My dear readers,

How are You Making Yourself?

Proverbs 13:7: “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.”

Life is a series of crossroad decisions. Every decision made at these crossroads determines the outcome of our lives. Since we have only one life to lead, every decision made at these crossroads must be right. These crossroad decisions include the school we attend, subjects and CCA activities we take, marriage, the church we attend, who our friends are, areas of service in the church, etc. What we decide and do in these moments will determine our lives. Once we make the decisions, life will take directions that will be etched in the stone of time and can never be erased and will become part of our eternity. Man may forget, but God always remembers. An accountability awaits from the God who gave us life. No one can avoid the day of judgment. Therefore, we must decide well how we make our lives. As long as there is life, we can continue to make changes and improve before the day of judgment comes. Will you make your life right?

All the above decisions depend on what you want to be twenty or thirty years later until the day of judgment. Proverbs 13:7 proposes two methods of making. You need to choose wisely for the rest of your eternity.

Make himself rich, yet poor – This is one who makes himself rich in the things of the world. He may begin with little, but with time and hard work he desires to accumulate houses full of the things of the world. To accomplish this, he sets his mind with a determined will to obtain. The more he gets, the more he wants. He keeps setting for himself higher goals to keep his burning desire alive. He fuels his motivation for more with a mindset fixed on the solitary goal of measuring his life by the abundance of what he possesses. He knows he is greedy, but he does not care, or even if he cares, he cannot find the strength to overcome his greed.

His fear of not having enough for the future drives him forward with unceasing speed, like an unstoppable train without brakes. He keeps pushing himself, paying the price with his health, sacrificing time spent with family and friends, and being consumed by an insatiable desire to have more. His thinking is harnessed and honed by his envy of others who live in luxury. He longs for that life. To ease his conscience a little, he deceives himself with the excuse that he is sacrificing everything for the good of his family. They can live more comfortably and do not need to be looked down on by a society that boasts success as measured by the five senses.

Fixing his mind alone and wanting more riches without the heart will not sustain his desire to obtain. His heart has to be convinced that enough is never enough. Satisfaction is the killer of his heart’s desire for more. To keep this killer away, he reminds himself never to be satisfied with what he possesses in the present. To be driven by a competitive spirit of having more than one’s neighbour is the catalyst that puts the spring in every step he takes. Climbing the ladder of prosperity that he built for himself to be the wealthiest and be praised as the most successful among his family and all his peers will make him the happiest. Conversely, never being the most affluent and losing some of his financial glory in their eyes will bring an unbearable shame that may cost him many sleepless nights. What others think of him in terms of the standards of the world obsesses him to the point of madness and paranoia.

God concludes that he has nothing! The reason is summarized for us in 2 Peter 3:3-7: “³ Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, ⁴ And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. ⁵ For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: ⁶ Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: ⁷ But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.”

Make himself poor, yet rich – The one who makes himself poor in the things of the world does not mean that he will be poor materially. There are many examples of Christian men in the Bible who made themselves poor but were very wealthy. These examples include Job, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, King David, Daniel. There are also examples in the Bible of godly men who were materially poor. The best example is the Apostle Paul. The phrase “maketh himself poor” means that he is not motivated by money or anything material in his life and service for the Lord. His service and witness for Christ is constrained by his love for God and Christ. This godly motive drives him forward, overcoming every obstacle that he faces in life. He lives by faith, trusting in God to give him the best according to the measure of his faith. He receives the external circumstances of life as from God and not from man.

Therefore, in the face of persecution and unjust treatment for the sake of Christ, he is not vengeful or bitter against man or God. He serves unconditionally and sacrificially because of what Jesus Christ has done for him at Calvary’s cross. It does not worry him whether he is promoted in the workplace or is not being paid or paid little. His purpose for work is spiritual. He is an ambassador for Christ everywhere he goes. He sees his place of work/school as his missions field. He wants to promote Christ, not self. He serves his Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, and not man, even though he serves among men. His desire is for sinners’ salvation, nothing more. His holy conduct is foremost in his mind and heart every day he wakes up to serve his Saviour. He knows that eternity in heaven is the true measure of real wealth. All things on earth do not last, and accumulating them is foolishness. It leads to poverty.

When his heart is not constrained by the love of money, like the man who makes himself rich, he will not be corrupted by money when he is rich in material things. For example, young Joseph was seventeen years old when his brothers sold him into slavery in Egypt. Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s house, purchased him. Joseph trusted in the LORD and behaved himself in a godly manner. The Bible says that the LORD was with him. Joseph became the best slave Potiphar ever had. This was Potiphar’s testimony in Genesis 39:3-6: “³ And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. ⁴ And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. ⁵ And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. ⁶ And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.”

Potiphar trusted Joseph completely, knowing that he was diligent and would never cheat him or cut corners in his work. When Joseph was imprisoned because of Potiphar’s wife’s seductive behaviour and accusation toward him, he was just as godly in prison. When Joseph was 30 years old, God promoted him overnight to become Egypt's second most powerful man. Joseph woke up in prison one morning and went to sleep at night in the palace of Egypt. Joseph's power and luxurious life did not ruin him, for he remained faithful to his Saviour. He was rich in his heart and soul first. This spiritual wealth protected him from carnality all his days. He died at the age of one hundred and ten.

All believers must make themselves poor to be truly rich in Christ.