James 5:1-6
You rich people should cry and weep! Terrible things are going to happen to you. Your treasures have already rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your money has rusted, and the rust will be evidence against you, as it burns your body like fire. Yet you keep on storing up wealth in these last days. You refused to pay the people who worked in your fields, and now their unpaid wages are shouting out against you. The Lord All-Powerful has surely heard the cries of the workers who harvested your crops.
While here on earth, you have thought only of filling your own stomachs and having a good time. But now you are like fat cattle on their way to be butchered. You have condemned and murdered innocent people, who couldn’t even fight back.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Recently, I read an article in the newspaper about 87-year-old Dr. Russell Dohner, who practices medicine in Rushville, Illinois. Dr. Dohner charges $5 per visit, regardless of who you are or how much money you have. If you can’t afford to pay $5, he treats you anyway. A “stash” is kept in the drawer – supplemented by the doctor and his staff – to cover these “non-payments.” Click here to read the entire article.
In my opinion, Dr. Dohner understands fully what James is telling us in this passage. His focus was not on becoming rich. He didn’t think about filling his own stomach. He was motivated by the people he served… and he did not discriminate. As a result, all of his needs have been steadily met. His life has not been free of challenges. His marriage failed… he never had a family of his own. But he has had an entire community that embraces him and sees that he is well loved. People invite him to dinner, mow his yard, help with repairs and upkeep around his house, and more.
Dr. Dohner says he never entered the field of medicine to get rich… he only wanted to help others. He knows that without his clinic, many would not get the health care they require. The doctor has a family farm and some investments that provide income to help pay his expenses. But in my book, he is immeasurably rich… and in the best way possible.
My point in sharing this story is that James may have literally meant this passage for the rich, but I believe God is speaking a reminder to us in these words to keep our motives in check. God wants us to have goals and aspirations… He does not object to any of us succeeding – or even becoming rich. But our success… our possessions, our accomplishments – our “stuff” – is not what should define our lives. If we do not focus on serving God by serving others – with everything we have - all of our acquisitions are worthless… rotten, moth-eaten, rusted, and filled with the potential to do great harm to us – and to others.
Regardless of your age or station in life, stop and examine where you are headed… and what you are doing with what you have. Are you hogging every penny and stuffing yourself silly while others around you go hungry and homeless? Are you treating others – even a single person – as if they are beneath you? Do you operate in all things with fairness, kindness, generosity and love? Do you think of others… or is it all about you and those you deem important in your circle?
Few among us will leave a legacy akin to that of Dr. Russell Dohner… and that’s okay. But God expects us to do our best with His blessings… and nothing less. He calls us to treat others fairly… and to be good stewards of all He has given us. How well are you handling what He gives you? What sort of wealth are you building?
©2012 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment