Economics that scare me . . .
My area of Texas is considered highly Catholic AND Bible-believing Baptist. With so many people professing faith in Christ, I am shocked at what I am hearing in my community and on the radio. Some people who make more than $250,000 / year are getting out their old copies of “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand and they are identifying with the characters in her classic novel. I hear people saying that if Obama’s policies are going to punish those who are “productive,” they will start eliminating jobs at their small businesses and just take care of their own families. Their goal is to drop below $249,000 so that they pay less.
I see a few things wrong with these ideas. First, it sounds like an incredible sense of self-pride. I cannot see how hard-working small business owners are any more “productive” than manual-labor minimum-wage earners. Our Lord Jesus Christ was a “tekton”, which we like to translate as carpenter. But, the term was also used for anyone who worked primarily with their hands. He could have been a daily farm hand, waiting on the corner to be chosen for someone’s harvest. Small business owners produce more wealth, not more effort.
The harvest comes from the Lord. The small-business owner has produced nothing that does not come from God. In reality, it is God taking care of them and all the families of those who work for them. If they are not careful, God will eliminate their business. The rich fool in Luke 12 thought he could store-up for himself in a bigger barn. Wrong.
Finally, I wonder what happened to “as you do to the least of these” and “love your neighbor as your love yourself” and the Good Samaritan stopping to bind up wounds, shelter and feed a stranger. The reaction that I am hearing is, “If I don’t get to keep all my money then I won’t share it.” We are in a pattern of mutually-assured destruction: the more out-of-work, the less who buy, the more who lose their jobs. What hurts one person hurts all.
It is my hope that in this area which considers itself Christian, we will stop this nonsense and listen to God’s word again. It is NOT about us. It is about our neighbor, helping one-another, and getting through this together.
I see a few things wrong with these ideas. First, it sounds like an incredible sense of self-pride. I cannot see how hard-working small business owners are any more “productive” than manual-labor minimum-wage earners. Our Lord Jesus Christ was a “tekton”, which we like to translate as carpenter. But, the term was also used for anyone who worked primarily with their hands. He could have been a daily farm hand, waiting on the corner to be chosen for someone’s harvest. Small business owners produce more wealth, not more effort.
The harvest comes from the Lord. The small-business owner has produced nothing that does not come from God. In reality, it is God taking care of them and all the families of those who work for them. If they are not careful, God will eliminate their business. The rich fool in Luke 12 thought he could store-up for himself in a bigger barn. Wrong.
Finally, I wonder what happened to “as you do to the least of these” and “love your neighbor as your love yourself” and the Good Samaritan stopping to bind up wounds, shelter and feed a stranger. The reaction that I am hearing is, “If I don’t get to keep all my money then I won’t share it.” We are in a pattern of mutually-assured destruction: the more out-of-work, the less who buy, the more who lose their jobs. What hurts one person hurts all.
It is my hope that in this area which considers itself Christian, we will stop this nonsense and listen to God’s word again. It is NOT about us. It is about our neighbor, helping one-another, and getting through this together.
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Comment by Carolyn on April 11, 2009 at 6:02am -
Nik, hello... have not heard from you in a while. Because I own a small business, I thought I would reply. Small business is simply family business and is simply people putting their all into a life that enables and enriches others. We provide for our families first using the tool of business that God gives us. As we are able, we enable those who don't want to take the risks and liability (we can lose everything with something as simple as a disgruntled customer who pursues lawsuits) to have work and make incomes. Most of the time, those who are enabled somehow believe they are entitled to what ever they wish but do not give loyalty and best efforts back to us. Forgiving them, we smile and encourage them and pay them anyway.
We don't have a life to live outside the business. We are consumed far into the night, and early in the morning with planning and preparation, with worry and prayer. We need to be enabled in what we do, rather than restricted. Taxing us in the way proposed loses sight of our benefit to society. If variety is God's design, then enabling small business to survive and succeed is in line with his purposes for this nation.
Fear comes when we realize that our nations leaders now do not understand the life blood of private enterprise and are messing with becoming gods to the economy instead of knowing and trusting God himself to work thru the multitude of variety of people who can do their own calling and are enabled by God to bring prosperity to those we serve.
People of all kinds, not just business owners, will decrease sharing when the government decides how much they should share and to whom by taxing them. That is why so many ministries suffer now. If we can't keep our money, then we have less to share. That is why we are told to let every man give as he purposes in his own heart. I don't think God will eliminate a business. I think we can pray that instead he prospers it so that they will have enough to meet the demands of taxation and hire new employees too. But, I do think that when a government hinders free enterprise, we can pray to be relieved of that oppression.
This is a period of shaking. The fearful and the unbelieving will not prosper in it. It may be time for those who are not in small business to begin one, and to become part of the solution! If we believe God, lets buy a business and begin!
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