I don't know why God has blessed me in the ways He has. I am not wealthy but He has always provided for me - and more. I have never been in the situation where I had no way to turn financially. It hurts me when I see others in financial situations where you know they must be frustrated and unable to change their state. Hopefully, this will be helpful in giving some direction and purpose to those who can't see a way out of their situation.
Not only has God given me what I needed throughout my life, He has also given me things which I consider a luxury. Things that are really unnecessary, but seem to make life a lot more fun. With the income I have maintained since giving my life fully to the Lord, there is no way I should be the owner of a $30,000 airplane. And, when it came time for some very expensive engine overhaul, God sent just the person needed for the job, and, when the job was finished God moved him on to another location. Total cost for an engine rebuild: $3000 for tools and parts. Without the Lord's help it could have cost many times that much.
I have owned three Harley Davidson motorcycles. One of them was a brand new full-dress model, literally given to me. I have a nice home, good-running vehicles and even a small motor home. These are some of the nice material things God has trusted to me.
So, how am I going to relate this to stewardship? After all, when the preacher preaches on stewardship isn't he usually referring to how much money we should be placing in the offering plate? That's true. Stewardship does refer to how much you give back to the Lord. And, it also ties in with what I'm about to cover. But, first, let's get a good basic understanding of the word, stewardship.
Dictionary definition: One who manages another's property, finances, or other affairs.
Of course, Christian stewardship is exactly that: managing God's property, finances, or other affairs. (Here on earth)
When the preacher preaches on stewardship he is generally referring to the financial part of the definition. I am going to focus on the property segment of the definition. That is, the things that I call MINE. That would be things like the airplane, motorcycles, motor homes, tools, computers, pianos, guitars, cameras, the residence where I live, etc. I'm sure you can probably come up with your list quite easily. The material objects that God has trusted to our care.
We have to admit that most of us don't get up in the morning and go through the day thinking, "This toothbrush belongs to the Lord." "These socks belong to God." "This car isn't really MINE." We are prone to forget where it all came from and call it all our own. Sure, I worked hard to earn the money to purchase my computer, but God made the earth from which came the materials to fabricate both the computer, and me. So, He owns it all.
I'm fortunate to have a computer on which to be writing this. What a blessing. I used to own a typewriter and when I made a typing error (quite often) I had to grab one of those round erasers with a brush on the end, roll up the paper and try to wipe out my mistake. Now, I just hit the backspace key. "Thank you, Lord."
When you take time to consider it all, nothing really belongs to any of us. If God created you and me and if He created the materials from which all of our possessions have been fabricated it's pretty obvious that we can't claim ownership to anything.
Not long ago, as I was asking the blessing, it dawned on me that I wasn't really covering all the bases. Before taking part in a meal my prayer would go something like this: "Dear Lord, thank you for all you do for us. Thank you for this day. Thank you for this food and please watch over us, our family and loved ones. In Jesus' name, Amen."
I still pray something like that these days but I need to be praying something like: "Dear Lord, thank you for the highway system that allowed trucks to deliver groceries to the grocery stores. Thank you for the truck drivers. Thank you for the people who planted and harvested the food. Thank you for the electricity to pump the fuel into the fuel tanks of the trucks, and for generating the heat in the stove to cook this meal. Thank you for the scientists who have studied for years in school and discovered ways to preserve this food . . . etc."
As you can see, it became obvious to me that there were many more things that He had done for me in order to sit down to a simple meal. Now, as I ask the blessing, I don't allow my food to get cold as I go down the list of all he has done for me, but I do consider these things in my heart as I become truly thankful for that simple little meal.
God has entrusted me with many, many nice things. The only reason that I can come up with, as to why He has been so good to me, is that I am basically conservative. I have always been that way. Wasting anything has always annoyed me, hence, I have taken pretty good care of my possessions. So, that may account for part of the reason He has been so good to me.
You may recall the parable of the talents in Matthew 25: The master traveled into a far country but before leaving he called his servants to himself and gave each one some talents. He gave five to one, two to another, and one to the last. The two servants that received five and two talents invested their talents wisely and made the most of what the master had provided to them. The servant that received one talent simply buried it until the master returned.
When the master did return, he rewarded the servants who did all they could to bring him delight. They had taken what he had given them and used it to the best of their ability, thus, bringing about an increase in value. The servant who received five talents was able to return ten talents to the master. The servant who received two talents was able to return four to the master. But the servant who received the one talent buried it instead of making the most of what he had been given.
You may recall what happened: His master was angry with him and actually took away the talent he had been given. But, to the servants who had used what they received in a wise manner he said, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make the ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord."
I hope you can see what took place here. The key words are: ". . .thou has been faithful over a few things . . . ." These servants probably knew each other and very likely knew how much the other had received. Who knows why the master didn't give each servant the same amount. He surely had his reasons for giving one five, another two and another only one. Just as God knows our own hearts better than we do ourselves, this master must have known ahead of time not to give five talents to the servant who buried his one talent. He also knew he could trust the servant to whom he gave five talents more than he could trust the servant to whom he only gave two talents.
God will give us what He knows he should give us. I have heard my children say things like, "It sure would be nice to have a lot of money." I have to agree with their feelings about that because it would make life so much more abundant, materially, here on earth. But I know better than to agree with their attitude. I know from experience that my Lord is providing me with exactly what He knows I need and can manage. And I know he is doing the same with my children.
Someone once asked the late Dr. Jack Hyles how it was that God had blessed him with so much. Dr. Hyles then pantomimed the reason by kneeling down onto the floor and acting as if he were praying. Then he would reach upwards as if receiving something from Heaven and after grasping hold of this imaginary gift from Heaven, he would then bring down his arms and stretch them out as if to be giving the gift away to someone else. Then he would repeat the pantomime a few times to show how it seemed to continue on endlessly.
That is a very accurate picture of the management of property in the dictionary definition of stewardship. It doesn't mean that we must give away everything that God provides but it does indicate that we should always be willing to do so.
I believe that it would be to our best advantage spiritually and materially if we were to become more aware of our blessings throughout the day and less concerned about those things we wish we had. Wishing we had something that God hasn't made available to us is a terrible waste of time and energy. He is not in the business of granting wishes anyhow.
I have found, through experience, that God blesses me more when my devotional time is spent praying for the needs of others rather than praying for things I don't have. Psalms 37 is an excellent instruction book on how to go about your daily routine and end up with more at the end of the day than you had at the beginning:
Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.Just read those verses over and over several times until you begin to see what He is trying to tell us. There are some simple truths here that can be put into practice in order to gain the most from what the Lord has to offer. Especially important are the words, ". . . Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart." Now, I hope you are wise enough not to think you can fool God. Don't take this to mean that, if I delight myself in the Lord (in order to get the things my heart really desires) that He will notice and - suddenly Heaven will begin to rain down upon me all the things I have always wanted.
God knows my heart. When He sees that we have finally given up wishing for things and begun to delight ourselves in pleasing him, He will keep the promises He has made to us. He will actually begin giving us the desires of our heart. That's a promise.
When I first became a pilot I had purchased a Cessna 150. It is a small, cramped plane that will carry only two passengers. I was very thankful for how the Lord provided it to me but it wasn't big enough to carry my whole family. I have always admired the older style of plane affectionately known as a tail-dragger. A tail-dragger has a small wheel under the tale of the plane instead of a large steering wheel connected to the nose. When my brother and I were young we flew model planes and our choice was usually a tail-dragger because of their sleek appearance as they flew through the air.
One day, after receiving my pilot certificate, while I was working on my plane at the airport, there was a beautiful tail-dragger doing touch-and-goes at the same time. Each time he would come around onto final approach I couldn't help but stop what I was doing and watch as the plane floated toward the runway and gently touched down. Over and over I stopped what I was doing and just stared at that plane, dropping gently out of the sky.
I don't recall exactly when it happened, but, during one of those landing approaches I quietly, but verbally spoke to the Lord. What did I say? I didn't say, "I sure wish I had a plane like that." (By the way, that plane was much more expensive than my Cessna 150) I simply made conversation with the Lord and said something like, "It sure would be nice to have a plane like that someday." Within less than a year I had that kind of plane and for a price of only $500 more than I received when I sold my Cessna 150.
I didn't end up with a tail-dragger plane because I wished for it or even prayed for it. I believe it was given to me because I was as interested in having a simple, casual, on-going relationship with the Lord. While I was working on my plane that day I was also having little chats with God. I wasn't leaving Him out of my life while going about the daily routine. He follows me everywhere I go anyhow. I may as well carry on a conversation with Him along the way.
So, what is the secret, if it is a secret, to getting things from the Lord? I believe it begins with, first, not wanting things. Let me re-word that. It is OK to want something. That is a good example of the desires of your heart - to want something. The key is wanting it but NOT wishing you had it. Give up the desire to get and develop a desire to use what God has given you to bring joy and blessing to the Lord. Let's go over some simple examples:
If you own something nice that you really treasure, remember to keep in mind that it really belongs to God and you are just a care-taker; a steward. Be verbally thankful that you have the opportunity to be trusted with such a gift from God. Don't be afraid to tell others that God has blessed you with this item. Whenever you consider how fortunate you are to have such an item, verbally tell the Lord how grateful you are to Him.
Most of my flying time is spent alone. My plane will carry four people but I generally go up alone. Well, not really alone. I seldom go up without, somewhere in the flight, verbally telling the Lord thanks for the opportunity to fly. He knows that I am aware of who really owns my airplane. He knows I love to fly - It's a desire of my heart.
So take good care of whatever you do have and delight in verbalizing about the fact that it is a blessing from the Lord.
Another way to please the Lord concerning material objects is to respect the property of others. Keep this in mind: Although it may belong to someone else, it is still owned by God. For instance, if you are the kind of person who takes things from your place of employment, consider that you are really stealing from God. It is He that owns those items you slipped into your pocket when the other employees were not looking. He entrusted those items to your employer, not to you. When you took them for yourself you lost that close relationship with the Lord and became more of an adversary than a friend to Him.
Let me relate what happened to my son and myself recently. A friend of his who owns a DVD duplicator copied a movie and gave it to him. My family knows how strongly I feel about making copies of any type of media in order to avoid having to pay for it. My family gives me a hard time about my strong beliefs in that area. My son brought the DVD to our home and, and my wife and I decided to watch it one evening. The next morning my son called asking for my help.
His wife's car had broken down on her way to work and he needed my assistance getting it home and making the repair. As we spent the day trying one solution after another and spending a considerable amount of money on parts that didn't fix the problem, I explained to my son that this seems to always be the way that the Lord lets me know that I have let Him down.
We finally found the problem and got the car running in the early evening. I expressed my thoughts to my son when I said, "It would have been a lot cheaper to rent the movie." I don't know if he held the same sentiment about the situation but for me it was a good lesson. You see, I believe that God loves the folks in Hollywood too. Even if they don't love Him. By watching one of their movies without paying what they asked I was stealing from someone God loves.
Respecting the property of others should also affect how soon you return borrowed items. There is nothing wrong with going to a friend for help when you need it. In fact, if the tables are turned and someone comes to borrow something from you, keep in mind that God has entrusted the item to be loaned into your care in order for you to be a blessing to others.
So, when you are in need and go to a friend for help, it is your responsibility to return the borrowed item when you are finished with the project for which it was needed.
I wrote this poem several years ago as a response to a good friend who always seemed to be borrowing my tools and forgetting to return them. I didn't want to be unkind but, at the same time, I needed the tools that he had borrowed.
I hear a lot of Christian folk talking about "burning a copy" of a CD for a friend. That is just fine as long as the software on that CD was created by the person burning the copy. If the CD being copied was originally a purchased item, then the person burning a copy is stealing unless they are making a copy to be used only for backup.Now let me think! As I recall,
Was it a week? Or two? Or three?
The last time that I heard from you,
And the last you thought of me.
I was minding my own business.
Busy with my life.
When you called me on the telephone.
You sounded deep in strife.
With pressing words, in heavy tone,
You swayed me as you pleaded
To borrow something right away,
That I owned, and which you needed.
With my consent you chuckled
How I had saved the day,
And said, you'd be right-over.
You showed up right away.
Now, I've needed what you borrowed
A time or two myself,
Since the day you hurried over,
And pulled it from my shelf.
And the task for which you used it
Has been completed for some time.
And I doubt you meant to steal it,
Or commit some other crime;
But it leaves good folks to wonder
At your blindness to discern,
Twix your readiness to borrow,
And your slowness to return.
Hurry back with it, too. Please!
I'm creating this document using Microsoft Word. When I installed the product on my computer I clicked on a button labeled "I Agree." I didn't take time to read the documentation provided above that button because I knew what it contained. Part of what I agreed to is reproduced below. Therefore, if I make a copy of the CD and give it to another person, not only have I stolen from Microsoft, and, from God, I will also have told a lie. Microsoft may never find out but I'm not nearly as nervous about Microsoft as I am about my Lord.
Applications Software. You may install, use, access, display, run, or otherwise interact with ("RUN") one copy of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, or any prior version for the same operating system, on a single computer, workstation, terminal, handheld PC, pager, "smart phone," or other digital electronic device ("COMPUTER"). The primary user of the COMPUTER on which the SOFTWARE PRODUCT is installed may make a second copy for his or her exclusive use on a portable computer. . .You would be surprised at the things you have agreed to if you will take the time to read the EULA (End User License Agreement) next time you install software. You can usually find it in the software you have already installed by clicking on "Help" in the toolbar at the top of the page.
BACKUP COPY. After installation of one copy of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT pursuant to this EULA, you may keep the original media on which the SOFTWARE PRODUCT was provided by Microsoft solely for backup or archival purposes. If the original media is required to use the SOFTWARE PRODUCT on the COMPUTER, you may make one copy of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT solely for backup or archival purposes. Except as expressly provided in this EULA, you may not otherwise make copies of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT or the printed materials accompanying the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.
Well, I suppose you are beginning to get the point I've tried to make concerning stewardship. To boil it down to the basics you may just think of good stewardship as being an honest person. If you turn the tables and, instead of being a steward of God's property, you were the owner of property and I was selected to be the steward of what belonged to you, wouldn't my honesty be one of the first things you would be concerned about when you checked my references?
I'm sure that's about the same method God uses before deciding whether or not to hand over His property to our care. Are you honest enough for God to trust you with small things? If so, He'll probably feel comfortable trusting you with bigger and better things. But, if He can't depend upon your honesty in the care of little things, He'll just keep looking for someone else to handle the affairs of His more expensive items.