Simple words, sacred meanings

Simple words, sacred meanings

I'm preaching at a United Methodist Church in Elk Grove Village this Sunday (it’s been almost five months since I’ve actually preached a “real” sermon--I might be a little rusty) and I've been asked to reflect on John Wesley's (that’s him wearing the iPod above) advice when it comes to money: Gain (or earn) all you can, save all you can, and give all you can. Wesley was the founder of Methodism (he lived for most of his life in England during the 18th century) so Methodists tend to pay close attention to his wisdom, but his words are for all to reflect on.
More specifically, I've been asked to focus on those first four words: Earn all you can. What did Wesley mean by that? He wasn't giving people the green light to make all the money they could by any means necessary. In fact, he instructed people to balance these four words (earn all you can) with three other words, love your neighbor.
I think we tend to take "love your neighbor" for granted because we might hear it so often, but it's powerful advice. As you earn a living, are you doing so in a way that does harm to your neighbor? Wesley used the examples of overtaxing or overcharging a person, but, interestingly, he also noted that it does harm to your neighbor if you conspire to put someone out of business. Loving your neighbor means loving (as Jesus astonishingly commanded us) to love your enemies, even those who you may be in competition with.
Wesley wasn't an economist, but imagine how different the world would be if you and I followed those four words (earn all you can) and those three words (love your neighbor). We may not change global economic systems, but we might begin to change something more important. Our hearts.

I’m sorry I haven’t been blogging much lately. Things are starting to get busier, which doesn’t leave as much time for this--hope to do more soon. In the meantime, we’re doing well (other than my son being sick right now).

Friday, November 6, 2009