Wednesday, January 13, 2010

A bad thing?

Chatting on FB yesterday I had one of our college students ask me for some help. He was doing an assignment for a class and wanted to know what I thought was one of the major problems in the US. No, I didn't give the "Sunday School" answer…sin; I said "entitlement". I'm owed something.

Is entitlement such a bad thing?

Wiki says "entitlement" refers, in a more casual sense, to someone's belief that one is deserving of some particular reward or benefit.

Bad thing?

I love hanging out and investing in the next generation, but it is truly reverse mentoring for me. Many college students come to me looking for answers, but in their questions, I grow; such is the case with this. This morning God used James to remind me just when I get proud of my wisdom that "His ways are not my ways", humbled me and changed my thoughts.

5Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? James 2:5

You see God's people have been longing for their "inheritance", their "entitlement" for…well, since the book of Genesis. Going to Wiki again, an heir is a person who is entitled to receive a share of the decedent's property. The concept of "inheritance" is progressively revealed from Genesis to Revelation and one which we seemed to have forgotten.

I asked Sunday "what's the difference between inheritance and wage?"

A wage you have to earn, which is what we have become accustomed to here in the US. An inheritance is a gift.

What does it mean to you?

Do you long for it?

"Chew" on that thought…I'll pick it back up tomorrow.

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