Lending to The Lord
The Life and Breath of it All ( and a small Morningstar Update )
Note: Many of the following scriptures come directly from the Ancient Septuagint version of the Old Testament.
Have you ever been skimming along on social media and noticed a post or an image that got your mind thinking? Not long ago, I was doing that when I noticed an AI image that Jorge Parrot posted, the word “lends” got my mind thinking. Next thing I knew, I started down the rabbit hole, pondering and wondering. So today I am taking you along with me.
In the ancient Septuagint (most likely the same version Jesus and his followers used), this scripture reads like this. “He who has compassion on the poor lends to God, and He will repay him according to his gift.” Proverbs 19:17
This quickly got me thinking about “The rich rule over the poor, but domestics will lend to their own master.” Proverbs 22:7 This verse may look more familiar to you in the NIV, where it says, “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.”
Whoever is your master, is who you lend/give to. If it’s the bank, insurance, government, family, denomination, whatever. You will continually keep the cycle moving because you believe you need to. Depending on contracts, deeds, fear, religious duties, and such, you are often in bondage, sometimes for all the wrong reasons. In the case of Proverbs 19:17, there is a process in play: God, you, and the poor. When this process gets interrupted, God is often the one pushed out of the process, and the poor suffer first, you second.
You see, contrary to what some sects of Christianity think, you becoming destitute and living like the poor is not the trajectory the Lord is looking for in your life. Nor is it the plan for you to become the next evangelical/prophetic internet sensation with fancy homes & a car that separates you from the people who need help.
The Stuff of Earth
We, the people of God, can easily become enslaved to the stuff we have. Yes, not all stuff is bad. Some we need for life, others serve as tools because they have a purpose. But there is another group, with stuff we “admire” that can slip over the line into worship. There is a spiritual rule found in Psalms 115 concerning the things we turn into Idols. “May those who make them become like them, and all who trust in them.” Psalms 115:8 This means the “stuff” we have unknowingly started to worship now controls us, and we blend, form, and adapt our lives to the image of the Idol we have created.
Those who choose to climb the world’s ladder to “successful” Christian ministry (Luke 4:5-7) rarely notice the poor. And those that are at the other end of the spectrum, enslaved to contracts, payments, and the stuff of Earth, have learned to silence the guilt when they see the poor. Or worse yet, built a personal theology that gives them permission to ignore and be rude to the poor.
Why is the Poor connected to this Blessing?
The reality is that giving grace to the poor was a custom Jesus practiced, and so did his followers, who in turn taught their followers. It is simply something in this modern age we now turn a blind eye to.
In the case of Proverbs 19:17, God wants that connection to be with Him alone. As I have said, this is a desire and custom the apostles taught, Galatians 2:10. It’s interesting to me that the poor are connected to this exchange. Through the actions expressed to someone who is helpless, a door is opened, and the Lord is obligated by his own words to you.
I suspect there are many reasons the Lord wants us to do this. But one of the quickest ones is testimony leading to salvation. Your act of kindness is a testimony, regardless of whether or not you ever speak to them. This is a door through which the Holy Spirit may bless a soul. In time, the seeds of kindness (1Cor 3:6-8) will sprout as the pride and anger they often have in their lives melt (Matthew 5:3)
Then I got thinking about the word Compassion in verse 17, because a few verses later it says, “Compassion is a profit for a man, and a poor righteous person is better than a rich liar.” 19:22, and in this verse, I realized some may have a hard time wrapping their mind around this in an understandable way. So, let’s say it again, but from an expanded New Testament perspective. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; or where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21.
The Kingdom of God does not work like the kingdoms of Earth, nor are (Isaiah 55:8) our ways like his. Things like Compassion, Kindness, Integrity, and other qualities are literal Kingdom currency that is being stored up for a future time.
Acts of Compassion to the poor create an exchange between yourself and God. This exchange is a repayment of your services according to the Father’s will, and a lifestyle of Compassion brings consistent growth.
What is Compassion?
Essentially, compassion means to “suffer with,” in the Gospels, it was an emotionally explosive word. This is because it was like a deep, deep turning of the insides of a person. Kind of like when you see a horrific car accident and your whole insides turn, and you feel sick. The four times this word shows up in the gospels, it hit Jesus so hard that it caused him to do things like heal people.
So as I flip my way through the pages of Proverbs, I see many scriptures like, “Do not treat the needy with violence, for he is poor. Nor disgrace the weak at the gates.” Proverbs 22:22, then I think about things concerning the poor that irritated me in places like Morningstar. The poor were generally hidden from view, trained by social convention to pretend all was well when it was not. There were times we ignored the Vice President’s orders in the ministry not to give out food to the hungry living in our own building. Or breaking his orders to feed the volunteers who worked all day and part of the night, so that the leaders could wine and dine influential people at major events like Partners.
So, many were scared to do this, break the rule. But in honesty, I confess I kind of wanted to get caught by the VP. I was ready to publicly challenge him and his neglect of the poor who were under him. I realized that such actions would have most likely resulted in me getting fired. So I will just say that at least in my head, I won all the arguments. (1 John 3:17-18)
After many years, I now realize the reason behind some of my actions. In more mainline denominations like the Baptists, is where I found myself speaking about Spiritual things like healing, prophetic words, and such. Then, in Charismatic circles, I found myself talking more about the poor, the ignored, righteousness, and such things. It’s like there is an internal need for balance.
We need the power and a supernatural life. But what good is it if it does not touch the very people who break the Lord’s heart? If all your prophetic wiz bang is driving you higher and higher in the spirit, and no one is changed, what good is it?
And if you spend all your time struggling with the poor and you never live in the presence of the one who made you. Then I pity you, because you’re missing what YOU really need.
“The Light of the Lord is the breath of humans…” Proverbs 20:27
A Short Morningstar Update.
I would have sent this out earlier, but the last two posts would not have been the appropriate place for this. Remember the old saying, “Birds of a feather flock together.” As rumors of Rick’s memory issues continue, people have seen him bring in and talk about many failed ministers, whom he either said were a “nothing burger,” or that he was going to restore them.
#1 Today, we can add one more name, Britnie Turner, a former student from 2009 who is involved in legal battles in the state of Tennessee. A misuse of funds is claimed, where she diverted money designated for Ukraine to the Virgin Islands for her horse ranch island she now owns.
Click on the picture below to read more
The reason I bring it up now is her continued affiliation with Morningstar, especially the recent Vision Conference, where she and her husband were billed as speakers. “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 1 Corinthians 15:33
She learned these skills from somewhere, and during my time on staff, I had heard several rumors of the ministry doing similar things.
#2 Morningstar has apparently moved on with their third (officially, that we know of ) Vice President. Dave Yarnes, who replaced Steve Thompson, has now been replaced, apparently, by Mark Yow. Mark has been around the ministry for a while. I’ve seen his face a few times, but never dealt with the man. He is a Wilmington Realtor, and his wife still runs real estate deals in the area. That’s a 3.5-hour commute.
From what I have heard from MORE THAN ONE SOURCE, Rick is being forced to tear down the tower in exchange for being allowed to build a much smaller, five-story building. He is then seeking to step away from the building they are currently using. Selling to another or tearing it down as well.
Regardless, there is evidence that Rick is moving their financial base away from Fort Mill to Moravian Falls, as evidenced by this latest ProPublica report.
This tells me he is secretly withdrawing from the legal heat South Carolina is providing. My best guess, no five-story building will be built; he will do the same thing he did in Mississippi with Madison Air: cut his losses & take the money and run.
Since the Morningstar board is refusing to do its Biblical job, perhaps the Lord is driving Rick out?