Meditations

The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Matthew 11:5

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free.” Luke 4:18

Looking at His disciples, He said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” Luke 6:20

“In only three New Testament texts (Matthew 11:5 = Luke 7:22; Luke 4:18; and Luke 6:20) is the meaning of ptōchos in dispute. These are the texts in which Jesus announces ‘the privilege of the poor’. The ‘poor’ have the ‘good news’ preached to them (Matthew 11:5; Luke 4:18), for the Kingdom of God is theirs (Luke 6:20).

How then are we to understand these ptōchoî, the privileged beneficiaries of Jesus’ preaching to whom the Kingdom of God is exclusively promised? Are they spiritually poor whose religious attitude of openness and trust disposes them to receive God’s love? Or are they the sociologically poor whose situation of social deprivation invites God’s saving action on their behalf?

Western exegesis, part of the immense ideological production of an affluent and intensely acquisitive society built on principles diametrically opposed to those of Jesus has tended to the first option, and has tried systematically to spiritualize the gospel understanding of the poor…

This tendency to spiritualize the poor of the Beatitudes which cuts across all denominational differences and brings together exegetes who would otherwise agree on scarcely anything else, is a good indication of the extent to which exegetical trends are in fact determined by the spirit of the times…

There may indeed still be scholars who would like to understand the poor of the New Testament, specifically those to whom Jesus promised the Kingdom, as the spiritually poor. But there is a growing consensus today that in the New Testament, even more than the Old, the word ‘poor’ is a sociological category in the three good-news-to-the-poor texts mentioned above.”

George M. Soares-Prabhu in “Class in the Bible: The Biblical Poor as a Social Class?” in Voices from the Margin: Interpreting the Bible in the Third World, ed. R.S. Sugirtharajah (Maryknoll: Orbis, 2006) 155-156.

Reading scholars from India and Asia really helps me understand how people in this context read the Scriptures. And I am learning new things from them. Consider for example, today’s meditation linked to these three Scriptures.

If you read the whole chapter (I am reading an online version in internet library to which I have access), Soares-Prabhu explains the use of this language in the OT points to the sociologically poor.

And, he also shines light on the bias of most scholars who tend to come from the Western setting and who tend to spiritualize these NT texts. In so doing, I think he’s right that though we may all agree, we miss the point.

In places with poverty, God hears the cries of the poor. He wants us, His people to minister to them. Think: Mother Teresa turning brokenness to blessing among the poorest of poor in the gutters of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India.

And consider with me the connection between sociological poverty and trusting God. Soares-Prabhu explains in his piece that the sociologically rich tend to hold on to and trust in money to care for them and meet their needs.

I (wrongly!) did this for years. People called it good stewardship. Yet, it requires no faith to stockpile wealth for yourself. Jesus calls it foolish because our heart always follows the money and reveals our misplaced trust.

Soares-Prabhu continues that the sociologically poor have no wealth to give them comfort or in which to place (or misplace!) their trust. So they cry out to God. And He’s there for them. He hears them.

Consider where you fit in the story. Are you sociologically rich or sociologically poor? Are you spiritually rich or spiritually poor? Be honest with yourself. Your eternal destiny may depend on it. Material blessings always come with a test.

They can turn us corrupt or allow us to serve as conduits of blessing. But most Americans try to have their cake and eat it to. They think you can be materially rich and spiritually rich.

They point to Abraham or other biblical patriarchs. In response, I always remind them that such people amassed wealth, but it was always for a purpose, to not stay with them but to be enjoyed and shared by those around them.

And being in India brings to mind the famous saying from Thornton Wilder: ““Money is like manure; it’s not worth a thing unless it’s spread around encouraging young things to grow.”

I say that because often in India we see cows walking around or manure in the streets. Rather than taint my attitude, I am saying the quote to myself. We need to spread around the resources God gives us to help things grow.

If you have resources, spread them around. At GTP we will steward them to serve the sociologically rich (urging them to grow as conduits of blessing) the sociologically poor (teaching them to use faithfully whatever they have), the spiritually rich (strengthening their faith) and the spiritually poor (helping them grow in their grasp of accountability and generosity).

And consider GTP in your giving today. We still need $15,416 by 30 June 2024 to meet budget (and cover the cost of this trip) and we need about 50 more givers (of any size) to position us to apply for another major grant to add two staff. Give here today.

On Friday morning, Anand Joshua and I fly from Hyderabad (pictured above) to Delhi for high level strategic meetings regarding the future of peer accountability in India. And it will be hot there: 110°F / 43°C. Pray for us.

The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” Exodus 3:7-10

“Exodus reveals what anyone who participates in the struggle for liberation comes eventually to realize: God is on the side of the oppressed and downtrodden and will always give encouragement and protection to them.”

Cyris H. M. Moon in “A Korean Minjung Perspective: The Hebrews and The Exodus” in Voices from the Margin: Interpreting the Bible in the Third World, ed. R.S. Sugirtharajah (Maryknoll: Orbis, 2006) 243.

I have arrived safely in Hyderabad, India. I snapped this photo from the top floor of my hotel. It’s a beautiful day. It gives me hope for great trip to India.

God’s people are oppressed and downtrodden here. The country has 1.5 billion people. The leading religion is Hindu, followed by Muslim. Christians are the minority, but their presence is felt.

The FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act) aims to hinder any outside support to Christian workers. So, they need training to raise local funds. That’s part of the reason I am here: to bring encouragement and coaching to do this.

But I am also here to show them how to ensure God’s protection. I have strategic meetings with leading Christian workers about bringing accountability to India. This is not a small vision. Only possible with God’s help. I appreciate your prayers.

On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then He told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew.

Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which He revealed His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. John 2:1-11

“All through the Old Testament waters appear ‘now real, now symbolic, now gentle, now life-giving, now destructive and terrifying, now a trickle, now a torrent,’ In Cana we see it as a torrent – freely given and flowing over. Water in the Bible is always freely given – from the first book to the last.

In Genesis we read, “What all was Tohu-tohu (a mess) – waters were created and flowed freely. On the fifth day God said, ‘Let the waters abound with life’ and in Revelation we read, ‘Let him receive the water of life freely – who thirsts – come!’ The Garden of Eden had to abound in water.

‘The desert mind, thirsting for beauity, must be told that there was water to make it a paradise, a couple of trees and the four-branched rivers. Even when sin becomes prevalent, waters are still abundant, and the floodgates of heaven are opened, but now to punish man [in the Noah story].

Whether it is well water – or the rains sent by Yahweh – it is always in abundance – to show the greatness of His love. The floodwater covered the enemies of Israel as they tried to cross the Red Sea, until they sank into the depths like a stone: ‘Horse and chariot He cast into the sea’ (Exodus 15:1, 5).

When Moses struck the rock, waters gushed forth in abundance – a figure, too, of the waters that would gush forth from the side of Christ and become ‘waters of salvation,’ which Isaiah fortold we would draw with joy from the Savior’s fountains (Isaiah 12:3). The same superabundance is seen in the Gospels and in this miracle of Christ.”

S.R. Vandana in “Water – God’s Extravaganza: John 2:1-11” in Voices from the Margin: Interpreting the Bible in the Third World, ed. R.S. Sugirtharajah (Maryknoll: Orbis, 2006) 123.

I am enjoying this book with contributions from scholars from India and South Asia whilst I travel to this region. This reading seemed fitting as I crossed a lot of water, the Atlantic Ocean, last night.

Think about water in the biblical narrative. Vandana rightly recounts that it appears: ‘now real, now symbolic, now gentle, now life-giving, now destructive and terrifying, now a trickle, now a torrent.”

But it always appears freely from God and in superabundance. Ponder the significance of this: that God freely gives more than enough of the one thing everyone on earth needs to survive.

Consider also His miracle in Cana. Though His time had not yet come, Mary alerted Him to a need and He responded. Ponder how God shows up when we need Him, call to Him, and have no other hope.

Interestingly, He Himself will tell us to trust in Him and not money. When we hold on to money we tend to trust in it instead of Him. Let’s allow the superabundance of His provision of water to inform our generous sharing.

And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. Exodus 33:19

“Jesus, as an initiator of a revitalization movement within Judaism, opened up another aspect of the God of Israel – God as merciful and compassionate. Jesus was not handing down new tradition. He was simply reiterating a forgotten aspect of God – that He was merciful and gracious (Exodus 34:6) – and as a consequence, Jesus was urging His contemporaries to show solidarity and compassion towards one another.

Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36). Jesus’ healing miracles, His acceptance of the marginalized of the time – the sinners, tax-collectors, and the women – was an indication that (a) God’s mercy was available to the very people who were cut off by the pharisaical interpretation of the law, and (b) that this was available without an intermediaries such as the law or the temple.

It is not unreasonable to surmise that it was Jesus’ retrieval of the availability of God to people without any mediating agencies which caused Paul to rethink His ‘former life of Judaism’. It was Jesus’ announcement of God’s generosity to the people who are not normally within the pharisaic pale that contributed to His death. It is this death which becomes Paul’s gospel, because in this death God demonstrated that He had abolished the impediments and the powers that dominate human life.”

S. Wesley Ariarajah in “Interpreting John 14.6 in a Religiously Plural Society” in Voices from the Margin: Interpreting the Bible in the Third World, ed. R.S. Sugirtharajah (Maryknoll: Orbis, 2006) 358.

I head to India today for 2.5 weeks so I plan to read key Indian and South Asia biblical scholars and professors to understand the mindset of the people I will serve. I appreciate your prayers for safe travel.

This post reminds us of God’s generosity which takes the form of His merciful and compassionate posture toward those society deems as undeserving. In a caste society like India this is a big message.

Those on top like to stay there and those on the bottom seem to have less value and worth. This post reminds us that God’s mercy and compassion are for everyone. Jesus modeled this trait of God for us.

We need to model this for others. God help me show mercy, compassion, and generosity to everyone I meet in India. And help every reader spread these gifts even as we receive them.

And I failed to save yesterday’s post so if you read it again below it should all be there for your reading edification. Thanks again for your prayers for me as I travel.

Then a teacher of the law came to Him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Matthew 8:19-20

“Simplify, simplify, simplify. The simpler you make your finances, the more time and energy you can invest in living a meaningful life.”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

People ask me all the time, “Gary, how much is enough?”

I like to remind them to start by looking at Jesus. He did not have a hole or a nest. He lived simply with daily bread and clothing. He demonstrated the exhortation that Paul makes to Timothy.

But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 1 Timothy 6:8

The example of Jesus and the exhortation of Paul are echoed by Travis. “Simplify, simplify, simplify.” We really don’t need most of the things we say we need beyond food and clothing.

I am not saying you cannot have a hole or nest to live in. Don’t hear me wrong.

I am saying, in agreement with Jesus, Paul, and Travis, to live as simply as possible so you have margin to live, give, serve, and love generously. God blesses you to be a blessing. Manage finances accordingly.

This marks my last post with comments from Travis, for now.

I need to shift my attention to India and writings to support and strengthen my service there from 18 June to 6 July 2024.

One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. Proverbs 11:24-25

“Nothing changes lives like joyful and sacrificial generosity. Nothing! And I’m not talking about the recipient….the giver!”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

I love how Travis put this. Because he’s right. Nothing changes your life more than choosing a path of generosity. Nothing.

As today marks Father’s Day in the USA and many other countries, I want to give a shout out to my father Jack, my uncle Jim, my brother David, my brother-in-law Tom, my son Sammy, and all the other fathers out there reading this.

Keep emptying yourself in service to others, trusting God to supply your needs and the needs of your loved ones.

Your joyful and sacrificial generosity to your wives, children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and others makes a difference. It models for them the way to live, and it blesses you in the process.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

“People are usually doing better than they think, but they have nothing to compare it to other than social media.”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

Travis nails this one. God blesses us and we forget how much he has blessed us. We forget that we have His presence with us and in Him we have everything we need.

Comparing always, always, always gets us in trouble. It’s terrible stewardship. Rather than focusing on what we have we focus on what others have. This breeds discontentment.

If social media causes you to stumble, disconnect it. If any activity leads you to compare what you have with others, stop doing it. Comparison always leaves you feeling discontent.

All this hinders our generosity. Our living, giving, serving, and loving gets choked out because of overspending and discontentment. It snowballs into debt and we lose our capacity to give.

Imagine another story. Live that story. Pause to think about how you are really doing and what God has given you. Take time to give thanks and praise God for His blessings and His presence always.

And I thank God I got home safely from a deeply spiritual time in Wisconsin. On the last evening John and I had dinner at the Saint Francis Hermitage (pictured above). I loved the words on the painting: “Jesus I trust in you!”

I pray you take time to reflect this weekend. You doing better than the evil leads you to believe. And Jenni comes home from Black Rock Christian Camp & Retreat Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, today. It will be a special homecoming for sure.

For our part, we may be weary from our service, but we are “doing better” than we may think because Christ is with us, has gone before us, surrounds us with love, and strengthens our service.

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. Luke 16:10

“A well-executed budget is the gateway to any and every goal you want to accomplish. Once you unlock that, anything is possible.”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

All the time I hear Christian workers say that they wish they had more funds in their budget. In reply, I say to institutional workers a similar thing that Travis says to individuals.

It’s a famous quote by Adoniram Judson. “It is true that we may desire much more. But let us use what we have, and God will give us more.” Sure you may feel like you need more. God knows that.

If you want him to entrust you with more, you need to use what you have faithfully. That calls for a well-executed budget.

When I was teaching on stewardship at Denver Seminary in 2003, I remember locating a statistic that 70% of people did not live on a budget. I thought, “How can you live within your means without one?”

That stuck with me. It’s been more than 20 years. How can a person possibly give an account for their stewardship to God if they do not keep track. You can’t. That’s why Travis and I are so very passionate about living on a budget.

I call it a spending plan. God gave you that money to use to return a portion to him, to supply your needs, and to have margin for sharing. If you don’t live on a budget, contact Travis ASAP.

And I am flying home today from Wisconsin refreshed by the opportunity to rest and fellowship with a dear brother. As I stated yesterday, it was ridiculously amazing to pursue meaning this week.

What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Mark 8:36

“If you pursue money, you might find it. It will be cool and exciting. But if you pursue meaning, you will absolutely find it…..and you’ll likely find some money along the way. People who pursue meaning live ridiculously amazing lives. Not easy lives; amazing lives.”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

What are you aiming for? That’s really the operative question Travis puts before us today. Choose meaning over money. He likes alliteration. It makes it easy to remember. Both start with “M” but arrive in diffferent places.

Again, in other words, I ask you. Which path will you take? You can gain everything and miss everything simultaneously. It’s a great paradox of human life and reveals the simplicity and awesomeness of the Christian faith.

Look at the gain when you choose wisely. Travis calls it a “ridiculously amazing” life. That’s the perfect word for pursuing the opposite of what the world pursues. It opens you to ridicule and peer pressure to conform and it’s also amazing.

I am still in Wisconsin with John. Why fly to a remote place to spend time with a deeply spiritual, humble, and godly friend? To have a ridiculously amazing time, of course. I pursued meaning this week.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 10:28-30

“Combining finances in marriage always yields better results. Better financial results. Better relational results. Better alignment of meaning and purpose. Better execution of the plan. I’ll die on this hill. Yes, we can do ok with separate finances, but it’s like driving a five-speed car and only believing there are three gears. That third gear feels fast if we don’t know the fourth and fifth gears exist.”

Travis Shelton in “750 Sessions, Oh My!” blog post on 5 June 2024. Check out these resources from Travis. Website: www.travisshelton.com / The Daily Meaning blog: www.travisshelton.com/blog / Podcast: https://podfollow.com/meaning-over-money

I am doing a different kind of work today, spiritual work. I am stepping away from zooms and meetings to spend time with a spiritual friend, John Stanley, in Wisconsin (pictured above). We will talk, walk, listen, share, and even do some fly fishing.

Today’s Scripture about rest also brings the picture of a yoke in view. When we yoke with Jesus, who is gentle and humble in heart, we find rest rather than living in a state of feeling weary and burdened.

And this yoke word picture fits well. The context of marriage is intended to share the burden of life. So, the combining of resources that all belong to God makes sense. Imagine if money and focus went in opposite directions.

Elsewhere Paul wrote this in his second letter to the Church in Corinth. “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” 2 Corinthians 6:14

In modern technical terms, your devices cannot function unless they are in sync. The same is true for finances in marriage. If our finances are separate, our focus will always be divided. Think: his interests and her interests.

Travis makes a good point here, because combining finances leads us to say: What about God’s interests? After all, it’s all His money. Need help, email Travis at thedailymeaning@gmail.com to get more information about combining your finances.