Sunday, January 31, 2021

Wolves Sheep & Goats

"Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves".
Matthew 7:15 NLB
Throughout my life I have always heard Matthew 23 (the chapter on Hypocrites) preached towards regular Christians. As humans (Christian or not) we all have areas of our lives that we are blind to. Psychology calls it denial. We say certain things are important but in reality we compromise on those very things all the time. We may be blind to how we do this but trust me, others are not. They will get grumpy and call that person a "hypocrite!" Now it is completely valid to be frustrated with a person's inconsistencies but that isn't what Jesus is talking about in that teaching. He was talking about how to spot dangerous people in leadership.

One day when I was really struggling with some really bizarre things said to me by a particular Pastor, the Lord brought to my mind this chapter. He pushed me to read it. Thinking he was talking about me & my own inconsistencies I bucked it. I thought, "Really God? I don't need to hear this right now!" However I caved in and as I read it I realized that Jesus was talking about LEADERSHIP in this section not regular Christians. It is actually a warning for us to be careful about those we allow to lead us…... they might be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
In the same way that we are all shocked and disgusted with some of the stuff that comes out about religious leaders Jesus was equally as passionate trying to warn us about this danger. He is not surprised that treacherous men or women weasel their way into church leadership. He does not endorse this but instead is the one who allows them to be exposed. Ephesians 5:6-11 Read Matthew 23, Jesus uses some pretty strong language trying to express the importance of using wisdom and discretion when picking a church and funding it. Warning us to be careful is the opposite of asking us to just blindly trust anyone standing on a stage………
What is a wolf? In a way I had assumed that Wolves and Goats were just different versions of the same person but I started to see that this was not true. They are different. So before we figure out what a wolf is we need to understand what a goat is. A sheep is a real Christian. Wolves and Goats are the people who regularly attend church who are not actually Christians. The church is full of all three.
Matthew 26:31-46 discusses the Sheep and the Goats. The difference between the two is how they actually treated people in everyday life. What it looks like to me is this: Goats are just regular people who go to church and live their lives according to the values they were raised with. So if a person was raised in the inner city they will have morals that will reflect that world. If they grow up in a hard working blue collar family they will live their lives according to the good things that life taught them but they also have the same blind spots and weakness their friends and family have. If they lived in a white collar family, again they will embrace a white collar worldview and that will be the lens that they use to prioritizes their choices in life. None of this has anything to do with being a Christian. It is just the way we were raised.
A sheep takes ALL of that.... the good the bad and the ugly and over his lifespan he re-evaluates it against scripture. "Is what I was taught about right and wrong the same as what Jesus teaches?" Then they ask the Lord to reveals to them their weakness, false beliefs and blind spots. The Lord is faithful and he will guide his sheep and present opportunities to make different choices. The sheep will eventually make changes: they start treating people just a little bit different then they used to. Over time we can see a difference. He is not a model citizen over night. Faith and pressing in (prayer) to God keeps the sheep moving in the right direction and the grace of God (forgiveness) cuts them the slack they need as they learn.
It is not fair to judge a person who came from an awful upbringing with the same expectations as someone who grew up in a reasonably healthy family. We need to extend the same grace we were given (at salvation & in life) to others, as they learn. Luke 7:47 A person who was raised in a really harsh situation or coming out of addiction will come across pretty bad in the beginning and honestly it is difficult to tell if they are a sincere convert or not. Extending grace doesn't mean leave yourself unprotected it means don't snub them until they live up to your expectations. Find safe neutral ground, bring a friend and met them there. I am not talking about an X romantic situation here. I am talking about regular people at church you interact with but are not completely comfortable with because they have a different background then you do. Love them to the level that you still feel safe in. Don't write them off as a wolf right from the outset. Don't leave yourself exposed either. They need Jesus. They want Jesus and they WILL FALL, protect yourself.
Also it is true life can throw us curve balls and we completely blow it, stop trying or whatever but at some point a Sheep will dust themselves off ....and try again, Proverbs 24:16. If a person is a true believer he will again make it his goal to live his life with the desire to please God. Selfishness is not his motive, nor is cleaning up her image or damaged control from a major crash and burn, nor scurrying on a hamster wheel to please some "big important person" ......but a dedicated desire to please God. Acts 5:29 One day at a time, one issue at a time, God teaches them how to take the "high road"........ his "high road". Matthew 7:13-14
A goat just goes about business and allows the society she grew up in, or the current popular opinion, to be what determines good or bad. That is good enough for her. He is fine. He thinks of himself as a Christian but his definition of a Christian does not require a changed life. It does not make him uncomfortable. It does not raise the bar. She is fine the way she is, God "gets it." Everything he wants to do is somehow justified and God understands. The Goat rarely sees a need to reevaluate. The goat also sees the grace of God and the forgiveness of God in a way the bible refers to as "license". Jude 1:3, 4 Titus 1:16 which is; "Everyone sins so it doesn't matter what I do, the blood of Jesus covers me!" Unfortunately God does not forgive the unrepentant person. Before we can experience the forgiveness of God we need to understand that we have grieved his heart. Matthew 5:17-20 We are the ones who need to "get it" not God.
If the goat does feel the need to change it is because he wants to fit in with those around him. He does not allow God to set the bar in his life thus influencing society but instead just complies with society allowing it to be the bar he lives by. This person either does his "own thing" or follows the crowd but he is not actually trying to follow Jesus and his teachings. The word "Christian" means "church goer" or a "good person" who believes in a deity. It does not mean a Disciple of what Jesus taught.
A wolf is a player. The word "hypocrite" is the word they used for an "actor", so it is a person who ACTS or "plays the part" or as we would say "a Player". Other terms we may use are "a user", a" con man", a "bully", a "snake in the grass" ......a "narcissist" , a "criminal" and so on. Life is a game that is to be played and church is just another one of the playfields she likes to use. "Anyone who takes things seriously is a sucker and deserves to get taken advantage of" can be their life's motto. They may or may not have a conscience.
Sometimes a wolf is a person who is simply trying to utilizing the advantage church membership can bring. Yet he is still deceiving people because he doesn't believe any of it. The wolf KNOWS what he is doing. He knows he is playing people. He knows he doesn't really embrace all this stuff. He is simply playing along with the church game because he wants something...... popularity, friends, entertainment. Maybe he is making business contacts, or looking to increase his customer base, looking for a spouse, girlfriend/boyfriend or is a sexual offender that is looking for their next victim. They are not Christians but a person working a naïve and trusting crowd for their own gain.
If a wolf is in an official teaching position they will weave scripture around in such a way that it exploits scripture for their own personal gain, which is generally money or popularity protected with unchallenged trust. They will quote Psalms 105:15 "Don't touch God's anointed!" The problem is a wolf is not anointed by God. He is a hijacker. God protects his real followers but imposters he asks us to expose. The bible does not support having blind faith in leadership but this idea has been weaved into our thinking over the ages. The Pastor I grew up with regularly would tell us to go home and check up on what he taught us. He TRAINED us to challenge the pulpit and test what we heard. Honest people do this. If a person is not hiding anything then they don't mind when someone checks their facts. If an error is found then they want to correct the error. A deceiver will fly into a rage and launch personal attacks in an attempt to derail you. My Pastor was a humble sincere and dedicated man. I learned though he is not necessarily the norm! In addition to Pastors who are sheep there are goats behind the pulpit as well as wolves.
The traditional format; a big stage with large crowds staring at one person is a formula that draws in the narcissist like a magnet. Trying to keep them out of that format is like swimming upstream. In addition we are a narcissistic society so we reinforce this problem. Narcissists have great stage presence and we love that but they are thin on character which blindsides us. Also the culture in a large group re-creates High School. The church is a great place for people with what I call "unmet high school needs" to get a second chance at popularity. I have seen many ugly ducklings rise to "greatness" in a church setting. So even when people are sincere in the desire to serve God the dynamics of the popularity game can be a huge distraction. It redirects the allegiance from dedication to God and his word to a dedication of trying to fit in with a new crowd. A Queen Bee wolf will create an underground set of expectations that fly under the radar of the legitimate authority driven by her insatiable jealousy. (dress codes, shunning singles, ugly or pretty people, rich or poor people, pet legalistic beliefs like no TV or socially banning birth control and so on) By creating her own "legal system" she usurps the authority of scripture with her authority, her definition of what a lady does or a Proverbs 31 women is like. Table manners can become more important than feeding the poor…. "They lack manners!" "They have a messy house!" She is a King Saul or the older Brother Ruben. If you don't comply with her implied demands she will "cast you off the island", "banish you from the tribe" or in the case of church no one speaks to you until you comply or just give up and simply leave….."That church is sooooo rude!"
The Sheep Pastor can be oblivious to the underground power games being played out in his congregation or at a loss as to how to handle it. Remember this brand of wolf is a Eddy Haskell and they kiss up to the official leadership in order to siphon off the power to use for themselves. They are a "leader" among peers. It is naïve to think that the church is immune to what NORMALLY happens in large groups. Jesus wasn't. He warned us to beware of this. He told us NOT to blindly trust leaders but instead test their fruit (actions). Matthew 7:16
The point is a wolf is intentionally deceiving people about who they are and what their intentions are. A goat is oblivious. He may not agree with some of the stuff he reads in the bible but will readily admit it to people who are like minded or won't give him a bunch of grief. With a goat it is more of a different opinion then a desire to con or mislead people. Though I have to warn you this is a slippery slope. When does keeping our real beliefs secret switch from privacy to deception? The reality is wolves are everywhere not just church. Church is just one of their many hunting grounds. We can find them at work; the guy who steps on everyone to further his career, employee theft & white collar embezzlement. They can live in your neighborhood causing havoc and they bully in a school yard.
Living in a dreamy fantasyland that church should just naturally evolve as a safe happy place by itself is unrealistic, yet we do want this to be so. In reality it is a human institution filled with sinners that welcomes anyone who walks through the door. There really isn't much discretion. The fear of becoming a controlling church outweighs the fear of wolves on the prowl. The reality is people have grievances, legitimate or not. It would be nice if the institution of church would create a clear grievance structure within their system as instructed in scripture. I Corinthians 6:1 Accept the reality; people need a place to vent. Without this structure in place gossip becomes the venue of choice. People will take situations into their own hands if no one else will deal with it. They will accuse people of being a wolf over minor offenses and turn a blind eye to hideous offenses because the guy was so charming. Yet even with a clearly defined checks and balances wolves sneak in. (background checks are now required for Sunday school teachers). We will still need to watch our back. When we get to heaven THAT is where the real weeding process happens not here. A wolf is simply not welcome there. Matthew 13:24-29
What can we do to protect ourselves from wolves? I suppose the biggest thing is to seek GOD not man. There is a lot of pressure out there to fit into a church and comply with its little subculture. In order to survive in life we need to appease these various cultures like church, work, family, the neighborhood etc but don't let them pressure you into dismissing the voice of God and his leading in your life. Seek HIM first and let all that other stuff sort itself out Matthew 6:33. When you hear a "sour note," an odd comment or inconsistency that doesn't quite add up…… you see little flashes of fur instead of wool coming from a person or a group of people do not dismiss it. Do NOT feel obligated to give them a special pass just because of the position they might hold. But also don't over react becoming suspicious of every little thing. Wait and see, pray and don't take a risk until the question has been answered. Sometimes you have enough information that you can address the situation in the formal sense but so often people are so suckered by these people it backfires. So just be careful.
Jesus said "Be as innocent as doves but as wise as a serpent" Matthew 10:16 which means live a clean life but don't be gullible. This is hard to do. Good clean people tend to be trusting and naive. People who are wise to the ways of the world tend to have lived a pretty rough life and can be cynical about everything. As Christians we need to learn from each other's wisdom. The Rough need to learn from the innocent. The innocent need to learn from the reformed ruffian. As we seek God in prayer and read the bible and start to incorporate it into our lives we will start to understand what God "feels" like. The BIBLE is your measuring stick not the sermon. Just like a person who deals with money all day when we run across a counterfeit we will get a cold chill up our spine…. "Something is not right!"
What do you do with someone who has already been mauled by a wolf? It never works to discredit their experience. You may look at the person and think "Ahhh, he was more of a coyote then a wolf!" Or you may think "Were you blind? That guy is so obviously a jerk! Why did you ever give him the time of day?!?" Wolves prey on the weak or at least the weak spots. This person had a weak spot that was exploited. You have them as well. Do not gloat, set the judgment aside and be compassionate. IF every creature could hold their own against a wolf then they would have starved to death. As it is they circle until they find a soft spot and then go in for their kill. So just be understanding and listen. Don't grieve the Holy Spirit and act like Job's comforters. God did not support that tactic. There will be a time to create a plan of action in the future but the first line of defense is to clear out all the fog hurt feelings create so the sunshine of wisdom can shine bright down the road. Shine that light too soon and they will simply squint and back off from you. Your light is just a reflection in the fog. Wait until the fog clears to speak truth. I know this can be hard to do for some.
Do not try to force the mauled person back into the environment that they were burned by but instead allow them leeway. Remind them that it was actually the wolves that put Jesus on the cross, so he understands. Judas was a very good friend of Jesus' but he was a wolf and he sold his buddy out for a few coins. It is safe to read the bible and seek Jesus. God is faithful he will restore you. The Lord is on YOUR SIDE not the wolves. Psalms 118:6 If legal action is necessary then walk with them through that. Taking that step can be almost as awful as what happened. So this choice can be a struggle to make and impossible on their own. Encouraging them to sweep it under the table does not help others. Pushing someone ahead of their comfort level can make them run for cover. Sometimes just sitting there can help. Healing takes time and love. Love washes out the infection bitterness can bring. Being in isolation creates a hard heart. Buck the temptation to just back off until all the drama blows over. Do what you can.
As far as church is concerned, there is only ONE VERSE on the topic. Hebrews 10:25 . It simply says "Don't forsake meeting with other believers." If this person can't stomach church meet with them for coffee on a regular basis until they are strong enough to handle it or find a small group of believers that meet on a regular basis and use that as your church. Starting a home church is becoming a common thing. Doing "church" in these ways does not defy God at all. It just goes against tradition. Trust me God is more concerned with restoring the heart of a loved one that protecting a tradition.
Remember this person, the wolf, was not your "salvation" Jesus is. Giving up on Jesus because the devil played a player and then in turn they played you, plays right into the "master game players" hand (the Devil). Don't allow him the satisfaction. Remember: God is good. He loves us. He is your hiding place. Psalms 32: 7 Invite him into your hiding place he will comfort you.


 

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Lottery winner!


A few weeks ago I was in the break room at work and everyone was chattering about their lottery dreams.
"The amount is HUGE!"

 Someone else asked me what I'd do if I won. I was oblivious to the fact lottery fever was going around so I grumbled something stupid. "NO! No you don't understand this one is sooooo huge you can do ANYTHING if you win!"
I blew them off......... but it got me thinking.
 
After work I stopped at a 7 11 and purchased a ticket.

"I can't NOT get one.... not with all this excitment going on!"
 
My thinking was this: Winning the lottery is a miracle. I only need to buy ONE ticket. If God wants me to win, I will win. IF God does not want me to win I could buy 10 million tickets and he will not allow it to happen. I am simply wasting my money. In reality all I am doing is donating money to the Government. Do I really want to do that?  

I got to thinking, I need to put a new roof on my house and my car is starting to get older. It is fine but it is rounding one of the far turns on the track. I need a new fence. I had some medical expenses that ate up a good chunk of my savings. The list goes on.
This roof thing is haunting me. I can't afford it.
Boy would I love to win the lottery…………

I've been bit by the lottery bug.
STINK!
I tormented myself with lottery dreams all night. Not only did I get a new roof in my dreams but only for the purposes of resale. I ditched my entire house moved to a different state, and went on extravagant trips bringing all my friends. I bought all these clothes that cost way too much. Oh and I gave a bunch of money to charity as well…..of course. The lottery rips the lid off of fantasy. Instead of simply buying a new roof I am a world renowned jet setter doing all this stuff I never cared about a couple of hours ago.

I of course…. didn't win.
 I guess that was not my week for ridiculously extravagant miracles; however it was for someone else. Someone did win the lottery. I guess I can pray for them and rethink all my own dreams so they become a little bit more reasonable.

In my fantasy world I wanted to buy a little condo not too far from the beach in Monterey California. My Dad and his wife moved to Cali for his retirement. It is impossible to visit them now. His wife just gets so worked up over having company. She starts out very gracious and wonderful but after a few hours she deteriorates into a  total stress monster. She is that persnickety aunt. Everything must seem perfect to her on a microscopic level.

My last visit she found a dot on the rug and she was reduced to tears. Really I think  a visit that last only about 2hrs works, anymore and things start to fall apart. If I had my little condo by the beach I could simply drive home again just like I used to. "See ya! Sorry about the rug!" Then again California is pretty long. It could end up being an incredibly long drive.

Besides does the lottery give you the right to ditch the drama queen in the middle of one of her performances?

I suppose not.
In the real world what I did was explain to her that she does not need to replace the ENTIRE carpet, but instead simply cut the two pieces of thread off that had tar on it.

However her eagle eyes discovered tar on the tiles in the entry as well. I grabbed my Dad who was beside himself. (He is too old to deal with this now and it was him who tracked tar "throughout" the house.) We got out of there and went to the store and bought "goof-off".
She had the chance to cool off…..we escaped. The dot was eventually managed.

The lottery would not have made that day any better in the least. The solution was the same either way. Family drama will play out no matter how much money you have. In fact lots of money might make it worse actually. What if she had decided the only solution is I buy her a new carpet since it was MY DAD that ruined her rug? (Who care that they are married) A relative with money creates this sort of weird logic.

The next morning my dad decided to get the newspaper.  This would require going outside. He dug his tar covered slippers out of the trash……….

Really I wanted the condo as an escape in order to write. I could just jump on a plane, run off to the beach, with my new puppy curled up next to me and effectively crawl into a cave and go off into another world.
Of course I am doing that right now. (writing)

Just leave the airplane trip and packing luggage out. Instead I am on my Deck listening to lawn mowers and birds versus at the beach listening to the wave's crash and seagulls.

The reality is it is much faster to simply walk out to the deck and set up camp than fly off to another state and set up camp…….. though it would be fun to do that.
 I am not sure how much writing I would get done after spending half the day traveling.

If I won the lottery I could stay for several months!

Then again I could just transfer there. My company does have a location near there. I probably wouldn't live in Monterey specifically but I could be a reasonably short drive if I wanted to.

Arg….. I really don't want to move. What a hassle.

The reality is I could move to Monterey RIGHT NOW if I REALLY wanted to…… I just don't.
 I mean I could start making a series of decisions that in the end would put me in Monterey. The question is: "Is the trade off actually worth it?" Is it worth giving everything up……. everything I have here to get the unknown that awaits me there?

Maybe I could just go there for a vacation some time.

Several years ago I was dating a guy who was an electrician. He did some work on a Movie Producers vacation home. It was a 5000sq ft one bedroom house. I kept thinking…..wow this place is really cool but my house is better I have three bedrooms. He only has one bedroom.

I looked around. "How did they use up 5000sq ft? 
"What do they have that I don't?" I have a couch….They have a couch. I have a fireplace. They have a fireplace. I have an office they have one. They have a TV. I have one. The list goes on. Everything they had I had or I had access to one if I really wanted it.

I admit they had MORE & BETTER than I did. I only have ONE fireplace. They have one in every room. My fireplace has rocks around it. They had a gold plated fireplace.

I suppose if I wanted to I could buy a hunk of metal and spray paint it gold. It would pretty much LOOK the same. Do I want a GOLD fireplace? Not really, I like my rocks. The reality is I only need ONE fireplace to enjoy a fire. Having more fireplaces will not increase the enjoyment of a fire. It just creates more places a draft could develop.

They had 15 remotes.
I can't see how that would increase the enjoyment of watch TV. As it is the remotes I do have, have endless buttons I don't use or even care to figure out. Why would I want a pile of remotes with endless buttons to confuse and frustrate me? At what point does greed reverse from pleasure to giving in to a sense of drowning…..or even a compulsive hording?

They are hording remotes.

They can have them. I mean I could do that too if I wanted….collect a bunch of remotes. I am not interested.

They hadn't visited their vacation home in 2years at that point. In fact with all of that…..they had only been free to enjoy the place maybe five times. They worked insanely long hours. They have unfathomable amounts of money but work constantly so they never really seem to enjoy all they have.
I don't have tons of money but I ONLY work 40hrs……and I thoroughly enjoy what God has given me. Life is not perfect in any way but I do feel blessed none the less.

I say….……rent, stay in a hotel/motel or something. It is cheaper and a WHOLE LOT LESS STRESSFUL! Owning a vacation home….. building extra houses…… managing a household requires making decisions.....millions of decisions.


Hiring  people. firing people.  Everything always needs to be repaired at some point.
It requires letting other people spend your money. It requires trusting their judgment which can create sleepless nights. "Didn't I just approve a purchase of one of those? You want another one? Is this guy ripping me off?" Accusing staff you haven't seen for several years of being extravagant…..creates arguments, false accusations…..potential investigations. I am telling you it is much less stressful to check in to hotel.
 
The one time I did meet this bazillionare he was across a field waving at us as we drove by, he was driving a bulldozer. He was trying to figure out how to run it. His gardener was beside himself. They had rented the thing but wasn't able to find someone to drive it.

So the Producer thought it would be fun to try and bull doze the area himself. The gardener just shook his head. "He has NO CLUE!" The gardener had been assigned a task and the home owner was determined that his entire plan would happen that day even if it required him to learn a new skill. Admittedly though he looked like an eight year old playing with a big machine. He was grinning ear to ear as he diligently made a mess of his yard. I think the gardener was jealous.
He wanted to drive the bulldozer.

My thought was……he is on vacation and he is STILL working……trying to meet deadlines…..get the impossible done in an impossible time frame. Even on vacation he finds a way to "pull it off".

I was discussing the lottery with friends. Someone said "They all end up destroying their lives with drugs and alcohol!" My thought was if a person does not manage their life it deteriorates into shambles. It does not matter how much money you give them. They will still operate with the same style they always have and be destructive. The only difference will be how long it takes to complete their destruction.


A person has to decide to not live in a destructive way. The lottery will not help with that problem. Hitting bottom seems to work better then hitting the right sequence of numbers.

If a person is not afraid to work…..and work hard, they build. They build a life. They also end up giving time, energy and resources' that build others lives in the process. You reap what you sow Galatians 6:7-8. If they suddenly get a huge bunch of money out of the blue (like winning the lottery) they will build with that as well.


Another friend said "Money is a magnifying glass. It magnifies our character." If we are generous and kind, winning the lottery will only magnify that characteristic. If we live a life of laziness, self indulgence and destructive behavior winning the lottery will magnify that. It doesn't really change things. It just takes the way you are and exaggerates it.


Isn't the "lottery dream" is to be so rich we will able to quit working?

Yet so often the "rich" just continue to work and work even though they have a ton of money. Or the born rich get a job and earn their own money instead of live off of the family money. Anderson Cooper works. Paris Hilton works. Bill Gates is still working. He just switched jobs from Microsoft to running a non-profit.
Do we ever paid attention to that?


It is true that sometimes greed just drives them on. However it is also true that they for whatever reason, good or bad they enjoy working. Even if they stop earning money out right, they will quite often turn around and work at funding charities. They use their money to encourage others to work at their various dreams. They never stop building.


Do we feel obligated to spend our retirement developing others until we die or do we feel entitled?

"I earned it! I am spending it on ME!" Luke 12:48.
When you have a bunch of money the expectations on you change or should I say increase. The more you have the more people demand from you and expect. There is this assumption that rich people give and poor people get.

I think even in our meager state we are supposed to be giving a percentage of what we do have whether it is money or talent, a skill, or time, or even a compassionate heart with a listening ear. Whatever God has richly blessed us with we need to share it so others can grow as well. The nice thing about the Kingdom of God all these things have equal value in the eyes of God. Being rich spiritually is not about money. It is character. Revelations 3:17
  
Winning the Lottery or any other big windfall of money is just a different job or maybe another job trying to figure out how to manage it with integrity. As a Christian the expectations God will have from us on how we invest his blessing will be great and it is real. John 10:10 I believe that when Jesus talks about abundance he is talking about quality of life not greedy and opulence.


There is this thunk in my gut when I think about it………."So God are you saying that in a sense we can NEVER quit working?" Ecclesiastes 3: 22, 2:24 


 Even if I win the lottery. I realized EVERYTHING we do here on earth is about trying to stay alive. We need a certain amount of sleep. We need to eat. We need shelter and warmth. We need companionship.

Life is a treadmill.


If we embrace our treadmill and work as hard as we reasonably can in a way that will promote life without killing it. God will bless us……abundantly. We will find satisfaction in our work. We will be rich in God's eyes. Man may judge us or look down on us but God will be pleased with the fact I desire for quality instead of quantity.


I am actually blessed now. Life is not easy or perfect but I still see the hand of God in my life. Would I see the hand of God in the lottery? Would I miss the reality that everything would still be a gift from God? Would I try to take credit?


The rat race ends when we die. The lottery dream is in reality: heaven. When we have finished the race and fought the good fight it is then that we do not need to strive to maintain our life our existence. We will have transcended from this temporal life into eternal life. In that life we don't die therefore we do not need to work to maintain our existence. Now the work we do is because it is fun and not because "If I do not get this done........I could die!" 


 Lay up for yourself a savings account there and you will have a blessed eternity. Matthew 6:19
Hummmm Does this mean I do get a condo in Monterey or not?
I need to save for my roof and just forget about the condo.
Harrumph.
I need to seek the Lord and see where he leads. God is a God of miracles and he is amazingly creative. He will provide for my needs in ways I would never even think of.
Psalms 138:8
The Lord will work out his plans for my life,
For your faithful love endures forever.