If you work hard enough at it and apply some good wisdom and common sense you just might rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars into the millions. You likely will live something of the American dream. Unless too many misfortunes occur. This is surely a temptation to the follower of Jesus.
What is important for us who are followers of Jesus is to have a single mindedness in following him. That everything in our lives ought to be concerned with and reflect that. Too often we can actually end up centered on secondary matters, goals out of line with the single minded devotion to which we are called as followers of Jesus.
One of the worst, most subtle, and I might think most common traps for us may be when the end we are seeking seems to help us to live out devotion to Christ. But we don’t get to that by doing something else. One common example: the drive to “financial independence,” which actually is a fiction. One becomes entangled in the affairs of this life in ways one likely could never have anticipated.
We must pay careful attention and put into practice Jesus’ words. After warning his disciples and all who listened about the impossibility of serving two masters, God and Money along with implying the necessity of being generous to the poor, Jesus tells his followers to trust in the Father and his provision for what they actually need. The context is following Jesus. And then perhaps the key line in that passage and for this post:
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
If I could talk to myself some three decades back, this is what I’d say in regard to this: Live as simply as possible. Don’t get caught up into the system. Particularly avoid debt wherever possible, except for a modest house mortgage or student loan. Better to seek to trust the Lord for cash, or as much cash as possible. When you’re in debt you end up living like a slave to that debt. Start a modest savings, especially early on (in your twenties into your thirties) in a safe, modest and conservative investment. What I’m getting at here is seeking to be responsible. Keep reading Proverbs, the wisdom found in it. This has its place in this life. And along with this, above all, seek to walk closer to the Lord and become more like him, in fellowship with others and in mission. What we do matters, but even more important is the character out of which we do it. And give generously both to your church and to worthy causes, particularly helping the poor. Seek to grow in the grace of giving.
Even for us who did not do so well along the way, there’s still the opportunity, no matter where we find ourselves to live with this single mindedness. To do the best we can where we’re at and in dependence on God. To settle for nothing less than that.
To be single-minded is to set our hearts and minds and lives on following Jesus come what may to the very end.
Jesus community 