Giver or Greedy: Which Are You?

Good morning everyone! The El Salvador mission team comes home tonight. I am sure they will be tired but excited about what they have seen and experienced. This coming Sunday evening after the business meeting (that begins at 5 pm), we will be giving them the opportunity to share testimonies, video, and reports on what God did through them in El Salvador. Please join us for this special service!

As I was watching CNBC Squak Box (a business program) this morning, they had a leading CEO on as their guest. They usually interview their guests and take questions via e-mail. He was asked what caused th economic tailspin that we as a country find ourselves in today. His answer in so many words was "greed." He went on to speak of an entire generation of people who have been raised with the idea that borrowing on credit is "a way of life...even an entitlement. If you want it, you just borrow it and pay it back later or let someone else pay it back."

Some might argue that that is not greed. However, I would argue that it is greed mixed with a whole lot of "coveting." Some would say that it is the lender's greed that is to blame as well, and that is probably true. Nonetheless, we have become a nation of greed with our dollar becoming so weak because of our "lust for things" to the point that we our losing our credibility in the eyes of the rest of the world.

Proverbs 15:27 says "He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live." The NLT says "greed brings grief to the whole family."

We are seeing this truth lived out today in our country. Hundreds of thousands of families are losing their homes due to foreclosures. Many of them took out large loans to buy a house thinking that their job or income would always be there. Was that greed on the part of the homeowner? Possibly not, however, as the CEO pointed out, we have raised an entire generation on the premise that "if you want it, just borrow it." What at one time was a priviledge has become a right or an entitlement. The result is Proverbs 15:27.

What is the answer? Proverbs 21:26 "Some people are always greedy for more,but the godly love to give!" [NLT] Proverbs 28:25 "Greed causes fighting;trusting the Lord leads to prosperity." [NLT] My encouragement to you today is trust the Lord and give away what God gives you. The result is you will prosper and your family will be blessed. God help us to be givers, not greedy.

-Pastor Randy