January 12, 2021: SOAP #4058:  Genesis 29-30; Luke 12

SCRIPTURE:  Luke (NIV) 12:20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God.”…
Luke (NIV) 12:33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near, and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

OBSERVATION:   In verse 16-21 we have a parable by Jesus about a rich man who built bigger barns to store up his wealth for his future years.  He died before he could enjoy it.   

In verses 33-34 we read about a way to guarantee we will be able to enjoy our wealth for all eternity.  We give it.  We invest it the lives around us. 

APPLICATION:    Notice, the way to prepare for retirement is to save.  But as I prepare for retirement, I must make sure that I am “rich towards God.”  So, how do I become “rich towards God?”  How do I prepare for eternity?  I do that by giving!    So, I prepare for retirement by saving AND I prepare for heaven by giving!    

Our death will end our enjoyment of what we save.  Oh, but what we give—that we will enjoy for all eternity! 

PRAYER:  Heavenly Father, you know how important money is.  Give me your wisdom in applying the money you provide.  You know what I need.  When I am doing your will, I can trust you to take care of my needs.   Amen. 

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity! 

My personal SOAP saga:  Today I saw a pulmonary surgeon to evaluate my leaking lymph duct.  Since the fluid removal last Thursday, I have had no problems with chest pressure.  It was decided to go on a no-fat diet and re-evaluate in two weeks.  An x-ray was taken to provide a comparison for that evaluation.  On the way home, I received a phone call saying that the x-ray showed much improvement from an earlier one.  Tomorrow I will go for a physical exam for bus driving.  I have sure missed the bus students.