game Kodjo might like – and a little extra at Christmas time. Kodjo tells us that he loves our gifts. He also talks of time spent with family celebrating holidays and seasonal breaks from school, and he appears to feel quite blessed and “rich”, while by the world’s standards, he is living in abject poverty.
Pastor Rick Warren says in The Purpose Driven Life that… “you could reach all of your personal goals, become a raving success by the world’s standard, and still miss the purposes for which God created you.” This explains why some of the “richest” people in the world are some of those many of us would consider poor.
This is nothing new… the Apostle Paul spent much of his Christian life in prison – often in horrid, unthinkable conditions – and yet he was apparently happily praising God and sharing the Good News of Jesus with others… encouraging them and offering counsel and comfort. Mother Teresa had virtually nothing of her own, yet she devoted her life to giving to others… and apparently felt quite blessed by doing so.
It seems like this is a good time for all of us to take a good look at our lives and see what we value the most. What makes us “rich” – things and money, property and possessions? Or are we rich in relationships… first and foremost with Jesus Christ, and then with others, like family, friends, and members of our community? Are we blessed because of the generosity and love of others… or are we blessed because we are a blessing in Jesus’ name?
When you get to heaven, if all of the “riches” you accumulated were things that you left behind to gather dust or be haggled over by others, you really wasted your time. But if you have a heart filled with blessings… healthy relationships, wise use of your time and money to help others and share the love of Christ, a genuine effort to bless others and be a blessing… you will have no regrets. God will congratulate you on your faithful service, and He will assign you to greater positions than you ever imagined in His kingdom.
I wonder… when I get to heaven, will I be anywhere as rich as Kodjo and others like him? I hope so! I’m asking God to humble me and help me to use the earthly riches with which He entrusts me to make a difference with eternal ramifications, so that I have no regrets when I meet Him in person. Are you willing to do the same?
©2011 Debbie Robus
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