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St. Paul School of Leadership & Discipleship Lesson 237 - THE REAL RICH MAN (Proverbs: The "Get Smart Book") By Frank Eiklor and the Shalom Team "Better is a little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure with trouble." Proverbs 15:16 It's splashed everywhere - ads that tantalize the senses that "more is better" and "still more is best." Words like "You deserve it!" and "You owe it to yourself!" cause even firm followers of Jesus to look over their shoulders to see if they are missing out on "the American dream," which is really the massing of material things. But even as a young believer fresh out of the Marine Corps, I remember meeting some of the wealthier folk and catching the unhappiness in their eyes and the large amount of pills even in their desk drawers. That's why Norma and I are constantly challenged to simplify our lives with "Do we really need this?" And "What do we have that we don't need but someone else does?" How much better to have less possessions nad more priority time wiht the Lord - to offer our children less toys to entertain but more of our time just train and love them. A wealthy man took his son to spend a couple of nights on a farm with what the rich man called "poor folks." on their return, he asked his son what he had learned. "I learned we have a pool that reaches our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have servants who serve us, but they have friends to protect them." The father was speechless. The son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are." Do you have Jesus in your home? Is the Bible an honored friend and prayer a daily privilege Does love fill each room? If so, consider yourself wealthy. Because you are! My prayer: "Keep my lifestyle simple and my love for You strong, my precious Lord Jesus." "Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ" (I Corinthians 11:1) Related Articles · More Articles Jesus said many would come in His name and deceive the hearts of the simple, sinful and proud. Eastern mysticism and meditation is a big thing in the gullible West. And one day a “world leader” will appear on the scene with the persuasion of a god and the heart of a devil. Jesus warns His children to know the Scriptures, live in obedience to the Father’s will, and stay alert to the signs of the times. They laugh no more. Now God’s description of how He will destroy the old earth and create a
new one makes perfect sense. The splitting of the atom turned many skeptics into believers.
After all, look what man himself is capable of doing with the atom and hydrogen bombs. Now
the fear is that nuclear weapons are being placed in the hands of madmen who wish to annihilate
their enemies. God has blessed man with incredible genius. We stand in awe as we watch men and women in a room full of computers and high-tech instruments guiding and landing spacecraft on distant planets. At that moment, we appear invincible. But then a mammoth tornado comes—or a terrifying hurricane—or rains that flood whole regions and never listen to our shouts to “Stop!”—or the shake that removes from under our feet any confidence or pride we carry, and leaves us numb with hardly enough breath to even utter the paralyzing word “EARTHQUAKE!”. And man is helpless in the face of it all! |
