I’ve been challenged again! Last week we unexpectedly lost our car. As we were just coming off the M40 toward Bicester, ‘Faulty Anti-pollution’ flashed on the digital display, the ‘Engine Fault’ light came on and the car dropped in speed. We only had a few miles to go so we continued to the workshop we were attending and asked for recommendations for a garage where our car could looked at. At the garage we were told they couldn’t fix it and our car wasn’t safe to drive. So, we spoke to our insurance and arranged recovery back to Birmingham. The next day our regular mechanic looked at our car, took a sharp intake of breath, looked us in the eyes and shook his head. You know the look I mean. It was the end of the road for our car.
Immediately we started thinking about how we could get a new car and concluded we needed a miracle. Have you seen the price of second-hand cars recently? I was shocked! So, we had to pray, and God began to challenge me again: ‘Why do you want to own a car, Andy?’ God was revealing my heart, ‘for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ (Matthew 6:21).
God was challenging me about my relationship with the resources I have: my time, skills, possessions, and money. Did I see myself as the owner or a steward? God was reminding me ‘Every good and perfect gift is from above’ (James 1:17) ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it’ (Psalm 24:1). God owns everything, and I am called to be a good steward.
God takes stewardship seriously. In the parable of the talents, we see how displeased God was with the person who didn’t put the gift of resources they had received to work and instead buried them (Matthew 25:14-30). God sees our stewardship not only as a measure of how much we trust Him, but how much He can trust us. How we handle resources now, directly affects what God will release in our future (Luke 16:10-15). Jesus warns against the deceitfulness of wealth and the desire for things can be a barrier to fruitfulness (Mark 4:19). We cannot serve two Masters, we cannot serve ‘both God and money’ (Luke16:13).
When we enter this world, we come with nothing, and we can take nothing with us. But God, whose name is Jehovah-Jireh, will provide all we need. Yes, God gives us the ability to make wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18), but we are not to put our trust in the skills, possessions, and wealth we acquire. As the Psalmist wrote: ‘Some trust in chariots and some trust in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God’ (Psalm 20:7). Our trust is in our Provider, not the things He provides. This is the heart of a steward. Stewards manage the resources in line with the priorities and for the benefit of the owner. Therefore, stewards of God’s provision can be open-handed and generous. We don’t have to be like the rich fool who built bigger barns to store His grain and goods only to lose his life before he could enjoy them (Luke 12:13-21).
God was reminding me that when we get a new car, He will be the owner and He expects me to be a good steward. All I have, my time, skills, possessions, and wealth, belong to Him. He doesn’t expect me to be a close-fisted owner who hoards their resources, but a generous steward who serves a loving Master. A Master who watches how I handle all He has entrusted me with, to see whether I can be trusted with ‘true riches’ (Luke 16:11).
If we need a car, God will provide. I believe God will, but until then, we’re seeing God meet our needs in other ways. Our neighbours have put us on their car insurance so we can borrow their car. We’ve had lifts giving opportunities for conversations we would have never had. People have been brought together through lifts we’ve arranged. We’re getting to slow down, take time and see so much more of God’s creation as we walk. And of course, we’re getting healthier. God is Jehovah-Jireh, He will provide. It may not be in the ways I expect, but He will give me everything I need. My promise in return, is to be a good steward and avoid serving more than one Master.
Featured photo by Sven D on Unsplash
"Live to Serve" 