WEDNESDAY, August 10

Mark 10:17-31. Go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.

Today’s passage from Mark’s gospel is often used by those of us who live in religious communities as a sort of scriptural proof of the value of poverty. We say that we are not like that rich man, because we have given everything away to follow Jesus. Yet the challenge of these words is not just for those who have taken a vow of poverty. It is for everyone. The difficult point for the man in the parable was his attachment to his possessions. He was shocked at the thought of losing them.

This leads to Jesus’ well-known illustration of the difficulty of a camel passing through the eye of a needle. It suggests that possessions, or rather the attachment to them, can become a tie and burden. This attachment blinds us to seeing the kingdom of God all around us. Then the further point is made that even though this is impossible for humans, “for God all things are possible.”

Use your possessions well, and to serve God, but do not become possessed by them.

Own nothing that can hinder or rob you of your inner freedom.

--Thomas à Kempis

PRAY for the Diocese of Rift Valley (Tanzania)

Ps 101, 109:1-4(5-19)20-30 * 119:121-144; 2 Samuel 14:21-33; Acts 21:15-26

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The challenge is indeed for everyone

Aug 10, 2011 at 7:52 am

Written by Sam,

Thanks for a wonderful message, Bro. Chris. It is so true - if we allow ourselves to be possessed by our possessions, whether material or intellectual, then we separate ourselves from God and His people. Yesterday, you spoke about a disagreement between the Mayor and Bishop in Assisi, pointing to each, in a sense, being owned by their ideas, ideals or points of view, and both being initially unwilling to let go. So too today, we continue to be owned by our jobs, cars, homes, societal status, "principles" etc, and fail to elevate love for God and one another above all else. It is sad but not uncommon to see leaders of mega-churches boasting on TV of their possessions, or preaching a word that suggests God's blessings on us are all material. Would that we can strive to prioritize offering those blessings and possessions in service to God.

...

Aug 10, 2011 at 10:15 am

Written by Mary kier,

Sam, thanks for taking the leap to posession of thoughts.i thought we could also extend that to toxic relationships. There is.very little space for God in our lives when a bad relationship consumes us.

on possesions

Aug 10, 2011 at 3:59 pm

Written by LT,

"Do you own the things you own or do the things you own own you?" Folk singer John Flynn

...

Aug 10, 2011 at 6:01 pm

Written by Christopher John SSF,

Great to have found those thoughts in a folk singer's work too! Yes - we can "possess" a toxic relatonship too. It's not good for us - but we can cling to it because it provides a strange sort of security and identity. Or perhaps more exactly - we can cling to something which is bad and prefer it to be bad - rather than taking the effort to find healing. Humans are strange and wonderful creatures!

...

Aug 11, 2011 at 11:49 am

Written by John,

This "Yet the challenge of these words is not just for those who have taken a vow of poverty. It is for everyone. The difficult point for the man in the parable was his attachment to his possessions. He was shocked at the thought of losing them", is all about the attachments we have to our things. It's not the money or the material items, it's what we really think of them and who we really worship.

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Aug 10 meditation

Aug 12, 2011 at 7:31 am

Written by Phil,

This message not only relates to how our possessions can be an obstacle to our faith, but also our obsession with not having the material things (or even the finances) that we want or need. We can be so consumed with our financial concerns or what we don't have that our faith and trust in Christ becomes affected in a negative way.

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