The photo above is one I took of my friend Ryan Huffman's metal sculpture of John the Baptist. It was part of his senior art show, and personally, I like the idea of getting it, and my friend Ryan, a little exposure through my blog.
A couple of weeks ago, I was talking with a friend who had recently read John Piper's blog where he had talked about our economic stimulus checks and the glory of Christ. Piper had suggested that very few of us were really in dire need of our stimulus check, and perhaps we could all begin to dream of some person or some ministry which might make much of Christ because we treasured Him above some other way of spending this check.
I'm not writing this note to make anybody feel guilty about what they do (or have done) with their stimulus check. I'm writing because I thought Piper's blog entry was both creative and challenging. And my friend shared an even greater challenge. He said, you know it would feel kind of good to give a portion of that check, or even all of it, to a good cause, to fund some community endeavor, or to help out a person we know who is in need. But what if 30 people did that? What if 60 people did that? What if whole churches got in the mix? What kind of impact would that have? If 100 people gave $300 from their stimulus check to a cause--that's $30000 dollars. Can you imagine how quickly this would add up, and what kind of impact a group of people could have by this kind of gesture.
To me, it's pretty exciting to think about what kind of witness this might be to the rest of the world if we were willing to contribute to the work of a ministry, or to the aid of a neighbor in need.
As I've let this idea percolate over the last couple of weeks in my own mind, it's caused me to re-evaluate my own finances, and my own purchases. I'm not beating myself up over buying myself something that will be enjoyed, but rather, I'm reminded of the fact that money and gifts are not my treasure. Christ is.
May you take time to savor Him today!
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