15 Oct Needs or Wants?

“Poverty and Riches” have always sounded antithesis to me. Do they take us to two divergent routes? Are they incompatible? How do we define a person as rich or poor? I tried to understand the divergence by what we all know about ‘needs’ and ‘wants’. A need is something you can’t do without. A ‘want’ is something you wish to have but not a necessity. If a person is not able to afford to his basic needs he is considered poor. But the one who has almost everything including his “wants” is surely known as the richest.

What does the Bible say about this? In Matthew 5 verse 3 in His sermon on the mount, the Lord Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’’ As a child of God when I believe in the living God who sent His son Jesus to die for my sins and when we I experience the joy of His love and hope for eternal life then I am richer than the richest. For the riches of the world are meaningless, we live today and we die tomorrow. Our body is dust which will return to dust. So, no riches will we be able to bring it back. Then what is the use of having all these riches and losing your own soul. These may look like a bunch of boring words but this is what makes the core of this truth.

Secondly, we ought to be mature enough not to crave for these things but seeking God’s peace and righteousness and believing all these things would be added in our lives (Math. 6:33). I understand how hard it is for boys in school or college when they see their friends driving in with a new car or bike. They rush to give them a group hug, or a selfie with them and comment on things like front and rear suspension, gear shifts, brakes, efficiency and performance etc.

Young people are prone to falling in for such ‘’wants’’ because they are exposed to umpteen information including unwanted ones. That leads them to crave for things like, just a little fame, just a few more outfits, frequent trips to an expensive restaurant or having the nicest camera. I would like to remind my young friends how much careful they need to be in their approach to such things. 1 Timothy 6:6 &7 says, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it”. My friends, if we have Jesus in our heart then we already have the greatest treasure-eternal life; we have the most beautiful home that God has prepared for us in heaven and we would never be lacking anything as the children of the Most High God. Remember, the heavenly Father who loves us has carved you and I on the palm of His hand.

Thirdly, the need to think about those in need. The wide divide between rich and poor will itself fade away, if the people of our country try to enrich their minds with graceful thoughts about below poverty line. They too have the exact equal rights as the rich but are either suppressed by someone within the family or outside the family. But we as God’s children should always strive to help such rather than to fulfilling our wants. We can help people fight against the evils such as unorganized professional sectors, child labour, taboos towards girls receiving an education and so on. Because of these, 30% of our country still lives in poverty.

In conclusion I would say that money is not bad but the greed for money and using it to glorify ourselves are completely unacceptable. If God puts in your heart to help a fellow brother or sister, never say ‘no’ because our father who sees what is done in secret surely rewards His children. There are families, whom I know, have struggled to live a stable life but they have really used education as a tool which has enabled them to reach from rags to riches. It is indeed true that with such a rapid population growth and such a definite herculean competition, becoming a successful engineer or a medical doctor is like catching air with bare hands. Never miss any opportunity to help someone in need. Especially as a young individual whether you desire to be an advertiser, a journalist, a songwriter, a doctor, a chef or a teacher, always sow hard work that you may reap a harvest of blessings, “not in order to earn a harder lot of money but to glorify God almighty by helping others to be richer.”

‘’We live in an imperfect world with a huge imbalance of wealth and poverty. Our God is a God of justice and wants His people to make a difference in the world by standing up for those who cannot stand for themselves and sharing with those who have nothing.’’

Stuti Farmer, Dehradun is currently preparing for medical entrance. She is involved in the UESI ministry by being a part of the local EGF and EU Bible study group.