Gluttony 3

More thoughts on gluttony...

My theory of how we should use/possess money is related to how I view gluttony.  You will usually hear one of two approaches regarding Christians and money:

1) It's not wrong to have money as long as you tithe (10%) to God/church. 

2) It's not right for Christians to be rich or make lots of money.  We should live simple and not be wealthy.

The former preaches against the love of money rather than the possession of it, arguing that it's okay to have it as long as you don't love it.  The latter preaches against the possession of money, usually arguing something to the effect of, "If you still have it, how can you convince me you don't love it?"

The Bible teaches us "You cannot serve both God and Money."  Also, "The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil."

The Bible also reprimands the greedy by saying, "You have hoarded wealth...".  Jesus told us the following story in Luke 12:15-21:

Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'

"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." '

"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'

"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."

It is clear that we should not love money and wealth.  It is not our goal.  It is not our purpose to become wealthy.  Our purpose is to serve God and his Kingdom.  If we pursue worldly wealth, then we are not walking according to God's plan. 

And while we may certainly use money in God's service, the Bible also tells us not to hoard wealth.  What does that mean?  It means we should not keep extra wealth around that isn't necessary when it could be used for more important things or for helping others. 

This is how our use of money relates to gluttony.  It is not wrong to have it or use it but we should not consume (or store it up like fat around our waistlines) more than we need. 

I have no problem with Christians making millions of dollars doing honest work and business.  But how much of that do they spend on themselves?  Do they feel they have the right to use 90% of that just because they tithed 10% to their church?  Are they not still accountable for how they spend every penny?  Would they not also be guilty of "building bigger barns" and hoarding wealth when they build themselves mansions and buy lots of very expensive "toys"?

I know of one Christian business man who does in fact make millions of dollars.  But his standard of living is on par with someone making $30,000 - $40,000 a year.  No one would ever know how much money he actually brings in, and indeed most people around him do not.  What he spends on himself is a small percentage of what he could spend.  So, what does he do with his money?  Not only does he tithe to his church (and beyond) but he also supports many different kinds of ministries and specifically, he helps missionaries in his denomination establish businesses in "closed" (creative access) countries.  He has helped establish dozens of these enterprises in order to get the gospel into places that are difficult to reach.  No one can accuse him of hoarding his wealth.

I also know of a young man who does not make enough money to live on.  It's not because he's lazy, addicted or mentally impaired.  It's just that he has never had anyone to help him get a good start.  I expect that he will eventually establish himself and make enough to live on and help others.  But it will take time.  Right now, he sponsors a child in Haiti and gives a few dollars to his church on Sunday.  If you were to do the math, the money he gives to his church and child would probably be around 5% of his income.  Yet, it is still difficult and a sacrifice for him.  Most people with his level of income don't give a penny because they need it to eat on.  I believe this man is like the woman who gave a few pennies to the temple--Jesus said she gave more because he was giving all she had to live on.  It was a sacrifice.  Many of those giving large amounts weren't sacrificing, but giving from what was left over from an abundance.

We should not be gluttons for money.  We should use and give money; not love it and hoard it.

Gluttony

I've been thinking about gluttony lately. It is one of those sins we don't take very seriously in the American church. If we were to compare gluttony to adultery, they would come out at completely different ends of the "seriousness of sin" spectrum we have constructed in our minds or in our society. How many times have you heard of a pastor that has "fallen" because he committed an act of gluttony... and therefore had to step down from ministry in disgrace?

Yeah, me neither.

I confess to the sin of gluttony. And I haven't just committed an isolated act of gluttony... I do it regularly! Buffets and bars (of the salad/food type) are temptations I can't resist. What's worse, I often eat to stay awake while I watch a late-night movie, drive, or work at my computer. Nothing keeps me awake as well as eating. Over time, these actions have accumulated quite the display around my mid-section.

I know... I'm not alone. Perhaps you're right there with me. So many people share this problem that we rarely, if ever, hear taken seriously in church. And this is while America is one of the most (or is it THE most?) obese nations on the planet!

It is ironic that in a society that equates "fat" with "ugly" (here in The Location being a little overweight can be attractive, and at the very least is not detractive) and where you can search for hours in magazines and soap operas to find one image of an obese person without any success, that obesity is on the rise and is smashing records.

But this post isn't about obesity--it's about gluttony. Obesity is one of the the consequences of long term gluttony.

Gluttony, plain and simple, is eating more than your body needs. Our bodies only need so much. And for millenia humans on earth have mostly dealt with the issue of not having enough to eat. In poor and developing countries you hear people talk about average caloric intake of the population. Usually it is BELOW what people's bodies need. And so organizations like the UN's World Food Program try to get balanced meals to kids that include high levels of protein in order to up the calories they consume.

In America, people spend hundreds of dollars each year for gym memberships to go running on machines that are designed to burn up all of the extra calories we consume. Kind of funny. (It's too bad we can't capture all that energy and load it into the power grid. Actually, I just saw in a neighboring country to The Location some public exercise bikes in the park that are hooked up to what looks like water pumps. Not sure what they're pumping for.)

I have always bristled when people would suggest to me that I eat too much in explanation of why I'm overweight (like I needed it, thanks). I would point to my roommate in college who has always been something of a "rail." He would eat every bit as much as me--perhaps more--and would never get fat. Nope, always thin. I would completely envy his "metabolism." Yet, I am the one guilty of gluttony, not him?

Many people have said, "God just made some people fat and some people skinny. We should just accept who we are and how he made us." And for a long time, though I had wished God made me thin, I just accepted that this is how I'm supposed to be.

But now I am starting to see things a little differently...

My father has diabetes, my older sister is getting it, and I have high blood pressure. I know what's coming. If I don't change my weight, I will surely get diabetes in the future. The risk of diabetes is extremely effected by being overweight. If you can control your weight, you can actually prevent diabetes. (I know this isn't true for 100% of diabetes cases, but it is remarkably high.) There are a host of health related problems that are caused by obesity.

So, is this just how God designed me? It seems he didn't design our bodies to be overweight if by being overweight it causes all of these problems for our bodies.

If by eating more than I need I put on weight, the solution seems pretty obvious to me. I don't need to eat as much as I do. In different scenarios in the human experience on earth, this would be a huge blessing. I actually don't need to eat as much as my college roommate. If we lived together 3,000 years ago during a world famine, I might survive while he perished. It's not that God has cursed me with low metabolism--it's just that he has blessed me with not needing to eat as much as I do. (Not that I don't want to--desire/hunger is another issue.)

The solution to obesity, for me, isn't in trying to burn off all the extra calories I consume. That just seems silly. I mean, exercise is good for the body and good for the heart. But when you sit back and think about it, it is crazy--our bodies need a certain amount of calories, but we eat more, so then we do artificial activity just to burn off those extra calories. And what is even more funny--it doesn't even work that well. You see, our bodies crave equilibrium. So, if we are accustomed to eating so much and then all of the sudden we do new activity to burn off those calories, our body reacts by making us hungrier so we will consume more calories to make up for the ones we're losing. Exercise without diet change is a recipe for bodily disaster (in terms of obesity--it is still good for the heart). That is why any fast changes is our weight is not good. Our body will work against us. Slow change gives our body enough time to adjust to a "new equilibrium."

Not eating more than I need is the solution. Not committing gluttony, actually. (Funny how obedience to God's way is the best for us.) And this is where I must wage the battle.

When I was growing up my parents expected me to "clean up my plate." I had to eat everything set before me. Often, when we were clearing the table and putting things away, there would be a little leftover pasta or stuffing. My dad would ask me, "Do you want to eat this so it doesn't go to waste?" The idea is that if we threw it away, it would be wasted. But if I ate it--even though I was already finished eating--it would be "saved." That is crazy thinking, really. "Contribute to future obesity via gluttony by eating this extra amount of food so that we don't have to feel wasteful by throwing it away."

Just because there is more food on the table than my body needs doesn't mean I have to eat it.

Eating only what I need is not self-denial (though it might feel that way at first), it is simply what's right. Self-denial would be eating less (which is what fasting is--and that is something we're expected to do on occasion). I need to learn what that amount is, and prepare my meals accordingly. If others prepare a feast, I must learn how to (respectfully) say no to more.

I don't know how it's going to go. I'm so accustomed to eating more than I need; consuming beyond what my body requires. I'm thankful for the abundance of food. But I must not hoard it all into my body.

Missionary Material 4

I used to think that everyone who majored in business majored in greed. In fact I had a roommate once who was a business major and on one occasion I commented to him that he and all the other business students are majoring in greed. He kind of smirked and said, "For most people--that's about right!"

For many people business and ministry cannot mix. Business exists to make money. Ministry exists to save souls. And money is what those of us in ministry are often fighting against in trying to save all those souls from loving it more than God. So, in many ways, business and ministry are enemies.

Many Christians think the Bible says something to the effect of "Money is the root of all evil."

It does, doesn't it?

Well, no, it doesn't.

Here's the verse you're thinking of:

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Timothy 6:10

Money in and of itself is neutral. The sin is to LOVE money. The sin is to SEEK money before God. The sin is to HOARD money that we have when we could use it to help people in need.

So, business, like money, is neutral. It is no more sinful to do business than it is to have money.

But for many of us... we reject anything from the realm of business because we assume that if your purpose is to make a profit then you must not have pure motives. At the end of the day... we assume... you're in it for the money!

I've written elsewhere about ways we can do business and shield ourselves from the temptations of profits. But as I read through much of the Bible and as I learn more about business I am starting to see that business, in a lot of ways, is a lot like good stewardship. It's a lot like trying to make smart financial decisions. And, if you look at it one way, anyone who has and uses any amount of money is already doing business.

You work at a job and get paid. That is how you make money. You then use this money to buy food and clothes and also pay for your car and your house. When you buy a house, you have to be careful not to spend too much or your salary will not be able to keep up with it. Sometimes things get tight and you have to plan your purchases carefully. At the end of the day, you are selling your services (by doing your job) and then you are managing your expenses the best you can so that you will hopefully end up with a little to save each month. Hey, don't look now, but--You're doing business!

If we manage our expenses poorly we go into debt, are forced to sell assets or we have to live without for a period of time. We probably all have experience at this. So...

Why not learn to do business right? Could learning about good business practices be a matter of good stewardship?

I am reading a very good book now that I think every high-school student should study. That's right--high school! I have gone all of these years (after having majored in science and theology) and have never been taught these things that I believe would be a good idea to include as required high-school or college general education curriculum. The book?

The Complete Idiot's Guide to MBA Basics

It's not rocket science and don't let the "MBA" part fool you--it doesn't take a business whiz to grasp the concepts. Also, don't let the "Idiot" part fool you, either--that just means this book assumes no prior knowledge in the business discipline. Good for guys like me.

So, how about that young missionary wannabe who wants to know how to become an effective missionary in a very unreached part of the world? Well, I'm not saying you HAVE to do BAM, but I think it is a very good option that will allow you to get to and involved in so many places that would never accept someone who just has a Missions degree from a Bible college. And, depending upon the kind of business you do, you will likely need to get training in something else, too, besides missiology.

Businessman Christian

I tend to loathe the "How to be rich and be a Christian" movement that is in certain sectors of Christianity these days. You can call it the health and wealth gospel. But, actually, what I am talking about is bigger than the health and wealth gospel movement. It is the line of teaching that aims to justify "building bigger barns" that Jesus warned us about. And I know that saying this automatically offends many of the wealthy people I know, some of whom support missions.

Personally, I don't think it is wrong to own anything or to have money. We have to be careful not to condemn wealth but to condemn greed. But it seems like this argument, "It's not wrong to have money, only to be greedy," is often the very mask that covers up greed. It is sad that we have to waste energy in our lives or in the church trying to justify the wealth we have.

If we think to ourselves, "I give my 10% to God, so I can do whatever I want with the rest!" then we miss the heart of Jesus. We miss it.

I am not one to be dogmatic about a 10% line, increasing our giving by 1% a year, etc. I know for some 10% is an unimaginable sacrifice. For others, giving 10% means sacrificing luxuries, not necessities. And it is to this latter group that I am referring in this post. Is the 90% that we're living on still more than we need?

I tend to be one who promotes living more simple lives, consuming less, and giving more. Kind of like food. Gluttony is the sin of overeating--eating more than our bodies need. Just because I have lots and lots of food doesn't exempt me from gluttony just because I only ate half of it and gave the rest to the local homeless mission. No, I should only eat what my body needs regardless of how much food is on the table.

So, I tend to think the same way when it comes to wealth. I should only consume as much as I need, regardless of how much I make.

I write these things because I want to warn people to be aware. Beware of those books, seminars, conferences, classes and audio Cd's that give us a lot of solid financial and accounting advice, but mask greed. I don't want us to hide behind a truth that it isn't wrong to have wealth when our hearts are more excited about that wealth than serving Christ. That doesn't mean we throw away good accounting and financial planning, but it means we root out greed whenever it sprouts.

I want to warn people that this is NOT what BAM is about. It is not about making ourselves wealthy. It is all about furthering the mission of God in our world.

If I call myself a "Christian businessman" then what I am saying is that I am a businessman who happens to be a Christian. The word "Christian" is the adjective modifying the noun "businessman." So, it means that I am a businessman first, Christian second.

Perhaps it would be better, then, to call myself a "Businessman Christian." I am a Christian who happens to be a businessman. "Christian" is not just an adjective modifying my identity--it is the root of who I am. It just so happens that I do business. I am a follower of Christ first, and a businessman second. That means I do business for Christ--not try to make Christ do business for me.

Dependency Mission 03

I think it would behoove all of us who give to missions to learn ways to evaluate mission approaches to see if what we're supporting is making the kind of difference we want it to make. We need to educate ourselves.

I have seen it myself. Missionaries who come to town (meaning here on "the field") with big budgets and big programs can generate quite a stir. Everyone loves them. They do grand things and give a lot to many people. They gather big crowds. Many people want to get as close as they can to them. The missionaries see all these people coming and they praise God for how the Spirit is impacting so many. They sometimes boast to others about "all that God is doing" in their ministry.

Usually what follows is jealousy and infighting among the locals regarding who is closest to the missionary. Why? Because it never was about what God was doing among the people. It was about money. Easy money. The people found the missionary to be an easy source of money, help, education, etc. In other words: a sucker. "We'll do the Christian dance for you if you give us money." And many people in poor countries view charitable foreigners as suckers.

A generation ago some missionaries came up with a term for local peoples who come to Christ in order to get some sort of financial or physical benefit: Rice Christians. "If you give me a bowl of rice, I will become a Christian." This dynamic is not dead in the least. It is very prevalent in poor countries where missionaries work. The task for the missionary, then, is to figure out ways to avoid this dynamic.

The problem is that too many missionaries ignore this syndrome and throw their money around. They feel justified because they can credit God with all the activity and excitement they are generating. Then they turn around and report this activity and the numbers of all the people at their events in their newsletters. This then helps them raise more money because people back home are so excited to give to a mission work that "God is really using."

And some of the most popular mission agencies in the States are the very ones that are dumping money (in various forms) on the field and the people they are "reaching" are actually being converted to loving wealth more than God.

Tomorrow I will tell you a couple stories...

Easy Money

Here at our location we are actively involved in discipleship. It is not the only thing we do. But I believe it is the core of what we are doing to reach this country and the many unreached people groups here. It would be easy to gather a bunch of people willing to go out and preach the gospel to other nationals here. However, if the right people aren't chosen, or if they are not properly discipled and prepared, it could be a disaster.

Corruption is a way of life in our location. Corruption is found, not only in the government and in those who serve as officials, officers and office workers, but in every other arena where money or power is found. In the market, people pay others off to get the corner stall. In private companies accountants and workers find ways to skim off money by lying and cheating. At the gas pump the attendants offer to write receipts for any amount you want so that the person buying fuel can keep the difference. In school, students get passing grades when when they buy "gifts" for their teachers. Many teachers encourage their students to cheat in order to pass. Far too many teachers offer special "tutoring" sessions at other times that students can attend for a small fee--and improve their chances of getting a good grade.

And corruption is found in the church, too. It is rampant. Money that is offered is kept by those in power. Money that is designated for certain people or needs is "taxed" by the pastors. Many pastors raise twice or triple the amount of money they need to build their churches. Those who have a position in the church try to use their faith to impress outsiders who might give them money. Often there is no accounting, no reporting and no transparency when it comes to the financial dealings of the pastor, who controls all the money. For all the things that are not taught about from the Bible, tithing is one that is never forgotten. And every single time an offering is gathered, the song "I Surrender All" is sung. I'm not kidding. If there is a second special offering, then they sing it twice.

It is the goal of many a young Christian here to be "sponsored" by a foreigner. Unlike in the US where many pastors make much less than the people in their congregations, here people can make out quite well on $50 a month, and live a much more comfortable life than they would if they were an upland farmer. So the idea of being "sponsored" to do any kind of ministry is very attractive. So much so, it attracts those who don't really have a heart for ministry but are interested in the good life.

So how do we avoid this? One way is that we have our young disciples do an internship. They live together up in the mountains, outside of town, and in addition to studying the Bible, they work. It is not very attractive because they don't make a lot of money (they make enough and more than they did before, but not anything to go ga-ga over) and they aren't studying English. Living in the country they don't have the opportunity to go to "fun" things in town like bars, dance clubs and festival events. Now, we do take them out on picnics, hikes and enjoyable things like that. But for those who are looking to just have fun and consume the foreigners money--well, they opt out. We have had more than one person decide to quit after joining us for a week. And that is okay. Our discipleship program is not for everyone. But we have designed it to help us weed out those who are not sincere and who are more interested in advancing themselves than they are in serving God and ministering to others.

Another way we avoid corruption is by giving our disciples good examples. They have all seen bad examples of Christians leaders. We want to show them there are those who are sincere and honest in their service to God. So, we have one such person who lives with our interns and disciples them on a daily basis. If they were to become like this man we will not be disappointed. We also bring in other national Christians to teach them for short-term series. We want them to see those national Christians who serve God in honest and effective ways and who aren't motivated or sustained by foreigners. We want to get past the idea (in national Christians' minds) that they can only do anything a foreigner sponsors them to do, and past the idea (in national non-Christians' minds) that Christianity is a foreign religion. Good national examples gives them the opportunity to see the light.

Another thing we do is we set high goals and standards for them. We have them read the entire Bible (most national Christians and even pastors have not ever done that). We have them memorize songs and scripture. We have them teach and share. We have them visit people in the village three times a week. We have them talk to the "big people" (village headmen and leaders), which is an intimidating thing for them to do, by inviting the village leaders to a dinner we host. We have them learn ways to do agriculture (raise fish, frogs, rabbits, plant fruit trees, soybeans, etc.) so that they will know how to feed themselves and their families without depending on anyone. In fact, that is one of our high standards for all of them--they must learn how to live AND serve God by working and making enough money to support themselves.

By the end of the internship everyone knows they haven't signed up for "easy money" from foreigners when they join with us. But they will have an example of how to live, work, eat and do ministry in a village by having done these very things with us.

So what do we do with them when we are finished? Stay tuned for my next post about that!