Cattle on a Thousand Hills
My good friend Dr. John Frank writes: To understand stewardship we must first come to grips with the issue of ownership. It is easy to quote Psalm 24:1, but living it requires a huge commitment. Do we really believe that everything, I mean everything, belongs to God? We talk about time, treasure, and sometimes talent. But I challenge you to consider relationships, priorities, and our environment as things over which we are also called to be wise stewards.
And of course we have all read Psalms 50 . . .for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it. . .
I think we find it particularly difficult to comprehend what everything means. I have never owned a cow much less been concerned with a thousand of them. I suppose we are inclined to think about our valuables; our cars, our homes, those little knick knacks our grandparents gave us when were thirteen. I think we easily forget that everything also means our time and our talent; for example, that 6am hour that we would prefer to sleep through or that Saturday evening when we would prefer to watch our latest Netflix DVD. Admittedly, right now, I am struggling with the decision to volunteer tonight at our church’s youth basketball program versus whatever lame excuse I can come up with.
Gordon MacDonald writes: The work of generous living involves more than writing a check. We will experience the full rewards of the generous life when we lend our full support to an endeavor. This involvement can take a number of forms: through prayer, for example, or by donating time or expertise as appropriate. We will experience generosity’s greatest rewards if we give of ourselves. Only then can we sit back, delight in what has been accomplished, and in the of God say, “This is good.”
Dr. Frank wraps this up well by saying… I believe when we face God he will not say, “Let’s see John and Susan, let’s count up the church offerings you gave…” I think it will be more like, “I put you in one of the greatest times of history, in a country of great wealth, gave you an education, a wonderful spouse, children, jobs, money, talent, and a beautiful place to live. I gave you the Internet, global air travel, talented pastors, and good health. So what did you do with all of that to love my people and impact my kingdom?
