Your Master, Your Money & You 06

Are you entrusted or entitled? That is the question that determines whether you are obedient or disobedient, right or wrong in your view of possessions and stewardship.

An entrusted person is grateful for every “good and perfect gift” that comes down from the Father. Every nickel and dime we have in our possession is a loan from God. Truly He is the owner of it all. An entrusted person understands that “the cattle on a thousand hills” have God’s brand on them. An entrusted person understands that God’s ownership extends from the greatest to the least; from the inconsequential to the most impactful of our gifts. It all belongs to Him. The entrusted person knows this, and responds gladly and cheerfully to requirements to give, to share, to release resources that were never theirs to begin with. They are stewards, managers, not owners.

An entitled person is secretly comforted by the belief that what they have is owed to them simply by virtue of their being born. They are seldom grateful and then only symbolically so. They keep, they hoard up, they share stingily, if at all. Their hands firmly grasp their possessions, and they release them with the joy of donating a bodily organ. It’s a characteristic of the last days that we are seldom grateful to God or anyone. This lack of gratitude is a telling symptom of an entitled age. When we are entitled, we trust what we have… not the Giver of all gifts. IT all belongs to us, we believe, and we alone are to benefit from that which is “ours.”

We are one or the other. Entrusted or entitled. The diagnostic method that is most accurate is how we respond to God’s call of stewardship… to manage resources… to give faithfully… to honor the Lord with the first fruits of the belongings entrusted to us.

We trust the Lord or we don’t. We are entitled or we are entrusted. Our giving tells the tale.

Which one of these are you?

FOR MEDITATION: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

FOR REFLECTION: Do you live an entitled life? How much does generosity mark your living and giving? If you really believe it all belongs to God, what are you doing with it?

 

Welcome to Fruit Cove! We're excited to help you take your next step. Choose from the options below.