Faith, Finances and Future

I like to watch the news.

Why? To be honest, I’m not quite sure.

What do we see on the news? Well, 90% of it is bad news. Wars, fighting, poverty, recessions, lost jobs, kidnappings, attacks, shootings, beatings, countries/provinces/states/cities all running out of money… and so on and so on.

So… why do I watch the news again?

I suppose I watch it so I can be informed. So I can be a responsible citizen and see where I can help out. To see where there is need in our communities, our nation and our world.

So I know who Jesus is talking about when I read something like:

The king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” (Matthew 25:34-41)

But as we hear again threats of a global recession when we’ve never recovered from the last recession, it makes you think of the future. It makes you think about what’s going to happen long-term when your investments have tanked and you don’t know if you’ll ever be able to retire.

“The world is on the brink of a financial collapse!” we hear from some analysts. Thanks, that helps a lot.

So what are we to do?

The future looks bleak. Our finances are a mess with no clear indicator that things will improve anytime soon.

We need to have faith.

We need to look to the only dependable constant we have.

We need to look to God.

In the quote from Matthew 25 above, we see what we are to do. We are to help those in need. We are to feed the hungry, close the naked, visit those whose lives are (literally or figuratively) a prison.

When we do these things, which are just an explanation of what Jesus called the greatest commandment, “Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength… [And] love your neighbour as yourself.” (Mark 12:30,31) When we do these things, we will be blessed by God.

Do you want to be blessed? Do you want God to smile down on you and say, “Well done, good and faithful servant… Come on in and share my happiness!”? (Matthew 25:23)

If you do. If you want God’s blessing in your life, then you need to do something about it.

The financial crisis, our immediate future as a mass culture, we can’t control those things. But we can control our own fate. We can make a difference in our communities. We can be blessed by God when we come to know our Lord Jesus Christ and let him transform our lives into lives of blessings.

Get to know him. Get to a church and learn about him. He is the source of hope in our lives when the world has nothing left to give.