The Rich/The Poor

I'm thinking that I have considered myself "rich" at times and I have also been what I would define as "poor".  Literally and spiritually.

Proverbs is full of scriptures about the rich and the poor. To believe that God created both is a bit hard to comprehend. Why did He not make everyone socially equal? And how did I fall into the class that I am in? Which is probably neither rich nor poor.  Or, as I said, maybe both.

We live in an imperfect world. Many of the poor have an attitude of entitlement and the rich are arrogant, or believe it or not, the poor can be proud and the rich can feel insecure for who they are. They can quickly become enemies. For years, capitalism and socialism have been warring philosophies. How do we create a society that is equal? Well, ever since sin entered the world, there have been the rich and the poor.

The big question of all time is: who gives and who takes? What is the equalizer of the rich and the poor? It is, I believe, in the Proverbs scripture above. We must realize that  "The Lord is the maker of them all." It is found in the  reading of God's word. God gives instructions for all times on how society should work.

No matter where we are born or what class we are born into, we are not to be lazy, but industrious. Proverbs has lots of advice about the sluggard and also about the wise man. Yet, we all live at the hand of Providence which also dictates, to some degree, whether we are rich or poor. We can never live out of the reach of a God who can navigate or change circumstances.

If I live according to the word of God, I am encouraged to be generous and hard-working. I am instructed to give and to bless others. If we all practiced this, we would live in a perfect world.

I believe the Bible says laziness is a sin. So is selfishness. Greed is wrong. Pride is defined as something God hates. Yet, all these fleshly traits intertwined with living, warp our perception of how God equalizes society.

I have always wondered about the fairness of natural disasters in the world. I've never experienced horrible things that others have, at the hand of earthquakes and such. However I have been in communities where there were floods and tornadoes. What I saw was, that it was always a way of bringing community and the nation together. For a period of time, everyone worked together for the common good of all people involved. God uses disaster for that purpose. Yet, as always, there is a dark side. 

I recently read a very descriptive reading about the earthquake in Haiti several years ago. I was appalled at the emotions evoked in such dire circumstances! Chaos in the middle of helping hands. Hope, and distress all mixed together.

What I do believe in is "Theism".: a belief in the existence of God, as Creator of the universe, and that He intervenes in it, sustaining a personal relationship with His Creation. I wish all mankind would live by this philosophy. However, we all know that is not true. So, since the beginning of time, we have the rich; the poor. We have weakness; we have strength. We have good; we have evil. 

My concern is how do I live so enlightened that I can show the world around me that I honor this Proverb by the portrayal of God in my life. At whatever station in life I happen to be, I must live in contentment, because it's where the Providence of God has placed me. I cannot afford to be envious or proud.

The Lord made us all. He loves no one less or more.  We all were born. We all will die. He allows us to live, to succeed, to fail, to give out, to take in. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!