By Juanita Weiss
At the end of the movie Schindler’s List, we find Oskar Schindler weeping almost uncontrollably. The Allied Forces were invading Poland to liberate the Jews. Schindler had used his resources to save a small number of Jewish people from extermination in the death camps. At the end of the war, he was left with his costly jewelry, fine cars and clothes, and, no doubt, money in his pocket. He wept because he realized he could have saved so many more Jewish people with the resources he had. “What a waste,” he must have felt.
My 15-year old border collie Boomer is nearing the end of his life. He sleeps a lot and only rouses for a dog biscuit. So I dole them out one per day. Of course I want him to eat well, but I know I will be crestfallen if he passes away and I have a half full box of biscuits left. I don’t know of any dog who would enjoy them the way Boomer does.
Schindler and Boomer make me think of the day that Yeshua cracks the eastern sky. With all my resources — which at that time will mean nothing — will I say, “I could have fed a few more orphans or more of the poor. I could have aided in Bible translations, fed a few more missionaries, helped Haitian pastors to equip their churches better, funded water projects in Third World Countries, or supported more Messianic Jews in their desire to bring the reality of the Messiah to their lost Jewish brethren”?
What happens to our 401k’s and pensions and retirement plans? What about our bank accounts, our houses, fine cars and clothes? What about our jewelry and stocks and bonds?
We must plan as if tomorrow will come . . . and then live as if tomorrow will may never come! I can’t say I have mastered that, but Yeshua paints reality in this parable:
“The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
Schindler’s tears and Boomer’s dog biscuits remind me that I so want to hear “Well Done, good and faithful servant” at the end of my days. “You’ve been faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over much.” The “much” will far exceed the resources I gave and the ones I kept!
May You be pleased, Abba, with my stewardship.
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