Riches

When we are growing up, we don’t understand how the world looks at and deals with money and its value.  I saw my allowance of 50 cents a week definitely as riches to me at the time.  My husband will roll his eyes, but still laughs, when I recall a few of the stories from my childhood.  One such story involved what I thought was unexpected riches that came my way during a trip to the local furniture store near my childhood home.  I can still picture, through a child’s eyes, the huge fountain and pool of water surrounding it that welcomed us into the furniture showroom.  I was so taken by this magical fountain of flowing water that my parents allowed me to stay behind and sit on the edge while they roamed the store.  Then I saw a miracle – thousands of coins (it could have been less) in the pool surrounding the fountain.  I’m not sure at the time what took hold of me, but I knew I had struck gold – riches!  I gently started scooping coins out of the water, collecting them in my small hands.  All I could think of was, “I’m rich.”  Maybe I was even thinking of what I would choose to purchase with my newly discovered riches.  Then it happened!  I heard a voice and then a tap on my shoulder.  No, it wasn’t Jesus speaking to me, but another voice – the manager of the furniture store.  After all this time, I don’t recall his exact words, but it must have been close to, “Young lady, you cannot take those coins out of the fountain.”  I believe, at the time, I was probably embarrassed, realizing he was right – all those coins were not meant for me.  But maybe I was even a little disappointed, seeing my riches quickly disappear as my damp hands released each coin back to its original home.   As we grow up, we understand better how the riches that we have (or don’t have) affect our choices and decisions.  We work hard, often long hours, raise our families, and want them to have the best of everything.  I believe, most times, our intensions are good.  We want the best!  But do we lose focus on the true riches that can’t be accumulated in our pockets or deposited into our bank accounts?  When Jesus and his disciples were spreading the gospel, they travelled with nothing but the clothes on their back.  The disciples left everything behind, their jobs that supported their families, and opportunities to gain more riches that, perhaps, would create a better lifestyle.  Today, I must admit, that my childhood hands still crave to hold onto those newfound coins.  How many times do we struggle with holding onto our riches or leaving it all behind to follow the one true “fountain of life” that holds everything we ever need.   Join me in praying this week, “Jesus, help me to see that all my riches lie in following you.  May I be a good steward of all my talents you’ve given me, and always willing to release the coins you have blessed me with for the good of others. “  

“The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.” Psalm 119:72