Proverbs 30:7-8

Recently I have been spending time in Proverbs.  As a new pastor I need ALL the wisdom I can get.  So I have spent time looking at what the Wisdom Book has to say about life.  One of the sections that I haven’t been able to shake is Proverbs 30:7-9

“Two things I ask of you, O LORD;
do not refuse me before I die:

Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD ?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.

Do we really want to ask for these two things?  Sure praying not to tell lies that is a simple one.  But to have neither poverty or riches is heavy towards one thing we want and another we want to stay away from.  This is a great “Christian” idea that most of us would amen at a church service.  How many of us would TRULY pray this.  That God would only provide enough for us to get by.  That we would live from pay check to pay check depending more on God than our ability.

Honestly we all want security.  We want to be able to do all by ourselves.  If we can’t pay a bill then we have failed.  Or is God looking for a chance to step into our lives in a tangible way?  Is God wanting to use someone else to bless us?

Now this doesn’t mean we blow all our cash on big toys and ask God to pay for them.  Proverbs talks much about wisdom and foolish with money.  So the question is are we suppose to have “emergency funds” or big retirement accounts?  Is that wisdom on our parts that God has blessed so that we have enough we hard times come or is it selfishness because we want security?  I am wrestling with this right now.  Is my faith of walking a tight rope supposed to have this saftey net under it or should I have true faith?  Just some I am currently thinking about.

I found this You Tube video from Francis Chan talking about his verse. Check it out.