Robbie McDonough
James 1:9-11 (The Voice) 

9 If you are a brother of humble means, celebrate the fact that God has raised you up. 10 If you are rich and seemingly invincible, savor the humble reality that you are a mere mortal who will vanish like a flower that withers in the field. 11 The sun rises with a blazing heat that dries the earth and causes the flower to wither and fall to the ground and its beauty to fade and die. In the same way, the rich will fall and die in the midst of their busy lives.

Reflection:

I am going to admit right out of the gate that I was late signing up for verses this month and I was left to tackle a doozy! Pondering James’ words here is a bit intimidating. Afterall, who doesn’t want to succeed? Who doesn’t want to provide all this world has to offer to their children and their children’s children? Who doesn’t want to have enough to be comfortable? Heck, who doesn’t want enough to be very comfortable? Who doesn’t want to be rich? 

But apparently the rich are doomed, and the poor will be victorious. Isn’t that what James is saying? The poor will be raised up and the rich will wither away. We could stop at that shallow interpretation, but I think there is more to it. I think James is trying to tell us that having or not having earthly riches is irrelevant in the Kingdom of God. He’s trying to refocus our attention on what matters: our faith and our works. 

If you haven’t seen the 1983 film Trading Places, do so immediately. We can wait. The movie stars Dan Aykroyd as Louis Winthorpe III, a yuppy Wall Street type, and Eddie Murphy as Billy Ray Valentine, a street hustler. In the movie, we see two powerful brothers (the Duke brothers) meddling like Greek gods in the lives of the mortals around them. In an experiment to settle a philosophical bet, the two brothers frame the rich man (Winthorpe) stripping him of everything he has and hands it all over to the poor man (Valentine) to see how it will impact the two men’s lives. Without his wealth and status in society, everyone around Winthorpe flees from him and he spirals out of control, or as James would say, he withers like a flower in the hot sun. On the other hand, Valentine’s newfound wealth and street smarts allow him to succeed and find acceptance among high society despite his sordid past. With earthly riches, both men are business and social success stories. Without them, everything is a struggle; especially after being rich and losing it all. 

So today, James (and sort of Trading Places too) invites us to refocus ourselves on Jesus’s words in Matthew 6:19-20:

 

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Prayer:
Father God, thank you for the many blessings you have bestowed upon my life. Forgive me for getting caught up in earning more, making more, having more. Give me the strength to focus on what matters: Your Kingdom. Open my eyes to the Kingdom work you have for me today. In Christ’s name, Amen.