Not far up the road from our little Wallace home lies the town of Rose Hill. I have not seen the town of Rose Hill featured on the Travel Channel, but I highly recommend it for a day trip experience. Rose Hill is home to the Duplin Winery which features muscadine wine, lunch and tours. There are several cute little shops in town and a general store that has everything! Rose Hill also boasts of having the ‘World’s Largest Frying Pan” and the “World’s Largest Adirondack Chair.” I have seen both. It is true. Come up for the Poultry Jubilee in November and you can see for yourself.
Places like to brag about the “largest” whatever. The town of Casey, Illinois holds 12 World’s Largest items, including largest key, largest mailbox and largest antlers. The concept of “Bigger is Better” appeals to our human nature. After all, who doesn’t want more a bigger paycheck or a bigger slice of pie?
The idea of “Bigger is Better” is not bad in and of itself. It can become dangerous, however, if it causes us to lose focus on the more important things in life. A man wanted a larger share of the family inheritance and asked Jesus to intervene on his behalf. Jesus wisely side-stepped getting triangled into the family conflict. Instead, he moved the conversation to a deeper level. He told a parable of an already very successful farmer who had another tremendous harvest. As the man pondered where to store his abundance, he decided to tear down his barns and to build larger ones. He lived out the “Bigger is better!” philosophy of life.
But God speaks to the man and calls him a fool. The man didn’t figure on dying that very night. He didn’t factor into his calculations his relationship with God or his responsibility toward others. Jesus does not caution us against being successful but rather warns those who “store up things for themselves but are not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:21)
As we move through life and make choices about how we spend our money, our time and our energy, we must be careful not to lose sight of the aspects of our life that keep us connected to God.
Only God’s love is big enough to satisfy our souls.
-Dr. Jim Baldwin
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