"When Life is Good" September 24, 2019

     While travelling in Mexico, I was invited to have dinner with a young adult couple.  They said they would collect me at my hotel and take me to a nice restaurant of their choosing.  I really did not know what to expect other than renewing our acquaintance of two decades.  You see, I met the husband when he was just a young lad.  Since that time he married, divorced, and remarried again!  They showed up at my hotel right on time, driving a late model Audi wagon.  Of we went to have a fine dinner, and a fine dinner it was when the young husband began to share with me about their personal lives, I must admit I became somewhat apprehensive, hoping the conversation would not lead to family problems or relational, marital troubles.  Thank God it did not, on the contrary they both wanted to share with me and express their most sincere appreciation for how the Lord had used me and had made me a real blessing to them.  Thinking back to when I first befriended this young man; of course he was just a young school boy of junior high age; it became my constant concern to remind him to make sure he did his homework.  As time would have it, he grew up and started working and prepping used cars for sale alongside his uncle.  The value of those vehicles never exceeded more than three to five thousand dollars.  One day, I suggested to him or he told me his desire to do that type of business for himself.  I encouraged him and even offered to help him buy his own equipment to do that sort of work, to which he responded in the affirmative. Regrettably not long after that we repeated that scenario to the fact that his shop was robbed and all his equipment was lost.  But once again I felt moved by his great loss, and almost what served like a death blow to his dreams and ambition.  Once again, my willingness to replace his tools and equipment gave a real boost to his motivation and off he went to try again.  The Lord has been so faithful to him and his wife that now his young car dealership sells nothing but late model cars and trucks.  In essence, they wanted me to know how thankful they were to God for the way He used me in their lives and blessed them so abundantly

      As I was musing within myself I pondered the question, “When are we most likely to be careless and less watchful?”  In the good times or the bad times?  In the times of want or in the times of plenty?  In the times of want or in the times of plenty?  It is often in the sunnier time that we fail God.  “When the fish are jumping and the cotton is high.” Paul said he learned to be content in whatever state he found himself in, with little or plenty!  Moses warned the people when they would go over and possess the land and get vineyards and homes they did not earn, to be careful they did not forget or depart from the living God.

     So I come to the conclusion, as I would warn this successful couple to be real careful (not fearful!).  That they draw even closer to the Lord and show greater appreciation for the things of God and use the abundance to help others.  Always remembering where the Lord has brought us from is a good way to avoid bigotry, indifference and intolerance.  It is a sin against ourselves to lack mercy, kindness and gratitude.  After all, what do we have that has not been given to us!  Beware the good life.

~ Pastor John