Day 10: Money is Not Everything in Life, Faith is

Day 10: Money is Not Everything in Life, Faith is

“Money can not buy you happiness, but you can be so unhappy and comfortable with it!” Most people believe that if they had enough money they would be happier. Is that always the case? Some athletes and entertainers, who are filthy rich, like to flaunt their wealth in the face of the hard working middle and lower class. Think of athletes like Tiger Woods, with earnings in golf and sponsors close to 1 Billion dollars (that is right! $1,000,000,000.00!!!); Lebron James who says he wants to earn $1 Billion dollars also from Basketball and sponsor deals; Jay-Z the hip-hop rapper who says he also wants to earn $1 Billion dollars; 50 Cent, the gansta rapper, who recently made $ 8.7 million in a day by getting his Twitter followers to buy his company’s stock (at $0.09 a share, his 3.8 million followers bought $50 Million dollars in a day, and netted him $ 8.7 million big mulas!) and is always saying how rich he is and how he wants to have $1 Billion dollars; Oprah Winfrey is already a Billionaire and one of the richest women in the world! Or How about Mark Zukerburg of Facebook who is only 23 years old and is worth $25 Billion dollars (that is 25 followed by 9 zeros: $25,000,000,000.00!!!!) How many of these people (without judging of course), have peace and joy in their hearts and can sleep at night knowing that “life does not consist in the abundance of things that we possess” but in a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Money can not buy you happiness, but it can make you very comfortable and unhappy with it! However, there is more than meets the eye! Read on!

If you follow the NCAAF and the Bowl Games, you became aware that the number one projected NFL Prospect was Andrew Luke of Stanford University. He was the Heisman Trophy #2 Candidate, and had been “publicly mentioned by the Carolina Panthers (the NFL Team with the #1 Draft Pick in the 2011 NFL Draft), as being their draft choice at #1 if Andrew Luck decided to go pro and enter the NFL Draft. He is a red-shirt sophmore in College, which means that he can return next season with the Stanford Cardinals, and finish his degree or go Pro and get a big multi-million dollar contract with an NFL Team. Quarterbacks, like Andrew Luck, usually get the biggest contracts like Sam Bradford of the St. Louis Rams, who got a 6-year $78 Million dollar contract with $50 Million guaranteed in 2010. Matthew Stafford of the Detriot Lions also got a Big Paycheck in 2009, as did Jamarcus Russell of the Oakland Raiders as the #1 NFL Draft pick in 2007 or 2008. Unfortunately, Russell was a disappointment, but he still got paid big with the guaranteed contract, usually $40 to $50 million dollars over five years.

Rivals.com states that, “Last year’s No. 1 pick, quarterback Sam Bradford, received $50 million guaranteed in a 6-year, $78 million deal with St. Louis. No. 2 defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh got a $68 million deal, $40 million of that guaranteed” (http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news?slug=ap-clemson-bowersrise).

Andrew Luck, after leading Stanford to a “decisive 40-12 victory over Virginia Tech in the Jan. 3 Orange Bowl”, was destined to be the #1 2011 NFL Draft pick and net a Big contract with at least $50 Million guaranteed! That is $10 million a year guaranteed for five years, or $833,333.33 a month for five years, or $192,307.69 every week for five years, or $27,397.26 every day for five years, or $1,141.55 every hour for five years, or $19.02 every minute for five years time. If he was your brother, you could ask Him, “Andrew? Do you think you can give me 5 minutes of your salary ($95.10) to go to the movies and catch a bite to eat with my friends? Or, better yet: “Andrew, could you give me twenty for hours of your salary ($27,397.26), so that I can buy me a new car, like a Nissan Altima Coupe Hybrid, or a Low end Mercedes Benz? …

But imagine the shock and surprise when 21 year old “QB Andrew Luck” made the announcement on Jan. 6, 2011 that he was staying at Stanford to finish his architectural degree by the spring of 2012, and foregoing the $50,000,000.00 guaranteed cash! A popular sports website states:

“Luck passed up millions of dollars and the chance to be the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, for his education.
He also passed up the opportunity to make the most money by a rookie, in NFL history, since the rookie cap will be added in the 2012 NFL draft.

In the 2012 NFL Draft, Luck may not be offered such a big contract because of the soon to be added rookie salary cap. So in the end, he may end up losing $50 Million big Ones! That is a lot of cash to pass up on just to finish his education, and complete his architectural degree. Or is it? If you were his mother, father, or brother, what would you advise him? Take the cash and run? Or finish your degree son? Think about it! What is more important to you? Money? Or preparation for a life of service to God and mankind? …

The Best Things in Life are Free

When you stop and think about it, the best things in life are free. Oxygen is free, unless you are in outer space or scuba diving. Then you have to pay for it. Water, H2O, is generally free, though most people pay for bottled water because it tastes better. Sunlight is free, appetite is free, eyesight is free, laughter is free, etc. You can have all of these things without being rich or wealthy! The best and most important things in life are free! Furthermore, the greatest things that brings a person joy in life is forgiveness and peace, which are free to everyone who exercises faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior! Forgiveness and peace is what every person seeks and longs for in this world, no matter the culture, race, or country. We all long to know that our sins are forgiven and that we have peace with God. But how? It is only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that we can experience forgiveness of sins and experience personal peace in Christ. 

Grace and Peace

Our text for today is found in 2 Peter 1:2. It says, “Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” You see, it is impossible to have peace in your life, unless you also have Grace in your life also. You need Grace in order for you to Peace, and Grace can only be found in the Cross of Jesus and in his substitutionary death for us at Calvary! Grace was demonstrated at the Cross when Jesus died in our place and for our sins. Grace is how God now offers us forgiveness of sins when we come to Jesus, and confess our sins to Him, repent, and believe in Jesus Christ as Our Lord and Savior. Peace is the assurance that God give us, that even though we have been and are still bad people, God’s Grace pardons our past, present, and future sins, and helps to transform us into a New Creation in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17). Grace and Peace. We need both. You can’t have one without the other. Have you experienced God’s grace in your life lately? Have you experienced His Peace in your life? It’s never too late. Why not go to the Cross and receive it right now! Just the way you are! God’s peace and love will flood your heart! Do you need God’s forgiveness and peace in your life today? 

The Place of Power

The best place to experience God’s Grace is by beholding Jesus on the Cross dying for our sins and in our place. In fact, Matthew 27 is known as the crucifixtion chapter. Matthew 27:24-54 is known as the place of power. If you need grace today, go to these verses and meditate on what Jesus did for you and how He died in your place on the cross of Calvary. Go to the place of Power today, and find God’s lavish Grace and His unmerited favor for you! It’s there! Go and receive it today!

Practical steps to Experiencing Grace and Peace 

1.     Seek the presence of God in your life. Isaiah 55:6. Go to God just the way you are and surrender yourself to God in worship. Tell Him, “Here I am. I’m here to present myself to you as an offering and as a living sacrifice. I’m here to worship you Lord. Help me to surrender myself to you fully today, 100%.”

2.     Go the place of power each day before you begin to read anything else. The place of power is found in Matthew 27:24-54. Read it and then pray this prayer: “Lord Jesus. Thank you for Your Sacrifice on the Cross for me. Thank you for dying for my sins and dying in my place on the Cross. I want to accept you as Savior and Lord of my life today. I ask that the power of the blood of Jesus described here in Matthew 27 would both save me and keep me from sin today. I pray that the power of Jesus’ Blood will keep me in the faith, and the Holy Spirit will surround me with an environment of light and peace to know that I have been bought and purchased with the blood of Jesus. Amen.”

3.     Ask God to give you His Forgiveness for past sins, and to flood your heart with His Peace. As you pray for it, believe that you have received it from God. Live your life today, as though God has freely pardoned and forgiven you. Also, give forgiveness to others in the measure that God has freely forgiven you. Walk in the light of God’s Grace and Peace today! (Cf. Matthew 6:9-15; 1 John 2:1-6; Romans 5:1-2; Mark 10:24)