WHOM DO YOU TRUST?

Many years ago, long before his retirement and prior to his hosting “The Tonight Show,” Johnny Carson hosted a daytime television program called “Who Do You Trust?” I remember nothing about the show. What I do remember is that the name of the program infuriated the grammarians of the world. They insisted that “who” should have been “whom”, the accusative rather than the nominative case being grammatically correct.

   So, lest I be incorrect, whom do you trust? Truly, whom do you trust? It is a very important question, vital even, especially when it comes to matters of faith and the living out the demands of our faith. For in the end, the manner in which we live out those demands and that faith will depend on whom and in whom we ultimately place our trust. We should not be hasty in our response.

   Most of us, however and I dare say, would quickly respond that we place our trust, our ultimate trust in God. Why we trust God with our very lives, do we not? We have to as God holds our lives in His hands. If God determines that our life in this life is to end now, there is nothing we can do about it. And so we have to trust that God knows best when it comes to life and death.

   That said, do we really trust God? Let’s get really personal here. Let’s talk about something that is truly less important than our life but often seems more important than life itself, or at least we sometimes act as if it does. Do we trust God with our money? Or do we act as if our money and how we use it is none of God’s business or should not be any of God’s concern? We’ll trust God with our lives but God can trust us to use our financial resources as we believe God would want us to, even demand that we do. Is that what we believe? Even more, is that how we live?

   The proper stewardship of our financial resources is vital not only for the proper ordering of our lives but for the welfare of the whole world. Whether we are willing to admit it or not, the proper use of all the world’s resources, financial and otherwise, would eliminate poverty, disease and even war, which is always the result, direct or indirect, of too few having too much and too many having too little. But let’s not go there.

   Instead, let us stay at home and look into the mirror. For several months now we have been thinking about proportional giving (or at least I hope we have). Do we really believe that if we give say 5% of our income to the church, we will have more than enough left over to do all we need to do, meet all our needs and then some: needs and not wants? Do we trust God enough to know such giving is possible, even easy, if we would only make the effort.

   Whom should we trust when it comes to our money? We know that answer. Whom do we trust? Should not that answer also be “God”? If we have not already began to seriously ponder that question, perhaps now is a good time to begin. After all – need I remind? – our Every Member Canvas is nigh upon us.  So, whom do you trust? How you and I answer that question makes all the difference in the world – and can change the world.                       WJP