IT'S ALL RELATIVE...

“And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
for all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.” (Mark 12:42-44)

This time of year I can find myself thinking of the ideals of the Christmas season and the reality of economic stress. I DO love Christmas carols. I love the evergreen smells. Christmas wreaths are very pretty, and there’s something nice about having a Christmas tree in the living room. Money pressures, however, can be very tough. I’m feeling that money pressure this year, but frankly I know there are SCADS of people in America who are MUCH worse off than I am and who will struggle to just get through this month.

That old saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” comes to mind. I remember when I went on my first missions trip to Haiti in 1990, we were told to throw our cans of tuna and beef stew right onto the ground when we were done eating. You see, in Haiti, it’s MOST appropriate to litter! Poor Haitians pick up and clean up the cans and will use them over and over again to eat food out of, or for storing something, or other purposes. Finding a tuna can or a beef stew can could make a poor Haitian’s day! I see the Salvation Army bell ringers and I wonder if donations are down this year. I’d guess they probably are. Well, for one thing, a lot fewer people carry CASH around anymore, so that’s got to hurt the cause, too. In past years, I’ve thrown a little money into their kettles here and there. So far, I haven’t given anything to the bell ringers this year. I’ve reasoned, “Well, if I’m going to give them a buck or less, what does that matter?” I guess I’d forgotten the lesson of the cans in Haiti! A buck or even a quarter DOES make a difference to the Salvation Army, and I’ve got to make sure I do some donating this month!

One of the tougher parts of winter for me is there are no classic car shows for me to go to, and that means no selling of auto collectibles. No, I’ll never get rich selling automotive collectibles, but my father left behind scads and scads of stuff that I’m STILL selling almost ten years later! In a year like this, spending an hour at a car show, and walking out having made $75 meant filling the tank with gasoline, picking up a takeout supper, and even having some “extra” cash to throw into the plate at church on Sunday. I’m REALLY missing that now! (I’ve actually applied for a few part time jobs, and I’ll probably get one soon.) Honestly, though, I never left a car show or one of my special auto collectibles yard sales (which are REALLY profitable) without kind of feeling like I’d prostituted myself. Especially at the car shows, you’ve got to be really aggressive showing off the collectible inspection stickers, license plates, etc. and telling the owner of the 1959 Edsel convertible or the 1962 Chevy II or other classic car WHY he needs this stuff and how cool it will be to have it displayed on his car. I’ve surprised myself at what an effective salesman I can be...but I’ve always left thinking, “I wish it DIDN’T have to be like this. I wish you DIDN’T have to go out hustling like this to get money!”

Don’t get me wrong! I’m not about to start giving away auto collectibles free! In fact, one of the reasons I DO make a lot of sales is my prices tend to be over 50% lower than face value of the collectibles. No, I’m not giving that stuff away. And, it IS nice to make a large sale. On my birthday’s collectibles sale in September, I made over $600 in 4 hours sitting in my driveway. Not bad!

I guess I still wonder about old George Mueller back there in England in the 1800s. He ran several orphanages ALL BY FAITH. He just prayed and all the supplies came in. My friend, The Rev. Tom Stevens, who runs New England Aftercare/The Bridge House in Framingham is something like George Mueller. Tom says, “The provision is in the call”. Tom certainly DOES some solicitation; but his ministry never engages in any of the manipulative, high pressure stuff. They believe if God wants their ministry to continue, He will provide the donors and the funds, and so far, that’s been the case!

I was reading recently that a substantial number of churches and non-profit organizations have ceased to exist over the past year, and a substantial number of them will cease to exist over the coming year. It’s a difficult time. I know of one church which is well endowed. They drew a huge amount of money out of their endowments to survive the past year. For our church, there’s nothing like that. If the money doesn’t come in week to week, well, as Mel Blanc used to say: “That’s all folks”. I suppose churches who are spending down their endowments just to survive are feeling bad about that, but other churches would be thrilled to have endowments to spend down! (Ours would!)

Some of you may know, a few years ago Zion Bible College (then in Barrington, RI) was in serious financial trouble and on the verge of closing. Then, a very wealthy business owner gave them several million dollars! The school has purchased and renovated the campus of a defunct college in Haverhill, MA. It STILL costs them a lot of money for operations (obviously) but they really had one of those George Mueller style miracles! Yet, the Christian elementary school all my kids attended in the ‘80s and ‘90s closed this past year. Yes, some ministries survive - some don’t.

Is it faith that makes the difference? Is it prayer? Is it marketing? Is it hard work? Is it all of the above?

Did some poor Haitian pray to find a nice can, and rejoice with tears of joy to find my beef stew can?

Is the economy really all that bad? Are some people just too stingy? Again, I’ve admitted to not giving to the bell ringers yet.

Sorry I’m rambling. I’m thinking as I’m writing. It’s strange that one person’s catastrophe can be another’s blessing.

It’s Christmastime...in a tough economy. It’s got me thinking about what I have and what’s really important.

Some would say, “It’s all relative...”