Blogging Through Proverbs Part XV - 3:9-10

Studying: 2 Timothy 1-4
Memorizing: Romans 1:1-21
Thoughts: Good

"Honor the LORD from your wealth and from the first of all your produce; so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine." - Proverbs 3:9-10, NASB

I have heard these verses misused on a number of occasions. The health, wealth and prosperity crowd tends to love them, stressing the idea that if one just gives abundantly, he will become rich in material possessions. Let's face it, isn't that what's being said here, just give more and you'll be rolling in it, right? Not quite.

In my experience I have known wealthy believers, poor believers and everyone in between. I have known many believes on the "poor" end of things who have given generously to the Lord yet they won't be buying Apple stocks any time soon. So what does it mean when God's word says "your barns will be filled with plenty" and "your vats will overflow with new wine"?

Using good old Bibleworks I looked at these verses a little bit. Perhaps we lose something in translation, or perhaps we read the translation the way we want to read it, or perhaps it's a little of both. I don't know if anyone else thinks this way, but the word "wealth" to me often means "really doing well." If someone asks me if I'm wealthy by the world's standards, I say "no." We own no fancy cars. We don't even own our own house. Yet the word could also be simply translated "enough."

We live in a modest two-room apartment here in St. Petersburg. I don't mean 2 bedroom, just 2 room. In Russian apartments, you just rent the number of rooms you want and what you do with them is your business. Our two-room apartment is about half the size of our old house in Yazoo City and about twice as expensive each month. We've been contemplating how nice it would be to find a three-room apartment so that Isaiah could have his own room. Well, last night I went over to visit a Russian friend Kolya and his wife. They were married just last summer, and they live in a communal flat. It's a four-room apartment, where they rent two conjoined rooms and two other people rent the other rooms. They all share one kitchen and bathroom. I was struck last night when I first entered their humble abode. Their two joined rooms are about as big as our one front room. Suddenly, our place looked much bigger.

Looking at our lives we have "enough." I never once in my life remember going hungry. I never once remember not having clothes, or a roof to sleep under or a bed to sleep in. I have never gone cold. Would a larger apartment be nicer? Yes. If one opens up at about the same time will we look into it? Of course. But are we poor where we are? No. We are quite wealthy people. Not, perhaps, by the common understanding of the word, but we are indeed. We have "enough," no, we have more than enough! Laptop computers, toys, gadgets, gizmos, etc. We eat every night, not just milk, bread and butter, but meats with seasonings, vegetables well prepared, fresh breads. We enjoy flavors and textures. We relax and sip tea in the evening by the glow of the soft light lamp we bought at IKEA. I'm typing this very post on a rather nice MacBook. Are we wealthy? What percentage of the world's population has all of that?

My eyes are drooping, but I have more I want to ponder about this. To be continued.