This month, our meditation has been excerpted from the book entitled Extreme Devotion, compiled by Voice Of the Martyrs. In the following passage, the account of a visiting Christian missionary (in North Korea) provides us with fodder for reflection and perhaps application:
And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)
When the boy in the hotel finally spotted the visiting "businessman," he ran to him and grabbed his hand. The startled visitor tried to pull away, but soon realized that the boy was making the sign of a cross on his palm silently with his finger. The man, a missionary who had prayed to make contact with the church, looked down into the face of the rail-thin boy and immediately understood the message: "The church is alive in North Korea!"
The next day, the missionary met secretly with the boy. He learned that his father was a Christian who had been imprisoned years before. The boy's family had greatly suffered under the brutal government and had to beg for food just to survive. Now, because of drought, people everywhere were dying from severe malnutrition.
When the missionary asked what he could do, he thought surely the boy would request food for his family. But the boy asked him for only four things: to take his tithe that he had saved over many years, to baptize him, to give him Holy Communion, and to give him a better Bible.
The man was moved to tears as he realized the boy's wisdom. Physical help would only serve him for a day or two, and then he would be back to the same predicament. Spiritual help would prepare him for eternity.
FURTHER: Wanting something and needing something are two entirely different things for most people. Whet they want is not what they need. Yet what they need most is not what they want. This is why so many people are frustrated. The child in this anecdote teaches us what happens when all our wants are lined up with all our needs. He got it right. He wanted the very thing he needed most: Jesus Christ. When all you want is all you need, you will find great satisfaction. You may say you want money, but you'll soon find that money meets only so many needs. You may say you need money, but soon you'll want other things as well. Only Jesus can satisfy your wants and needs at the same time.
A moment of consideration: Have we ever shown the confusion of this age by saying something like, "I want what I need, and I need what I want"? The things which the North Korean lad wanted were expressed as what he needed--not the necessities of human life, but the things needed for his spiritual life; his desires and needs were dangerous in that country, and might result in his joining his father in a likely torturous absentia. Scriptures tell us that man does not live by physical food alone, but by every word found written in God's Book, the Bible. (Deuteronomy 8:3) The boy wished for perhaps a better and more sturidly-constructed Bible, or perhaps a study Bible, or maybe a Bible he could more easily understand. But God's Word is illegal in his country. Baptism is a wonderful way to demonstrate the shedding of the former life and emerging to life anew in Christ. Yet baptism is one of the most dangerous rites in many places around the world. Holy Communion could be given surreptitiously, and the boy desired a sharing of the Lord's body and blood and the closeness he would feel with the Lord because of that. All requests of the "businessman" would help the boy know an abiding relationship with the Lord. This would not be tolerated by the North Korean authorities; yet these would help prepare him for eternal life with the Lord.
While the world loves to tell us what we want or desire, the young North Korean boy did not have those allurements. He desired and chose wisely. In an interesting set of poll results from noted pollster George Gallup, the following was reported:
George Gallup, Jr., after decades of research, has listed the top spiritual needs of people today:
1. To believe that life is meaningful and has a purpose.
2. To have a sense of community and deeper relationships.
3. To be appreciated and respected.
4. To be listened to.
5. To feel they are growing in faith.
6. To get practical help in developing a mature faith.
These top spiritual needs depart from our desires such as the new electric car we've wanted, or Super Bowl tickets our family has been clamoring for, or the cruise we've wanted to take, or smart laundry or kitchen appliances we've been keeping our eyes on and that would be perfect for our home, or plane tickets to that Caribbean Island we've always yearned to visit--as examples. For some, wants are translated into perceived needs, and acted upon, tickets purchased, sales made, and so on. As Christians, our primary need is Christ, and a life lived close to His side. As Christians, we branches need to stay attached to the Vine (John 15:5-11) in order to be fruitful for Christ and productive for His Kingdom. An anonymous secular source remarked, "We are disgusted by the things that we desire, and we desire what disgusts us." Perhaps a bit strongly asserted, but many worldly products and desires leave one feeling hollow and dissatisfied. That which allured us to the products or experiences is not borne out in our everyday use or experience with them. A new car loses some of its value and luster after it is driven off the sales lot. Cruises sometimes "nickel-and-dime" their passengers for paltry offerings and purchases (with some passengers coming to uderstand that there is no such thing as a free ride after the cruise fee had been paid). Smart appliances these days have less than stellar life expectancies. Dream vacations often don't live up to their "dream" or expectations.
George Bernard Shaw stated, "There are two tragedies in life. One is not to get your heart's desire. The other is to get it." But God has said He will meet our needs (Philippians 4:19), though these needs are not to be confused with worldly wants. James 4 discusses warring against worldliness, and stresses that "You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions." (James 4:3) Having friendship with the world involves seeking pleasure at others' expense or at the expense of obeying God. Pleasure that keeps us from pleasing God is sinful; pleasure from God's rich bounty is good.
Remember--Christianity proposes not to extinguish our natural desires. It promises to bring the desires under just control and direct them to their true object. In the case of both riches and honor, it maintains the consistency of its character. But Christianity commands us not to set our hearts on earthly treasures. It reminds us that “we have in heaven a better and more enduring substance” than this world can bestow (Hebrews 10:34).
How many of our desires are dangerous? Probably not many--that is, unless our desires as believers are actually our needs. The North Korean child stated what he desired/needed (to take his tithe that he had saved over many years, to baptize him, to give him Holy Communion, and to give him a better Bible). These things would likely be very dangerous. But our needs, e.g., to take a stand for Christ, to speak out against the violence in our streets, to faithfully take whatever action the Lord Jesus asks of us, to abide in Christ, to anchor our minds on Christ (Isaiah 26:3; Hebrews 12:3), and more needs--can be dangerous to us, as it is for Christians around the world. How should we live in these days of violence and strife? In the book of 1 Peter, chapter 1, Peter addressed this concern for Christians who faced (further) persecution. He cautioned his readers to be prepared mentally for the coming displays of hatred toward Christ and His followers; he called these Christians to holy living; he urged them to obey Christ's commands, to purify themselves through such obedience to the Truth, to live in fear/awe of God, to not be conformed to the passions of this world. And, in all of this, the apostle Paul said "I can do all things through Christ, who stengthens me." (Philippians 4:13) But what does this mean? Can we really do everything?
The power we receive in union with Christ is sufficient to do his will and to face the challenges that arise from our commitment to doing it. He does not grant us superhuman ability to accomplish anything we can imagine without regard to His interests. As we contend for the faith, we will face troubles, pressures, and trials. As sufferings come, ask Christ to strengthen you. Recall Paul's comments concerning the thorn in the flesh that had been granted him, and that he had prayed to have removed from him--just as Christ prayed and asked to have the cup of suffering removed from Him. God's response to the apostle Paul may also help us in living holy lives during a darkening age: "He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:9-10) Again, ask Christ to strengthen you. Though this is a seemingly crazy world, Christ overcame the world; through Him let us be overcomers for the trials and challenges set before us. There is victory in Jesus, our Savior forever!