Sometimes we are blessed with being in the right place at the right time. Last Saturday I was blessed with being a part of a seminar held by the Iverson brothers. Both of them have a way of getting across the message of striving for the best. There were two reasons, though, that I should not have been there: 1st It was for young men from ninth grade to 25 years old and 2nd I was supposed to be helping my wife pack up our stuff from the house we moved out of in Charlotte. But when I found out that Spencer Iverson was going to be speaking, I felt like I couldn't miss it. I know Spencer from YTB and from his 3CEOs program. He's a great motivater and it was an excellent thing that Marja and Shanna did to get him and his brother there to talk to the young men in Charlotte. Young men today need to be motivated to strive for success. They live in a country that has opportunities that no other country has and they should reach for the best they can be.
One thing I regret, though, is that I was asked to be on a panel to answer questions at the end. All the men of “some years” were asked, so I wasn't being singled out. My regret is that I commented on a question by one of the young men and didn't do a very good job of articulating my answer. So I am going to clarify it here.
I do agree that young men today need to try their best to be successful. In today's society that usually means financially successful – to be rich. I had two points I wanted them to consider. First, when you become successful realize that as hard as you worked to get there, you only did it because God blessed you with success and, for that reason, you should give back to him to show your appreciation. God determined in what country you would be born, he determined what family situation you would be in, he even determined what types of struggles you would go through to make you into the man you would become. Any success you have must be credited to him.
Second, not everyone chooses the path of financial success and that's okay. They decide to pursue a different path and because it is different it may very well be a path akin to poverty. Now poverty is a relative thing. I've lived in two different developing countries and I've seen real poverty. I left the USA to move to Africa. When I moved I was living at the so-called poverty level here. In Africa, I was probably making more money than ninety percent of the people in my host country even though I took a pay cut to go there. Anyone visiting us from the USA would have still said that we were living at the poverty level. My point being that, in a sense, someone who decides to involve themselves full-time in the Lord's work is not likely to be considered rich unless they leave this country and then, only by those among whom they are living. When they return home they are likely going to live at or slightly above the poverty line. That's part of the choice.
Now, which is more noble – to live at the poverty line and work full-time for the Lord or to accept God's gift of making money and become financially successful? It depends. It depends on what one does in both cases. The full-time worker can waste the church's money. He can just drift along halfway doing the Lord's work and if that is so there isn't much honor in that. The rich man can spend all his money on himself, care very little about anyone other than himself and as Jesus says just be concerned about making more so he can “build bigger barns.” Nothing honorable about that either.
So, which is more noble? If lived right, both are equal. The full-time worker or missionary dedicates himself to reaching the lost, feeding the hungry, caring for the widow or at least, trying to make sure that it gets done. He cannot do those things without money and that's where the rich man, if he is living right, becomes noble – not because he is financially successful but because he uses the riches God gives him to help the full-time worker or missionary accomplish these things. This should be a partnership between us. I believe that is what Jesus intended for His body – the church.
Those who are financially successful should not look down on those who are not and consider them beggars or losers. Neither should the full-time worker or missionary in the Lord's kingdom look down on the financially successful as spiritually challenged. Both should look at each other with mutual admiration rejoicing that God gives different gifts to His people to accomplish His work. Choose you this day (or some future day for the young folks reading this) which path you will take, do your best and know that you have chosen to take a noble path that glorifies God. With God's help we will together accomplish great things for the Lord.