References James 1, 2 Peter 1:3-7,14-13-16,Exodus 20:16-17, Proverbs 3:1-7, Job 23: 10-12
Something you have to find humorous about "mobile homes" aka a trailer, is that if you don't make the payments for an extended period of time, they can actually take your house. I don't mean they can throw you out, but they can stick it on a truck and run off with it.
A month or so ago, we found out that the trailer next door was for sale. The lot that it sat on is also for sale. Evidently, the lot rent had not been paid in a while, nor had the payment on the trailer, so the sale signs go up. According to what I was told(mind you this home was about 120 feet away from my own home) that the owners were far behind on their payments and we knew they moved out a few months ago.
Why this has anything to do with me is because I, upon learning it was for sale, immediately had the thought of buying the land and trailer and renting it out. There is something in my blood that makes me want to spend money that I don't have completely on impulse. This is where I stop and thank the Lord for my wife. Sara nonchalantly asked" why do you want to buy it?" and I came up with a few reasons, none of which were selfish but some which were just plain stupid(I can admit that). Funny enough, I was thinking that we could buy the place and rent it out cheap to a family that could not afford much or let a single mom with kids live there free. This is really what went through my head. There are reasons that I did not buy it.
First reason is that, while it would be nice to be able to pick my new neighbors, it was fiscally irresponsible to buy anything that I would have to go into debt for. I have made this mistake before buying a truck I could not afford, and have been trying to sell it to pay it off for almost a year now. I did not need a 4WD truck with low low miles, but I certainly did WANT one. Want should never be the deciding factor in these decisions, but a certain unnamed man(HA) is impulsive sometimes and does not seek the Lord's will as often as he should.
Next reason why I should not buy it is related to the first. We made about 17000 dollars last year for our family of 5(7 with foster kids) and have a mortgage on our home here that will not be paid off for 20 years. We cannot afford the place, and from a purely financial standpoint, we would be forcing another burden on ourselves for the sake of some whim.
Why I write about this problem here is that I am just as culpable as anyone else of doing the wrong thing. In fact, I usually see my place along with Paul the apostle when he refers to himself as "chief among sinners". It seems no matter how hard I try, I still fail on a regular basis. I have outlined a few principles by which to make decisions, and it is pretty simple. What spurred me about this subject was the book I wrote about a while ago called "The waning authority of Christ in the Churches" by A.W. Tozer. The problem he talks about here is the same in the structure of the church or the simplicity of our own lives.
As a Christian, a man who truly wants to follow wherever the Lord leads me, I should be thinking first about if God wants me to do something, or if I am the one out of selfishness that wants to continue in a course of action. A "why we do what we do" kind of thing
1.What is the purpose?- would this bring honor and glory to God? If not, throw out the thought right now. If the purpose of our lives is to bring honor and glory to God, then something that would be opposed to that end would be useless and trivial.
2. Could this action keep me from doing what God has for me?-If God is leading you one direction, and this decision would keep you from doing what God has led you to do, He may be moving you, but you may be running away from Him. Prayer and meditation on God's Word, along with the wise counsel of godly men is what Scripture proposes as the means by which to make decisions.
3. Does Scripture say anything about this subject?- if the Bible is opposed to a course of action, then throw it out. If Jesus was ever quoted saying "_______ should never be done" or "_____ will be punished. An example I would think would be the idea of "using lying to do God's work" I have been told that if God wants us to take Bibles into China(an illegal act) and a border guard asks you if you are bringing in Bibles, you should lie. I see in the Bible a few dozen references that we "shall not bear false witness" and that all liars will have their place in the lake of fire. Doesn't seem to be what God would have us do, does it? Doing the wrong thing for the right reason is still the wrong thing. If God wants Bibles in China, He will make it happen. How much more faith does it take to go knowing that you could be put in jail or beaten for spreading God's Word. If God wants the Bibles there, He may distract the guard, or cause them to not ask you.
God may have, as part of His divine plan, that you spend time being persecuted for the sake of the Gospel. Richard Wurmbrand of Voice of the Martyrs spent years in a prison preaching the Gospel to other prisoners and guards. If God is calling you to go to China with Bibles, GO, but don't expect it to be easy. We are told to "take up your cross and follow" and read a lot about suffering for the name of Christ Jesus. We should count it a privilege to be considered along with Paul, Stephen, Peter who were persecuted for God, but held up under the trials, knowing that the job they were doing was much more important than their personal comfort.
I know this came a long way from deciding whether or not to buy a trailer next door, but I know that God, when I sought His advice, was telling me not to go into debt for this. The Bible speaks a lot about going into debt, and the implications that come with it. I would have been wrong to make this decision based on emotion or impulse rather than follow God. I would also be wrong to see clearly what God was trying to do in my life and not follow it. Personal evangelism is an area that often I fail at. While I do witness to people, I miss a lot of opportunities, too. I know what God has shown me that I should do, and I need to fulfill that calling. If He cannot trust me to tell those I meet about Jesus and their need for salvation, why would He trust me to go to China to give out Bibles or count me worthy of suffering for Him? As we are faithful to what God calls us to do, He will reward us with more. That "more" may be hardships and trials and persecution, but I want to be known by the Lord as someone who counted it all joy when I was put through the fire, and that I came out refined like gold. It is through the fire that we are made pure, and that thought scares the mortal man in me, but reminds the immortal man in me that we serve a great God who set the world in place and wants to see us following after Him. God's desire is that we follow Him, not just when it is easy, but when we need to be tried and pressed. It is in the hardest times that we show what we are truly made of. Decisions, decisions, DECISIONS!!! Which one will you make?
Mark Cowperthwaite
