“There is still one thing you lack,” Jesus said. “Sell all you have and give the money to the poor―it will become treasure for you in heaven–and come, follow me” (Luke 18:22 TLB).

Jesus’s choice of words to this young man of great wealth struck me as I read the account given in Luke 18: “There is still one thing you lack.” I’m sure the crowds following Jesus were puzzled to hear the word “lack” used in connection with such a rich man.

Then several chapters later, Jesus asked his disciples, “When I sent you out with no purse, or bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They answered, “Nothing.”

Jesus disciples were learning that in the Kingdom, one can live with few earthly possessions and still “lack nothing,” while outside the Kingdom, one can be very rich and still experience lack. By the world’s logic, this makes no sense at all. But in God’s economy, I’m learning, as Jesus’s disciples did, that sometimes the only way to get what I lack is to give away what I have.

Dear God, teach me to live in your economy. Help me not to hold so tightly to what I have that I miss out on things that have eternal value. Amen.

Our home in Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, from 1979 to 1982.

 (Devotional from Homespun Faith, Reflections from the Seasons of Life, copyright 2014 Daisy Beiler Townsend. Available as paperback or ebook: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Xulon Press. There are Links on this website on the Where to Buy Homespun Faith and Sarah’s Legacy page.  Locally at Fresh Grounds, M & M Grocery, Leanna’s Books, Penn Alps in Grantsville, Maryland, or from me 724-373-8445 or donaisy@neo.rr.com.)