There are very few things that make me speechless, but today one happened.  I was talking to a customer who was telling me that that had a day off earlier in the week, after working pretty much 21 days straight, with very little time off.  I told them I was sorry that they were having to work so hard, and they stopped me and said “wait..You don’t understand how much I love MONEY!!

I stared at them, shocked!  And then I said the first thing that came to my mind “Why???  Why do you love money??”  And with desire in their eyes I have never seen before, they replied, “because I have very expensive taste, and that requires money!!”

Oh. My. Gosh.  I was face to face with someone I knew to be single, in their late 20’s, and pretty well off..their car and clothing were not old.  And I was shocked.  I know that there are millions of others just like them in our world, but I had never seen someone so honest to say basically that money was the driving force in their life, and they weren’t upset by that!

It also occured to me, right after that, that I am so naive sometimes!!  Being an Atlanta native frim a middle class family, I grew up knowing the upper class, and seeing what wealth can do.  Getting married to a divorced man with 2 children, I quickly became intimate with barely having enough to live on.  And I appreciate money, I really do.  But I do NOT LOVE money!

All day I have pondered this encounter, and especially this thought, since tomorrow is Sunday.  I will get up in the morning, go to church, and  express my love and gratitude to the One who gave me everything when I had nothing!  And my customer will get up and spend another day thinking about money and how to get more, while they tell themselves they are enjoying their “things” that cost so much!  And that breaks my heart, because what I have been given is eternal, and what they have can be taken away or destroyed in the blink of an eye.

I want to say again that I am not bashing money or things.  I am not even “bashing” the person that said this, because in other conversations I have picked up that they don’t know Jesus.  But i am so grateful that God has used this event to wake me up to two things:  the world is a lonely, greedy place, full of things that do not fulfill.  AND it is my responsibilty to make SURE my life never reflects that same attitude!  I am praying that God will continue to use this to purify my heart and make sure I have the proper response to everything I have.  I am also asking Him for more opportunities to share with this customer what true riches are.

How about you?  Need to do an inventory of your stuff and what it means to you?  Need to check your own priorities?  Me too, way more often than I have!  May God receive all the glory as we do!