During the summer of '09, the vineyard I attend has been going thru the 10 commandments as part of their Summer of Love series. Basically, identifying why the 10 commandments fall under the 2 most important commandments - to love God and love each other.
Anyway, this past Saturday Joe taught about commandment #8 - not stealing. You shouldn't steal things, even if you really want to. And to go further with that commandment, not only don't steal, but live generously. Give what you've got.
Immediately after I left church that night, Isaac and I drove to ashland to visit family. I slept almost the entire 3 hour drive. I woke up as we turned onto the street where Isaac's family live. I literally woke up as we passed by my brother-in-law's truck with the new tags hanging out of the license plate, almost touching the ground. This particular b-i-l is a complete jerk. Total jerk. I could have completely reasoned with myself on why it was okay to simply reach out and take the tags. He would have never known. But instead, I said out loud - "Thou shall not steal. Even though I really want to." I know better than to steal things. What would I have done had I not gone to church that night?
But then I started thinking about all of the different ways that I maybe didn't steal, but I wasn't generous. Like the other day when I went thru Arby's. I had a coupon to get a $5 sandwich for free. As I sat in line waiting for my order, I just beamed with joy about the great deal we got on our house (totally believe that was a gift from God) and just before I left for Arby's, I found out that I got a sweet, sweet deal on some appliances we needed. Anyway, I pulled forward in the drive thru and paid for the drink and fries, handed the man my coupon and waited for my food. I noticed that their was a lady in a truck behind me and then I remembered how the vineyard encouraged us that "small things done with great love will change the world" and one simple way to show that is by paying for the person behind you's food. But then I talked myself out of it, because I didn't have any cards. Lame-o. And then God reminded me how I had just been celebrating all that He had given me. that He's the provider of all good things. I ended up paying for her food and asked the cashier to tell her that God loved her. But as I pulled away, all I could think about was how far I have to go. While even though I have grown leaps and bounds in regards to giving money away, I clearly have a LONG way to go. This idea of being a servant and being generous is still not natural to me. There are moments when I hear a clear call, but there's also those moments where I want to steal or at least not give $6 away.
In small group last night we discussed this section of James 3
13 -16 Do you want to be counted wise, to build a reputation for wisdom? Here's what you do: Live well, live wisely, live humbly. It's the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts. Mean-spirited ambition isn't wisdom. Boasting that you are wise isn't wisdom. Twisting the truth to make yourselves sound wise isn't wisdom. It's the furthest thing from wisdom—it's animal cunning, devilish conniving. Whenever you're trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others' throats.
17 -18 Real wisdom, God's wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.
Once again, this evening I was reminded of how far I have to go. I got so ticked because I didn't receive this huge coupon book from one of my favorite stores... long story. But the point is that in the long run, it doesn't matter. It wasn't mine to begin with. This past week I have been reminded over and over again that I've got a lot to learn about commandment #8 and that I am not overflowing with mercy. And I don't treat everyone with dignity and honor.
2 steps forward, 1 step back....
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