This is a perfect picture for those of us that have heard the expression " you can't take a Uhaul to heaven"
Sometimes I feel like this pour traveller. Although it seems he is headed for Boise Id. I too feel like I am about to lose control of my car and crash sometimes. I think all of the United States and beyond are struggling with the same issue at hand.
Back when Amanda and I got married, we made NO MONEY......We were the kind of couple that were told we were to young to get married. I was told by many that i would not be able to support my wife and in the future kids as well. When Amanda and I fell in love and I proposed to her, I was working at a Petro Canada station (Gas Station)I think for the grand total of $6 an hour. All I knew is that I wanted to marry this sweet thing. We took our new found love and marriage to So Cal. I worked 2 jobs. I was a waiter and a construction worker and we felt like we were on cloud nine. We had all the food in the world that we needed. We had a car and an apt to rent and we just found a great church. But, never once did we feel poor. Even when I did our taxes that next year I realized that we should have been on ffod stamps with the amount of money I made that year.......We didnt have a lot to show for it, but we felt rich..........Later on in the years we began to make more money, but for some strange reason we felt poorer and poorer. We went to a church where people were riding the wave of the housing market. As housing prices tripled, so did their lifestyles. boats, cars, quads, jetskis etc. We even had one street in our neighborhood that competed with eachother. If one house bought a boat, all the other bought a boat. When one house built in a pool, all the other houses built in pools. The real "keeping up with the Jones" scenerio.
Now I have a ton of friends who have lost their jobs, their toys and some have lost their families through this. Even Amanda and I have had to down size our life in order to ride the wave of life right now. As I sit back and reflect on the last 10 years of my marriage, I have often wondered what we did differently when we made a alot less money then what we are making now and yet we felt so rich.
A wise friend once told us that even when you get a raise in your job, do not increase your way of life. Save that money and you will continue to be successful. What amazes me about this great family friend is that even though the stock market has crashed, which he had a lot of his millions in, he still is richer than many others that have suffered. When you look at this man you wouldnt even think that he is wealthy, because he lives within his means. He doesnt waist his time or money on all other things. He has stayed true to his original budget.
I want to thank you Lloyd for being a great sense of reality to Amanda and I. You told us once that you cant take a Uhaul to heaven. You have taught us to get back to the basics in life and stay true to our family and make that a priority and not all the other material things that we have sometime fallen a victim too.
I am reminded about the scripture when the rich young ruler went to Jesus and asked him how he could have eternal life. Jesus replied sell everything you have and follow him. The young man, went away sad because he had such wealth. Jesus told his disciples that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. He even went as far as to blow their minds with a picture of a camel trying to fit through the eye of a needle.
Jesus was testing this young mans heart. He wanted to see how attached he was to his money.
Alot of us if we were asked to give it all away we would probably feel the same as that young man. It is easy to say we want to follow Jesus in all his ways, but we have to see what the price is before we fully agree. He has asked us to leave all things to follow him. He is not asking us to pan handle and live in boxes for the rest of our lives. He wants our HEARTS.....Its a test friends. I do not know about you, but I want to pass this test and the many more to come......
