An elderly, wealthy lady was sitting in her Mercedes waiting for a parking place at the grocery store. She had been waiting patiently as a car backed out. Just as the car pulled out, a young man whizzed right in and took the place. He got out of the car and, as he walked to the store, he said to the lady, “That is what you can do when you’re young and quick.” She took her Mercedes and smashed the back of his car over and over. He ran up to her, screaming, “Lady, what are you doing? Are you crazy? That’s my car!” She calmly said, “That’s what you can do when you’re old and rich.”
God is ageless and rich, but He uses His riches for us, for our benefit. I’m not talking about material riches. Many things are more important than money.
A desperate old prospector in Deadwood, South Dakota, inscribed this saying on a weathered piece of wood: “I lost my gun, I lost my horse, I am out of food, the Indians are after me, but I have all the gold I can carry.” Here is a guy who didn’t understand that some things are more important than gold.
A humorous story is told about the golfer Arnold Palmer. Palmer was invited to play a series of exhibition golf matches in Saudi Arabia. The king of Saudi Arabia was so impressed with Arnie, and so appreciative of Palmer’s impact on his countrymen, that he wanted to give him a gift. “It really isn’t necessary,” Palmer insisted. “I am honored to have been invited.” The king was persistent. “I would be unhappy if I could not show you my appreciation,” he said. Finally, Arnie relented. He thought for a moment and said, “Well, how about a golf club? That would make a nice memento of my visit to your country.” The next day, Arnold Palmer received the title to a golf club — consisting of thousands of acres of real estate, a clubhouse, beautiful trees, etc.
The king did not give out of his riches; he gave according to his riches. That is what God does for us. God can do more than you can even think about doing. God can give you more than you can ever think about wanting. God is able to give you more than you are able to ask or think. Here is our problem: We put God in our sphere and expect Him to operate as we do.
Believe it or not, I can lift an object that weighs a ton. I would need to be in outer space to do it, for there is no gravity out there. It’s a whole different sphere. I have power there that I don’t have here.
God is in a different sphere. He doesn’t operate the way our puny minds operate. He is God. He can do more abundantly than what we can ever ask or think. The issue is confidence.
When our oldest daughter turned 15, the state of Texas believed that she would be competent to drive. That would not have bothered me if the state of Texas had decided she could drive a state vehicle. That would be their problem. However, they thought that she could drive, at age 15, in my vehicle. I loved Angela, but I didn’t really trust her driving. I didn’t think she was really competent. I had a hard time giving her the keys to the car. I’d say, “Today, why don’t you drive around the neighborhood?” Or maybe on a Sunday, when there was not much traffic, I would let her drive to church. I didn’t want her out in the real world. I had a problem trusting her competence.
That’s the way some of us think about God. We think God is with us, but we’re not going to give Him the keys. We don’t want Him to go out in the real world; we just want Him to stay in the neighborhood or maybe at church, but not in the real world. We don’t want God to dominate us. Don’t be so naive as to think that you aren’t dominated by something. People say they just want to be free. You can say you want to be free from brushing your teeth. You will be free from the toothbrush, but you will be dominated by cavities. Life involves choices, and it’s always a choice as to who or what will dominate us. When we say that a person is filled with anger, what we mean is that this person is dominated by anger. Sooner or later, anger will come out. When God dominates you, He soon comes out.
A wealthy man’s foreman was extremely helpful. When the man decided to take a vacation, he told the foreman, “Build a house that is wonderful. Spare no expense on materials and construction. I will be gone for six months, and when I return I want the keys to the house.” The foreman started the house and soon realized that if he used substandard materials he could pocket the extra money. And that’s what he did. The house was a second-rate house built with second-rate materials. When the wealthy man returned, he asked for the keys to the house. “Did you build me a great house?” “Yes,” the foreman replied. “Did you use the finest materials?” “Yes,” he again replied. His boss said, “Great, because this house is for you,” and he handed him the keys.
We have a wealthy God who spares no expense. Let Him build you a great house.