"Something Better"

 

“Something Better”

 

Recently Pastor Caleb Pipes preached a message from parables in Matthew 13 in which he examined two men who sold all they had to purchase something worth much more, one a piece of land on which he found a valuable item (Verse 44) and the other a choice pearl (Verses 45-46). His point was that there are times in our lives when we must decide if by faith we’re willing to part with something we treasure to gain something we believe is better.

As I thought about these two stories God brought to mind several people who gave up financially lucrative careers to serve Him vocationally:

*Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones left his medical practice in Wales to become a pastor and author. He preached at Westminster Chapel in London for some 30 years and wrote scores of books on biblical subjects.

*Bobby Richardson retired from Major League Baseball while at the top of his game to serve with Christian ministries.

*Arturo Blanco was the Director of Education for a large area in Honduras and resigned to pastor Eternity’s Call Church in Danli which our Manchester church had planted.

*Len Waterman was a promising engineer (and one of my grade school Sunday School teachers) who became a church planter in the Northeastern U.S. and had a part in starting or restoring about 80 churches.

And lest you think the only “better way” is to go into vocational Christian service….

*A recent TV movie told of a man who left his law practice to start a non-profit organization to help needy kids (a fictional story but likely one repeated many times over in real life).

*My brother Dave was subtly told by a supervisor that he’d have to put his employer first to advance in the business. He courageous responded that God and his family were his top priorities but he’d serve his company diligently. God later honored his commitment with several promotions. (See “First Things First” for more of this story.)

In Scripture we read of Paul who was willing to count human achievements as “rubbish” to serve Christ (Philippians 3:8) and a young man who was unwilling to part with his earthly riches to follow Jesus (Matthew 19:16-22). Which one represents “something better”? Which one describes me? Or you?

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan