A WORD FOR TODAY, September 1, 2022
Peggy Hoppes
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Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, September 1, 2022
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we certainly can’t carry anything out. But having food and clothing, we will be content with that. But those who are determined to be rich fall into a temptation, a snare, and many foolish and harmful lusts, such as drown men in ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some have been led astray from the faith in their greed, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” 1 Timothy 6:6-10, WEB
Imagine that you are in kindergarten again, and today is show-and-tell day. What would you take with you? There are usually some limits to what the children can take, such as recommending something small enough to fit in their backpack. Most children will search their toy boxes for their favorite toys, but sometimes they’ll choose a souvenir from a recent trip or their favorite book. Some children step out of the box and bring unusual items, especially if they can get permission and help from Mom or Dad. Some show-and-tell about pets or grandmas. Sometimes it is a picture of something they can’t carry.
Kindergarten is not meant to be academic like a college classroom, or even like the older children at their schools. It is very active, and every activity has a purpose. It often seems like the play most of the time, but that play is teaching the students life lessons like how to share and how to work with others. Games help with physical and mental development. Toys help with coordination. Many activities introduce the building blocks for learning: language, math, science. The fine arts like art and music develop different parts of the brain. Though we may look in a kindergarten classroom and think it is just a bunch of kids having fun, that fun is filled with purpose.
One purpose of show-and-tell is to let the child show his or her friends something unique about themselves. But there’s more to it than that. Show-and-tell is about telling. When a student stands in front of the class with something they love, they are more willing to speak, to tell stories, and to open up to the other students. It is about helping build self-confidence and courage to speak publicly. It is about developing language patterns so that others will understand what we have to say. Show-and-tell helps children think about why they like something and how to talk about it to others.
The Bible sometimes talks about material possessions in a negative light because our stuff can often get in the way of our faith. We get so caught up in protecting and collecting things that we miss the true joys of life. We put things before people, and even worse, we put things before God. But our treasures can also help us understand who we are. The trouble comes when we are not content, when we want more. Our attitude about our stuff affects our relationship with our neighbors and our God.
I wonder how many children are jealous of the child that takes a brand-new toy or a sweet puppy to share with their friends. What about us? Do we ever get jealous of our neighbors who have things we want to have? Or do we rejoice with one another at the many blessings we have to share? God does not necessarily command us to give up the wonderful gifts He has given, or the life with which we have been blessed. He simply asks that we be content, satisfied with what we have. Working for a living is not a bad thing. As a matter of fact, the proverbs are very clear that sluggards and lazy people will not find God’s blessings. But the goal in life should never be to have the biggest best toys.
Paul writes, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” He did not say money is evil; He did not say the treasures we would show-and-tell are bad, as a matter of fact, God gifts us with even the things that give us joy. He is just asking us to have restraint, to be satisfied with what we have. We fall into error when we desire what others have. Money is a necessary part of life, and our earthly treasures are blessings from God to give us joy as we live. May God help us to be good stewards of the resources He has given so that we might live content and happy in this world.
A WORD FOR TODAY is posted five days a week – Monday through Friday. The devotional on Wednesday takes a look at the scripture from the Revised Common Lectionary for the upcoming Sunday. A WORD FOR TODAY is posted on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Word-for-Today-Devotional/339428839418276. Like the page to receive the devotion through Facebook. For information and to access our archives, visit http://www.awordfortoday.org
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