Chapter Eight

Living It 

     The challenge of writing this booklet has been to ask myself how I am doing in the area of living simply and giving generously.  No one likes a hypocrite.

     So I looked one by one at the discretionary items I have mentioned.  I don’t drink coffee or tea, don't have cable or satellite TV, eat out only a few times a year, currently drive modest vehicles with over 100,000 miles, don't really take vacations, have no retirement savings, buy most of my clothes at thrift stores, and don't have any costly hobbies. The item that convicted me was soft drinks.  I loved them and used to drink a lot of them before writing this booklet.  That has changed.  Even this afternoon I walked by a soft drink machine, was thirsty, and had to make a decision. As ridiculous as it sounds, it felt like it actually hurt to say no to myself and walk away.  The money I once spent buying soft drinks will enable me to feed and educate another child.    

      I have a friend who is the vice-president of a bank. After becoming aware of the needs of the world, he decided to sell his house and purchase one which cost less than half as much.  Hundreds of dollars per month became available that previously had gone to his mortgage, property taxes and insurance.  A few years later he did it again!  I helped him fix up the repossessed house he bought to make it livable. Hundreds more dollars per month became available.  He uses those funds to feed the hungry and get the Gospel to the ends of the earth. His material possessions have decreased but his eternal rewards have multiplied. 

     As a banker he understands investment strategy.  What kind of return can he expect from downsizing his house twice and giving away the difference?  Jesus said in Mark 10:29 that no one who gives up houses or land for His sake will fail to receive 100 times as much.  That’s a 10,000% return on his investment.  He is a wise banker.

     Another friend in southern Illinois, a former postal carrier, has given over $1 million to missions.  He lives very simply in a modest three bedroom house and drives an old truck.  He shatters the myth that one has to go on missions trips to get a heart for the world.   He has given a million dollars not because he has seen the mission field, but because he believes in obeying the commands of the Bible to reach the ends of the world.

     Let’s examine our lives and see how we can redirect some resources to what will count for eternity. 

But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.

Luke 14:13-14 (emphasis mine)

NEXT...