A Thankful Christian

How do we express our thankfulness to God for the blessings we have received?

Today in North America we are considered some of the wealthiest people on the planet. That does not mean that you have a fortune tucked away somewhere but rather our standard of living is some of the best.

We have great medical care, social programs, education, business opportunities, technology and a peaceful society. But in contrast to all that we have we are still not addressing the Great Commission with the passion it requires.

Matthew 19:16-30

We want to keep our wealthy standard of living while others in the world struggle to survive. We are a generous Nation and most Canadians are great contributors to charities but still a third of the world goes to bed hungry every night a third of the world is without proper medical care, a third of the world is thirsty for clean water and third of the world remains poor and is seeking a Savior.

This is not new news for it was Jesus himself who told us John 12:8 NIV

“You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."

So having the poor around us will be an unending condition for the world until Jesus comes back in glory to set up his kingdom. In the mean time what do we do about it?

Jesus mentions the poor at least 25 times in the New Testament. He wanted to be sure we heard what he had to say on the subject.

The rich young rulers first question was one of action, “what must I do” and it was introspective, it was about his own actions not the church, not his family but him personally. Later he gets to the point and asks “what do I lack?”

The fact of the matter is that the rich young ruler knew what it was he lacked. He lacked a generous heart or spirit. After all he did not get rich by giving his money away and that is where the rubber hit the road for him.

We must be generous in our giving to the needs of others if we posses the financial means to be a blessing. For in giving we receive far more than what we spend.

Let me illustrate the kind of giving I’m talking about by sharing the life story of a famous son of Scotland.

Andrew Carnegie was born in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1835.

His family were poor, but had a strong desire for self-improvement through education.

His uncle taught Andrew about Scottish heroes, such as William Wallace and Robert the Bruce, and also proclaimed the virtues of democracy.

He was able to memorize many of the works of Robert Burns, and was deeply affected by the poet's views on democracy.

When Andrew was just 13 the family emigrated to the USA.

They sold their possessions and borrowed money to fund the trip between Glasgow and New York.

Settling in Pennsylvania, Andrew took a job in the same Cotton Factory as his father - working for $1.20 a week.

Carnegie's desire for learning was fueled by the help of Colonel James Anderson, who allowed working boys access to his library of 400 books once a week. Andrew was the most frequent borrower.

At 16 years old, Carnegie got a job in a telegraph company earning $2.50 a week delivering and collecting messages for the Ohio Telegraph Company.

He taught himself Morse-code, and he was given a job as a Telegraph operator for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. The pay - four dollars a week - was a fortune for the 18 year old.

Once in the railroad company, he rapidly progressed through his hard work and willingness to learn. He stayed with the company until the start of the American Civil War.

His first great invention was with the development of the Sleeping Car. This sped up travel times, and made Carnegie and the Inventor a small fortune.

He put his money into Steel, and introduced new manufacturing methods. This decision was to set the US on the course of industrial supremacy.

It was not until relatively late in his life that Carnegie began what he is now famous for - his Philanthropy.

His books - Triumphant Democracy and the Gospel of Wealth - had demonstrated his belief that those that have the power to collect vast sums of wealth also have a duty to spend it in socially constructive ways.

He did not believe in giving money away for the sake of it, and warned against any giving that would not help people progress from the situation they were in.

He founded thousands of public libraries around the World, the first being in his birthplace of Dunfermline.

His most famous ventures include the Carnegie Hall in New York, the Peace Palace at the Hague and the Carnegie Mellon University.