Someone decided to try something that has probably never been tried before. A man taped one dollar bills all over his clothes, held up a cardboard sign that said, 'Take what you need,' and walked through crowded city streets. People walked by, some not paying attention. A well-dressed man walked up in a nice business suit and began to peel off a couple of one dollar bills. A jogger ran by the camera, and a few seconds later returned, taking a couple of bills and immediately called his friend. The camera picked up his voice saying, "Hey, guess what, there's a guy giving out money. I took some and I don't even need it!" More people walked by, normal people who probably had a reasonable income, a normal house, food for dinner, and they took the money. A woman with an extremely expensive designer purse came up and began to peel off a couple bills. "Is that a real one?" The man with the money asked, nodding to the purse. "Yes," the woman replied, taking a couple more and walking off. But the person who took the most was a nicely dressed woman. She began to quickly take handles of money, more than anyone else. As she was collecting a hefty sum, the man glanced at her. "Do you really need that?" he asked. "Oh, yes," she replied, "I've got a nail appointment tomorrow." The man, with probably only twenty or so dollars left, tried walking somewhere else. He found a homeless man with a dog. The man jumped up, noticing the sign. "Hey, take what you need," the generous sign-holder said. The homeless man carefully peeled off two dollars. "Thanks so much," the man said. "This will get me dinner tonight." The man with the sign was shocked. "You want only two dollars?" he gaped. The homeless man nodded. "Go give it so someone else who also needs it." The man pulled out his wallet and handed the homeless man sixty dollars. "Here," he said, "I want to make sure that you and your dog eat." The man took it thankfully.
This true story shows where we place our values. The world says you gotta get more, more, more, or you'll never be happy. The truth is, you could own a country, a fleet of sports cars, have houses in every state, all the coolest and newest technology, and you wouldn't be happy. You could eat caviar and champagne, shop at designer stores, and own a mansion, and you wouldn't be happy. On the other hand, you could live in a normal house, eat TV dinners while watching football, and drive a pickup truck, but you wouldn't be happy. Why? If you have all of those things, or not many at all, you won't be happy without God. It's true. Without Him, that void within is is gonna stay empty. Paul writes in Philippians 4:12, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." As Matt Chandler writes in his book, To Live is Christ, to Die is Gain, "Paul has learned to be content by living in Lydia's house with all of the abundance and opulence. He was able to sit in the midst of that and still love Christ, follow Him, and know that he is better. You might say, 'Well of course he learned contentment in a place of abundance.' But you'd not be thinking of it in the right way. What Paul was able to do was enjoy the abundance for what it was, a gift from God for a time, but contentment means being satisfied not with the gifts but with the Giver. And this makes all the difference. A failure to understand this distinction is why it is so hard for rich people to follow Jesus. Because money doesn't satisfy--but so many of those with lots of wealth think they will reach contentment if they just get more...Paul could give a testimony of contentment that might sound like this, 'Lydia's chef blew up a medium-rare filet. It melted in my mouth. It was amazing. And the next day, I left. I cast the demon out of a little girl, and I slept the next night in prison after I got beaten and thrown in the stocks. I know how to live in opulence and not to sell out to it. And I know how to live impoverished, to have nothing, to be imprisoned, and not to give over to despair in it."
So this Thanksgiving season--and Christmas--remember the Giver, not just the gifts. He is worth more than anything. Happy Thanksgiving!
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This true story shows where we place our values. The world says you gotta get more, more, more, or you'll never be happy. The truth is, you could own a country, a fleet of sports cars, have houses in every state, all the coolest and newest technology, and you wouldn't be happy. You could eat caviar and champagne, shop at designer stores, and own a mansion, and you wouldn't be happy. On the other hand, you could live in a normal house, eat TV dinners while watching football, and drive a pickup truck, but you wouldn't be happy. Why? If you have all of those things, or not many at all, you won't be happy without God. It's true. Without Him, that void within is is gonna stay empty. Paul writes in Philippians 4:12, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." As Matt Chandler writes in his book, To Live is Christ, to Die is Gain, "Paul has learned to be content by living in Lydia's house with all of the abundance and opulence. He was able to sit in the midst of that and still love Christ, follow Him, and know that he is better. You might say, 'Well of course he learned contentment in a place of abundance.' But you'd not be thinking of it in the right way. What Paul was able to do was enjoy the abundance for what it was, a gift from God for a time, but contentment means being satisfied not with the gifts but with the Giver. And this makes all the difference. A failure to understand this distinction is why it is so hard for rich people to follow Jesus. Because money doesn't satisfy--but so many of those with lots of wealth think they will reach contentment if they just get more...Paul could give a testimony of contentment that might sound like this, 'Lydia's chef blew up a medium-rare filet. It melted in my mouth. It was amazing. And the next day, I left. I cast the demon out of a little girl, and I slept the next night in prison after I got beaten and thrown in the stocks. I know how to live in opulence and not to sell out to it. And I know how to live impoverished, to have nothing, to be imprisoned, and not to give over to despair in it."
So this Thanksgiving season--and Christmas--remember the Giver, not just the gifts. He is worth more than anything. Happy Thanksgiving!
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