Daydreams of Being Wealthy

We recently watched the remake of one of my favorite classic movies, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.  Ben Stiller's version was thoughtful and fun, but I still prefer the whimsy and comedic touch of Danny Kaye as he played the mild-mannered man who daydreams himself into exciting situations and opportunities.

I relate to Walter. I often daydream about writing the great American novel or finally making an edible roast beef (don't ask!).  I guess my most frequent daydream is of being extraordinarily wealthy and the opportunities that would afford:  Unlimited travel, treating my friends to things, paying for a great kid's college, buying a boat...the list goes on and on.

I once read a quote by Warren Buffett, one of the richest men in the world, about his multibillion dollar charitable contributions, "There is more than one way to get to heaven, but this is a great way."

I realized then and there that I was already extraordinarily wealthy.  I have the "pearl of great price" that all of Mr. Buffett's billions couldn't purchase.  I have a guarantee of heaven that was given to me because "God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."  (John 3:16)

"For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  Matthew 16:26

A Week of Devotions: #1 "Can You Hear Me Now?"

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to contribute some devotions to a friend's discipleship ministry.  Over the next week or so, I'm sharing a few of them on my blog.  Here's the first:

I heard the woman's voice long before I reached the terminal gate.  The nasal, strident tone was distinctive above the din of the other conversations in this area of the airport.  At the designated Southwest gate, I felt a frown of consternation forming as I realized the only seat available in "B" section was by her.

She was obviously a businesswoman:  well-tailored suit, laptop, cell phone fused to her ear.  It was via the phone that this one-sided conversation was being held.  Ignoring was not an option due to her volume and distinctive voice.  She droned on for the 30 minutes prior to boarding - a continuous stream of coworker criticisms, boasts, and self promotions, continually denigration of others' accomplishments with praise always followed by a "but...".

I wondered how one person could be so unpleasant!  I wondered if she had a clue how much about her personality was being revealed to the strangers around her.  As my opinion of the woman diminished, a troubling thought drifted in:

How much do my words reveal about my heart?  Would strangers hear my conversations and marvel at how unpleasant I was?

Let no corrupt communication proceedeth out of your mouth except that which is good for the use of edifying that it might administer grace to the hearers. ~ Ephesians 4:29

The Black Genocide of Abortion

Martin Luther King's niece has called abortion the Black Genocide.  For the record, I made this point eight years ago here.

Dr. Alveda King is throwing a spotlight on the dirty little secret that racism and population control efforts were the genesis of today's abortion industry by promoting two films meant to educate the public on this, Mafia 21 and Blood Money.  I became aware of this through Dr. Benjamin Wiker's book, 10 Books That Screwed Up The World (and 5 Others That Didn't Help).  From my review:   

What is clear as you read Wiker's book is how [Darwin's Descent of Man] influenced future generations.   Margaret Sanger's The Pivot of Civalization took Darwin's eugenics and made it palatable, to a degree.  She wasn't as direct as Hitler would be a few decades later, but she had her own way of ridding the world of undesirables - not just genetics, but the vague "unfit" of society.  Sanger's mechanism was birth control, abortion, and forced sterilization.  She is the founder of Planned Parenthood and she thought the intelligentsia should be the ones doing the planning.  For her, a low IQ was original sin.

Abortion proponents like to hide behind the banners of "choice" and "freedom," but as Proverbs teachers us, "...the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel."