Riches are subjective
by Matt Stone“Counting the poor is an exercise in the art of the possible. For deciding who is poor, prayers are more relevant than calculation because poverty, like beauty, lies in the eye of the beholder.” writes Mollie Orshansky in a 1969 article entitled “Perspectives on poverty 2: How poverty is measured”. Orshansky was an American economist, the daughter of Jewish-Ukrainian immigrants, whose work in the 1960s helped the U.S. Government define their thresholds for poverty.
Money and poverty are touchy subjects. Perhaps now more than ever in our developed Western society, as the economic squeeze continues to squeeze, relationships not only across social classes, but now more and more across the generations are becoming fractured over the issue. At the time of writing this reflection, there have been two articles on the BBC News about it, one of which lead me to discover the above quote.
I realised what an important point this quote brings out, and how the inverse of this statement is also true.
Riches lie in the eye of the beholder, too.
The concepts are inextricably linked. Orshansky hersel later highlights the significance of value judgements in relation to poverty - i.e., how we perceive and relate to poverty and wealth, is always going to be subjective - dependant on the experiences we’ve had in our lives.
Jesus, a penniless preacher from Nazareth, who had nowhere to lay his head, challenges his listeners and readers to think about the value that they are assigning to things, both material and spiritual.
Proverbs 15 : 16; is a precursor to Jesus’ teachings. As with a passage in Mark 12 which tells of a financially poor widow’s offering, Jesus, in Matt 5 : 3 gives us a snapshot of the kinds of people who have placed the Kingdom of God at the centre of their lives. That those who are poor in spirit i.e. those who have “a little with the fear of the Lord” are blessed - that: “theirs is the kingdom of heaven”.
Jesus affirms this for Peter after talking with a rich young ruler (see Mark 10 v.17-31). He brings an encouragement to Peter, and points Peter and us to look up and think about getting to spend eternity in God’s presence if we believe in, trust in, and follow Him.
Ultimately, whatever our financial status, Jesus gives us God’s timeless standard to apply to our lives, summed up in Matt 6 : 21 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”. Orshansky was right, poverty is a value judgement. The question for us all is whose values are we subscribing to? - God’s?, or the world’s?
Ask God to show you one thing in your life that requires your time and attention or finances (or both, if relevant), that He would have you give up in order to have a closer walk with Him. Make sure to test this against His word, and by seeking the counsel of others too.
Dear Lord,
Thank you that you have said in your word that you will never leave me or forsake me. That I can say with confidence, The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. Holy Spirit, please help this truth go deeper into my heart today, and always. I ask it in your name, Jesus, and for your glory, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Amen.
