The Plumbline

It is easy to steal from the poor, but don’t do it. And don’t take advantage of them in court.   The  Lord  is on their side. He supports the poor, and he will take from those who take from them. (Proverbs 22:22-23) W.C. Fields once quipped, "A rich man is nothing but a poor man with money." A poor man with money - imagine if you will the scenario of being 'rich' in all the ways a man can imagine, but poor in all the ways God sees. The richest of men can have the poorest of spirits and most burdened of souls!  We are not living to impress God - we are not earning his approval by our actions. We are 'approved' through the gift of his Son's blood at Calvary, but if we don't turn over the 'possession' of our life to Jesus Christ, we are poorer than the one with no funds, no property, and no means of obtaining either except to beg.  Why do you think Solomon started with this one instruction in his list of thirty instructions? Perhaps it is because ...

I have learned the secret of how to live through any kind of situation—when I have enough to eat or when I am hungry, when I have everything I need or when I have nothing. Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do. (Philippians 4:12-13) Most of us live in such a way that we have all of what we need, even though we might be wanting much more than we have. Some might actually live with more than they need. What Paul learned was contentment in lean times and in times of great advantage. He developed a 'consistency of heart' - something we all would do well to learn sooner than later. Christ is the one who gives that consistency of heart, but we have to be open to receive what he gives when he gives it. Maybe consistency really comes when we learn to be open to receiving whatever it is he has for us. Christ gives us the strength to do whatever we must do - in good times, or bad, in lean times, or times of tremendous blessing beyond measure. Leanin...