Whose plan?

Yesterday we discussed how a ruler wanted to add a guarantee to his life's work. He wanted the promise of eternal life.

Jesus responded with a challenge: "follow me."

Hundreds of years before, a psalmist threw his head back and groaned. "Why do the wicked renounce God, and say in their hearts, 'You will not call us to account'?" (Psalm 10:13)

The wicked seek their own gain. But while they are pursuing what they want, God's ear is inclined to the helpful and orphan.

O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more. (Ps 10:17-18)

Unless our goals are melded with God's, we pursue our dreams selfishly. The God of the universe cares for the meek and the oppressed.

That was Jesus' message to the rich ruler as well: Shed your own goals and follow mine.

For the ruler, this was too great a price for eternal life. Obviously his wealth was his dream. Eternal life was more of an add-on, a nice medal to decorate the uniform. He walked away from Jesus.

He forgot what we must never forget:

The Lord is king forever and ever (Ps 10:16)

The to-do list

There may have been only one thing left to check off on the ruler's to-do list and he gave it his full attention.

So, when Jesus came through the area, the ruler asked a logical question of a religious teacher: "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"

We learn quickly that this man had wealth and, as a ruler, had authority.

In small towns today, the local newspaper will often interview graduating seniors. When asked about their goals, these 18-year-olds by a large majority responded, "to be rich and famous."

The ruler had arrived there. He had fame and wealth. Now he was in search of one more thing: a ticket to heaven.

He'd already started the process, in his own eyes. He kept the commandments. Was there anything else he needed to do?

Jesus turned the conversation on its ear with his answer: "There is still one thing lacking. Sell all that you own and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." (Luke 18:22)

Jesus knew the ruler had spent his life pursuing personal gain. Now this ruler wanted heaven - for personal gain.

This account from Luke is a strong statement about where we put our trust. Are we resting on our laurels, so to speak, gripping our own goals and hoping to add the veneer of heaven?

But there's more here. Jesus asked the ruler to become like him. Jesus asked him to shed that which kept him from God. Jesus laid out a new goal: to deny his own gain so that he could follow Jesus.

For this ruler, the idea of tossing aside his dreams to follow God's path was repulsive. He walked away from Jesus.

Tomorrow, we'll look at Psalm 10. There's more to be learned about personal gain there.

Freedom Finances: Save

My first savings account was seeded by the sale of a baby lamb. I was only 6 and had hand-raised the lamb from spring until fall, when it was sold.

“The money is for your college account,” my mother explained.

That was my first taste of savings accounts. Over the years, I watched my parents sock away every extra cent stoking their dream of ownership. We were farmers and so I had opportunity to raise many more animals over the years, funneling the income into my college account. I earned an English degree with the help of bottle calves.

“Treat your savings account like a bill,” my father told me many times. “Pay it with every other bill at the beginning of the month.”

Debbie commented last week on the value of a savings account. She called it an emergency account. I agree, although I might call it a dream account as well. Having a savings account prevents panic debt – that debt we incur because something new and unexpected hits us.

There’s freedom in planning ahead and setting aside. My parents bought their farm when I was 13 and had it paid off in 10 years. I went to college and came out with enough money to buy a new stereo system.

You can start now. Open the account and decide what you owe it each month. Pay that bill like any other, and consider it spent. It’s gone, no longer available to you except for pre-planned purposes.

Remember the ant from Proverbs:

yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.

Prov 6:8

Highways

I gripped the steering wheel fiercely for one doesn’t arrive efficiently in the city if one hesitates. “You drive different in Denver,” my kids tell me.

I do. She who hesitates misses the exit.

Looking ahead, I can see a gap in traffic that will let me move toward the exit. My goal is not to dart to and fro, but to get to my destination as simply as possible. I’m making the straightest line I can make for my target.

There’s a walking path down by the river that meanders through the trees and breaks free to view the flowing water. The path forks often, with the new little lanes wandering haphazardly through the countryside. Any path will get me back to the parking lot eventually but some take longer than others. There isn’t a straight line anywhere.

My son tells me that God doesn’t make straight lines. That's the domain of people: straight lines.

I had jury duty this week. I was caught in jury traffic for 3 hours, sitting in the courtroom with nothing to do, waiting on lawyers. I wanted to get to my exit but there was no moving. I had to look ahead. Would I get to the afternoon spa session with my daughter? Would I make the quiz practice?

I slid appointments here and there, not knowing when we’d be sent out of the courthouse. It’s hard to plan for exits when the traffic isn’t moving.

I find my heart longs for less of the four-lane highway and more of the river path. Where once I conquered and planned and scheduled, now I want to meander and contemplate and compare.

Oswald Chambers wrote about the haphazard being part of God’s order. I yearn for God’s haphazard, the walking on his path even when it’s the long way around and I can’t see the exits. Jesus didn’t carry a Daytimer and he didn’t refuse to spend three days in Samaria because he had an appointment in Caesarea.

Our world is different from his, but my soul longs for God’s haphazard today.

How does a follower of Jesus handle the four-lane highway of our age? I’m guessing it has to do with recognizing God’s hand in every moment and relishing each as a gift from him.