Reorientation

"I encounter such constant and widespread lying about reality each day and meet with such skilled and systematic distortion of the truth that I’m always in danger of losing my grip on reality. The reality, of course, is that God is sovereign and Christ is savior. The reality is that prayer is my mother tongue and the Eucharist my basic food. The reality is that baptism, not Myers-Briggs, defines who I am. The reality is, as Leon Bloy so poignantly put it, that 'the only sadness is not to be a saint.'" -- Eugene Peterson

Lately I've had lots of conversations about the current economic crisis. People are scared. How far will it go? How much money will I lose? Will I lose my job, my home, my retirement?

I was talking to my sister earlier today about a financial transaction she was going to do. She'd decided what to do with all but $1,000. She said that she'd been praying about it - what to do with that last bit of her money that she was undecided about... I told her that maybe she should ask God what he wanted her to do with His $1,000.

I talked with a friend of mine yesterday, who just got back from a short term mission in Honduras. She was deeply impacted by the people there and the poverty. She experienced a change in her heart that she wants to last. Her values and presuppositions about what's normal were changed - reoriented.

It's easy to fall into thinking that the way we live and what we have is normal. We forget that the VAST majority of people on the planet do not live the way we do. We worry about missing a meal when many won't eat at all today. My kids both believe that they're entitled to a car to drive (of their own), cell phones, whatever clothes or jewelry, video game, etc. that catches their fancy. Meanwhile there are kids who can't grow hair because they're malnourished.

God blesses us so that we can be a blessing to others. Period. Not so that we can have a McMansion, or a great retirement, the latest gadget, etc. While there is nothing inherently wrong with being rich, we shouldn't think that it's an end in itself. We shouldn't set our heart on it or put our trust in it (as the current financial crisis make abundantly clear). Our hearts should be set on God - knowing Him and making Him known.

Maybe this financial crisis is part of God's heart of love for us - His mercy. Maybe it's an opportunity to reorient our minds and hearts.