Passage Read: Luke 15-16
Meditation Verses: 16:9-12
Thought
Worldly wealth is ultimately for one purpose: To make friends who will welcome us into heaven, or in other words, for the purpose of helping others be saved. It is not primarily for my comfort or even my provision, though providing for my basic needs is fine--yet the widow was praised for giving all she had to live on to the Lord. All I possess and all I earn are best spent on advancing Christ's kingdom and even better, personally helping others believe in Him. Unbelievers of course will scoff at this truth; sadly, there is also a theology that justifies believers gathering wealth and living the high life as a form of witness for God. It is a theology that thinks by beating unbelievers at their own game (getting rich and powerful) they will somehow lead more to believe in God. But Jesus says that what men value, God detests. Those that think that way will find themselves with many followers and hangers-on, but God won't be among them.
Application
My primary purpose in life must be to know Christ and walk in His ways ever more perfectly. My secondary purpose must be to use all my resources and all I have to help others know Jesus. The less I spend on myself, whatever income I have, the more I can use to help others know Jesus. The less time I spend gathering wealth, the more time I can invest in helping others grow. My goal should never be to increase my income or possessions, but to help more people know the truth about Jesus.