James 5:1–20

June 27, 2013

James issues a warning to rich people who are self-sufficient and think they are in charge because of their wealth. He said:

• Listen!
• Trouble is coming your way
• Your riches have rotted
• Your clothes have been eaten by moths
• Your gold and silver have rusted
• You will be proved wrong
• The worry and anxiety will eat your body
• You saved your treasure but you found out it was only temporary and could not save you
• The wrongs you did against others cries out against you
• God has heard the cries of those you walked over in your selfishness
• You spent your time on earth thinking only about yourself, pleasing yourself, and doing what you wanted
• You lived the "rich" lifestyle
• You made yourself fat by indulging yourself
• You made yourself judge and jury
• You have harmed innocent people who were not against you
• You've hoarded, exploited, and self-indulged

And it is all for nothing. Instead of waiting on the Lord you have relied on yourself and wealth. You are your own god. You didn't understand that wealth and self-sufficiency is not the answer. It is here today and gone tomorrow. It is temporary only. If your health fails, it cannot save you. And when you die you can't take it with you. So, why? Why spend so much time and energy on something that is temporary and doesn't matter? Eternal things are the only things that matters. We should be focused on kingdom building not material wealth.

How tragic the day when the rich find out it was all for naught. Oh, what time was wasted.

Only One Life  by C.T. Studd

Two little lines I heard one day,
Traveling along life's busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in 'that day' my Lord to meet,
And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice,
Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave,
And to God's holy will to cleave;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years,
Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its days I must fulfill,
Living for self or in His will;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore,
When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way,
Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep,
In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e'er the strife,
Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn,
And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone,
Bringing thee pleasure on They throne;
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Now let me say, "Thy will be done";
And when at last I'll hear the call,
I know I'll say "twas worth it all";
Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.

Only one life, 'twill soon be past,
Only what's done for Christ will last.
And when I'm dying, how happy I'll be, 
If the lamp of my life has been burned for Thee."

Wow! So well said. I want that to be my life's testimony. Even if we live to be a hundred years old, our life is still brief. Like James said, "Your life is like a mist." Jane E Wolfe's physical body is dead and gone, but look at what she has left behind. What is not dead and gone is her love and faithfulness to Christ and the mercy and encouragement she gave to others because of that life. "Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last."

Addendum: 12/5/16 ~ For the last several weeks I have been contemplating "life." How interesting to come across this writing from 2013 about this very subject. On 11/21/16 I sent a friend of mine the following text:

"Want to know what I have been contemplating? I have (probably at the most) twenty years left where I can make an impact. What is it I want to accomplish? I may only have one day. I don't want to waste any time."

I received a quick phone call to see what was going on. I assured her all was well, we talked, and she said she also has been contemplating the same thing lately.

I am 62 years old. Two-thirds or three-fourths of my life is over and I have no idea how much time I have left. The breakdown in the relationship with my sister and brother-in-law and their subsequent filing of a lawsuit against us has been going on for almost ten years now. Ten years!! What a colossal waste of time, energy, and money they have spent on earthly and temporary things in their attempt to "get" us. The last ten years have flown by. With (at the best) only twenty years or so left I want to make sure I don't waste any of the time I have remaining by being busy but not accomplishing anything of true importance. When my time on this earth is up I don't want to have any regrets about "I wish I would have ______."

So what is important? Material "things" are not important. Personal "I" accomplishments are not important. The only thing important is people and eternity. We take nothing of what the world deems important with us.

My husband and I were just talking about this the other day. Usually when you hear that statement you think of material things. But it's so much more than that. You also don't take your personal "I did this" accomplishments, your degrees, your goals, your pastimes, your work, the prestige you've worked to obtain, the honors you've accumulated—nothing.

My father-in-law is 90. He has congestive heart failure and for the last year and half has resided in a nursing home. The effects of Congestive Heart Failure and age have taken a toll and he now has memory loss. Watching the changes in his mind this past year and seeing all the other people in the nursing home is probably what triggered my "contemplating." We have literally watched my father-in-law lose all the "things" the world would deem important. Not only is he not taking any material "things" or accomplishments with him when he dies, he is already living without them.

All the personal "I" accomplishments are gone and forgotten. All that time spent worrying about whether he would "have enough" doesn't even process in his mind anymore. It has been sobering to watch. The knowledge of owning a business, the awards he won, the vacations he took, the pride of his personal accomplishments, many of his family memories—ALL gone while he is still physically alive. We have a living example of what it means to leave this earth with literally nothing sitting right in front of us. 

And that makes me contemplate.

The emphasis our culture places on what is important is all messed up. Watching someone lose everything they once felt important is very sobering. You can only come to one conclusion: The ONLY thing that is important and the only thing that lasts is the Kingdom impact you've made while building relationships with others as a servant of Christ.

That's it. That's the only thing that matters. I want to make sure that in the busyness of life I keep what is important—important. I want to hear "well done" and I want to know I've lived my life (for however many days I have left), in a way that brings both salvation, joy, and happiness to others here on earth and for eternity.

Update: 12/6/16 ~ My father-in-law passed away this afternoon. While his health had been declining in the last months, his condition had seemed to plateau and we fully expected him to live at least several more months. However, this morning that all changed. The nursing home called to let us know what was happening and that his body was shutting down. My husband and I had the opportunity to spend the afternoon with him, reading the Bible to him, praying, and saying our earthly goodbyes. We left to do our evening chores and were going to return a short time later but he passed away an hour after we left.

C.T. Studd was right. Watch "Only One Life" video here.

Addendum #2: 1/19/2017 ~ I just came across my notes from the 2014 Global Summit Leadership Conference. Obviously I have been contemplating life for quite some time now. In my notes I have written:

Legacy Leadership has to be intentional! What will be my legacy? What will I leave?

And then I wrote,

"Oh, LORD—Thank YOU for having me write the journal."

I am grateful for my journals. I wrote that statement in the summer of 2014, before I knew what God's plans were going to be for my journals. I never could have imagined. I thought it was a legacy I was leaving for my family only. I had NO idea my journals would someday become public.

My prayer is that our story—which is HIS story—will be used to bless others and help others to choose to get on HIS path no matter where it leads. Thank you, LORD.

"What you are is God's gift to you. What you do with your life is your gift to God." ~ A plaque given to Carly Fiorina by her mother. 2014 Global Summit Leadership  Conference

Next Entry: James 5:1–20 (Continued)