On Your Part

Exodus 34:10-28 “... But you, on your part, must keep the commandments I am giving you today...”

Yesterday, while I was styling a client's hair, we discussed people having too much money. We saw a pair of tennis shoes on a website for sale for $11,000. As we discussed this, I thought of the bottle of Kerastase hair oil that we sell for $79. I mentioned this to her, and she said that’s different because that’s something people want, which made no sense. I told her you can’t have it both ways.

The verse says "on your part" or for your part. In other words, do your part. Don’t sit around and say that people should give money to the poor because they already have enough, especially about billionaires, but in the meantime, instead of giving money to the poor, you buy $80 bottles of perfumed hair oil. Or $100 shirts. Or $25 books you don’t need like I do all too frequently. If you think the billionaires should help the poor, why shouldn’t you? If the person who can give up the $11,000 tennis shoes should give them up, why shouldn’t you give up your $80 bottle of hair oil?

It’s easy to tell others what to do while we ignore the same behavior in ourselves on a smaller scale. Smaller-scale selfishness is still selfishness. Smaller-scale greed and love of money are still greed and love of money. $80 wasted or $11,000 wasted is still wasted money.

Lk 11:14-23 “  “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house...”

If we say we love the poor and want to help them but then waste our resources, turn on those with more resources, and excoriate them for doing no different than we are doing, just on a larger scale, we are divided against ourselves. Our house will not stand.

Human-Written, AI Spell-Checked 3/11/21

Image from Pinnaxis.com