11-09-11 To Be Rich and Poor: Part 2

“He then cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented…’” – Luke 16:24-25


Today’s Reading: Luke 16:19-31


I last wrote about an encounter I had with a homeless woman. This verse shows an important reason why Lazarus was in hell and perhaps another motivation for why I did not give the woman some money.

Even to the bitter end the rich man was focused on himself.

Crisis of Leadership

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. John 10: 11-13

Today’s Reading: 2 Chronicles 1-3; John 10:1-23

A friend of mine on Facebook posted this article from the Wall Street Journal yesterday. In it, the author suggests that there is going to be a huge economic crash in 2011 because Obama is not going to extend the Bush tax cuts. The rationale is that since the wealthy are aware that taxes will increase significantly next year they are taking all of their profits in 2010 to avoid it and will have a higher percentage of their assets in non-taxable entities come 2011 and beyond.

Based on this logic the author argues that 2010 economic numbers are deceivingly high and the 2011 numbers will be exceptionally low causing a double dip economic hit…

Eh…

Ok, there are are a host of other reasons why the economic could tailspin in the future but he has a point. However, there is something inherently problematic here. Aren’t these titans of business and Wall Street the same folks who led us into this recession in the first place?

You might counter me by saying that Joe the Plummer is going to do the same thing but let’s keep it real, the average investor is not savvy enough to make this move and their assets are not large enough to really move the needle here.

This is about the fat cats.

As I followed the news in 2008 and 2009 I couldn’t help but to see the tragic irony in all of this. The same people who got us into this mess were the folks we relied on to get us out of it.

For my not so economically literate friends out there let me make a comparison that illustrates the point.

So we’ve got this oil spill going in the gulf right? It’s not so fresh.

But who are we relying on to fix the problem? THE SAME PEOPLE WHO CAUSED IT!

This is what makes the problem so frustrating. We are angry for the screw up, we are infuriated by images of oil soaked wildlife, and to add insult to injury, it is all the more infuriating that the firm that caused the problem is best suited to solve the problem.

Long after the oil leak is plugged and the news cameras stop recording the wildlife and the communities in the gulf will remain mired in the muck caused by this catastrophe.

In both the oil spill and the economic meltdown the leaders who caused the problem knew that they were engaged in reckless behavior. And in the end, regular folks will have to fit the bill.

We need to really think about the folks that we put in places of leadership. Are they good shepherds who will work tirelessly to make sure that their organizations benefit society as well as their bottom line? Or are they bad shepherds, who are all about the cash until the wolves, of their own creation, send them running for the hills with their profits in tow.

The biggest problem that we as a people face today isn’t the economy or our rapidly deteriorating environment. Our biggest problem is our crisis of leadership.

QUESTION OF THE DAY!: What are the characteristics of a good leader? What are some examples of good leaders and why? They can be from history or your personal life. Let's figure this out y'all!

The Quicksand of Selfishness

He said to the crowd: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, 'It's going to rain,' and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say, 'It's going to be hot,' and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time? – Luke 12: 54-56

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 25-26; Luke 12: 32-59

Whoa… enter gangsta Jesus!

This is the same Jesus who went to the temple and caused a ruckus. He is NOT to be messed with.

But as I reread this passage I couldn’t help but to feel his frustration.

Most of us are grounded in our five senses. If we can see, smell, touch, taste or hear something we generally have a decent sense of what is going on. We run these sensory experiences by our memory of the past and accumulated knowledge and form hypotheses for the future.

When we see gray storm clouds we know that rain is coming.

But what about this next level that he is talking about? Can we see beyond our senses? How can we understand what is going on beneath the surface? Well here’s the key as I understand it:

We must stop focusing solely on ourselves.

Here’s an example.

Have you ever “hooked up” with someone that you knew liked you more than you liked them?

Yep… don’t front.

Here’s how these situations usually go… You meet or know someone and it becomes clear that they really like you. You may like them too but you aren’t smitten… however they are attractive for some reason. They have a nice smile or a big booty or broad shoulders or something or other that tickles your fancy.

What do you do?

Do you engage in some sort of relationship with them? Do you hook up with them? They’re grown just like you are right? Grown folks should know what they are getting themselves into. It’s not your responsibility to be the custodian of someone else’s feelings…

WRONG.

Well you can do that if you want to, but you know it ain’t right. By virtue of the fact that you knew they cared more for you than you care for them; you have a responsibility. You can see storm clouds on the horizon that they cannot see.

But acting with this kind of sensitivity requires stepping out of yourself, stepping out of the lure of your own desires and focusing on what is right.

Plus, you really wouldn’t want someone to do this to you right?

This is where we get back to the great commandments. Love God first and love your neighbor as yourself. The idea here is that if you put God first then you won’t get stuck in the quicksand of selfishness.

With this freedom you will be better equipped to love your neighbor.

This won’t just help you to avoid hurting people as outlined above… it will also help you step outside of your fears, your judgments, and anything else that is holding you back from your purpose.

It helps us get out of our own way so that we can be the best that we can be...