Jeff Adams

My life right now is very comfortable. I live in a nice house, drive a nice car, eat out whenever I want and can honestly say I lack for nothing. I am able to give generously to the church, several mission projects outside our church and even to some local causes. I have so much for which to be thankful.

Last evening, though, I was watching the news on television report on the economy, the housing market and soaring gasoline prices. Five minutes later I wondered if I would have a paycheck next week and whether or not I should start melting down gold jewelry to sell in order to avoid standing in the soup kitchen line another few weeks. I’m telling you that I could have sworn the news anchor was named Chick N. Little, and his message was basically this: The sky is falling!

Whoa! Let’s bring things into perspective. I don’t like to pay four bucks a gallon any more than the next guy. But, while I’m complaining about the price of gasoline, I’m still plunking down over $3.00 for a cup of designer coffee. I don’t even want to know how much a gallon that figures out to be! Yeah, I know. You don’t have to drive a cup of coffee to work. My point is simply that most of us in this country still have an amazing amount of disposable income that can be diverted in other directions. We slurp down water from plastic bottles we buy at the convenience store at a price per gallon more than we just paid for gasoline at the pump. Recession means we have to buy our bottled water in bulk from the wholesale club. And, remember that Chick N. Little also told us earlier this year that we were already in a recession. Turns out that wasn’t the case. The sky really didn’t fall. While true that things are tightening up, it still may not be the end of the world. Even if it were, I seem to remember something that Jesus said about being with us always, even to the end of the world.

This morning I was still having images of the Second Great Depression dancing in my head when I came across these words of the psalmist Asaph.

Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me; There shall no strange god be in thee; neither shalt thou worship any strange god. I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it. Psalm 81:8-10

The entire psalm is a contrast between the consistent infidelities of Israel and God’s complete and unfailing faithfulness. Even in the context of Israel’s rebellion, and with the memories of all his great deeds in bringing them out of Egypt, God challenges the nation to open its mouth wide and he will fill it. Not only that, the last verse of the psalm says that he want to fill their mouths with the very best.

He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee. Psalm 81:16

God wants to satisfy our needs and wants with the best. The disconnect is the simple failure to open our mouths wide.

But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me. Psalm 81:11

We are no better than Israel. When things get tight, instead of opening our mouths wide so God can fill them, we run off after other gods. There are always plenty of strange gods clamoring for our attention – the god of materialism, the god of consumerism, the god of credit cards and easy loans, the god of instant gratification, the god of pop psychology, the god of dependence on governmental programs and many more. And, if all those were not enough, there is alway the pantheon of Oprah’s gods.

Will we continue to make poor choices about spending money? Will we still avoid saving money like the plague? Will we still think the real problem is needing more money instead of learning to live contently with that which God has provided and adjusting our spending accordingly? Will we still refuse to go to that Dave Ramsey course at church and learn how to get out of debt and apply biblical principles of finance? Or, will we open wide our mouths and trust God to fill them?

Little babies learning to eat open their mouths wide, but sometimes don’t like what Mom stuffs into them. Sometimes it slides down their little faces or messes up their clothes. God sincerely wants to fill our mouth and satisfy our needs. Sometimes that means swallowing some bitter tasting stuff, or having to clean up some goop sliding down our faces. But, the more we grow, the more we learn to make the right decisions and everything tastes much better!

In my devotional book today I found this quote from John Piper. It’s good and I close by passing it on to you.

The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison but apple pie. It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but endless nibbling at the table of the world. It is not the X-rated video, but the prime-time dribble or triviality we drink in every night. For all the ill that Satan can do, when God describes what keeps us from the banquet table of his love, it is a piece of land, a yoke of oxen, and a wife (Luke 14:18-20). The greatest adversary of love for God is not his enemies but his gifts. And the most deadly appetites are not for the poison of evil, but for the simple pleasures of earth. For when these replace an appetite for God himself, the idolatry is scarcely recognizable, and almost incurable” A Hunger for God, Wheaton: Crossway, 1997, 14.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 at 9:42 pm and is filed under Scriptural Application for Everyday Life, Social Commentary, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.