Beyond The Hoarded Silo

Day Thirty

Beyond The Hoarded Silo (Read Proverbs 11:23-30)

"There are two fools in this world. One is the millionaire who thinks that hoarding money can somehow accumulate real power, and the other is the penniless reformer who thinks that if only they can take the money from one class and give it to another, all the world's ills will be cured." ~ Henry Ford

Individualism is the default operating system for how to be successful in the West, and it can seem counterintuitive that givers gain and misers lose. Yet, history has demonstrated time and again, across varying cultures, that this fundamental truth rears its ugly head every chance it gets, and oh, what an ugly head it is. From the Book of Proverbs to contemporary narratives, this theme of the giver's gain while the miserly loss has been repeated throughout history.

Our devotion today reflects on this timeless paradox, drawing upon the biblical example given in Proverbs of the grain merchant who hoards his supply for personal gain by artificially inflating prices and gouging the consumer while contrasting them with the merchant who chooses a path of ethical trade and generosity.

In studying this parable, we examine how actions rooted in selflessness ultimately benefit both the individual and the community. At the same time, greed, even when it appears to yield temporary gains, ultimately leads to ruin. By understanding this dynamic, we learn to navigate the complex landscape of being a citizen embedded in a community and embracing God's spiritual principle of generosity as the pathway to true wealth and fulfillment.

²³ The godly can look forward to a reward,
    while the wicked can expect only judgment.

²⁴ Give freely and become more wealthy;
    be stingy and lose everything.

²⁵ The generous will prosper;
    those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.

²⁶ People curse those who hoard their grain,
    but they bless the one who sells in time of need.

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." ~ J. R. R. Tolkien

God's guiding principle to experience the best life ever is you can't keep it unless you give it away. If you want to experience the promises of God, you must fully understand that the money, time, and talents you possess don't belong to you; they are a gift and on loan from God.

One day, you will stand before God and answer for how you used the gifts he entrusted to your care, custody, and control while on earth. What will the evidence reveal? Giver or Miser? Will all the evidence you possess be hoarded in a silo, a silo that you can't bring with you when you die? The most exciting experience you can ever have is following Jesus and watching how you turn from a taker to a giver and discover the greatest freedom of all: the freedom from bondage.  

Proverbs 11:30: Christ-like people bear life-giving "fruit," and Jesus emphasizes this truth when he says, "A good tree can't produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can't produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit (Luke 6:43-44a). 

Who will you bless today with your time, talents, and finances? 

May God bless your hearing, understanding, and application of today's wisdom.