A Case of the "Mines"

My daughter does, more often than many, at least on the outside. She is almost three and is still learning to share. You've all heard of the toddler creed: everything is "mine." Even if it is someone else's, if I've got it in my hand, it belongs to me. We are attempting to teach her a bit about sharing, and about personal ownership.

I must admit, however, that I have that same problem as well. While I don't generally march about the house yelling "mine, mine, mine"- or start crying when someone else has something I'd like, I'd guess that I am just about as selfish on the inside as my daughter is on the outside. Whether it's time, the computer, or pop tarts, I often have to struggle to share what I hold dear.

Americans especially, it seems, take a lot of pride in what they have, what they've earned, and what they collect. "He who dies with the most toys wins." Sharing is often as foreign, and sometimes more so, to some adults as it is to my daughter.

But, what do we really own, anyway? According to God's word, absolutely nothing. Everything, and everyone, is the possession of God, our creator. He owns it all - your house, your bank account, your baseball card collection, the gallon of milk in your fridge. Every bit of it is His. And so are you!

He created you - you are His possession. And all that stuff that you call "mine" is not yours - it's His, and you are called to take care of it for Him. That's what it means to be a steward.

A steward doesn't take care of his own possessions - he takes care of someone else's. He owns none of it - he is simply put in charge of the upkeep and maintenance of it. He administers his master's wealth and is held accountable for his administration of it.

We are God's stewards. God has given every one of us many possessions - our time, our finances, our children, our material goods - and he has charged us with taking care of them, for Him.

So, when you waste time, you are not wasting YOUR time: you are wasting God's time. When you get lazy and don't discipline your children as you know you should, you are disrespecting God's children. And, when you tithe, all you're really doing is giving God a portion of what is really His anyway.

Now, doesn't that put a different perspective on everything? Why should we hoard stuff when it really isn't ours to begin with? Why not be generous with our giving? It's not our money/time/stuff in the first place!

God put you in charge of some pretty important things. How are you doing? Are you being a good steward? When you have to give an account of your stewardship (and you will!), what will you have to say?

The next time you get the "mines," remember who your possessions REALLY belong to. And take care of your stuff like you'd take care of a king's possessions - because that's what you're doing.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." Psalm 24:1 NIV