From the Editor
Marshall Shelley
October 1, 2002
A few weeks ago, our son Bayly could barely swallow. Suspecting he had strep throat, I took him to the clinic, and the doctor looked into his mouth. Then the doctor had him lie down and pressed his fingers around Bayly's stomach.
"Does this hurt?" he asked. Bayly shook his head.
Then the doctor's fingers explored his armpits and his neck. "Does this hurt? How about this?"
"No. No."
The doctor's fingers detected some enlarged glands, and yes, Bayly did have strep throat. But if Bayly had complained of pain in the areas where the doctor was pressing, one of two things would've been true.
Either the doctor had pushed too hard, without the right sensitivity. Or, more likely, there would have been something else wrong, and the doctor would have said, "We'd better do some more tests. It's not supposed to hurt there!"
Bayly's exam reminded me of Ben Roger's sermon illustration that Leadership published in 1983, pointing out the parallel to what churches experience whenever the pastor presents what the Bible says about money and giving and being faithful with finances.
In some cases, people will cry out in discomfort: "We shouldn't talk about money in the church" or "That's no one's business but my own!"
When people squirm like that, one of two things has happened: (1) either someone pushed too hard, or (2) there's something wrong inside the people.
As I observe churches, most are careful not to push too hard. In fact some, out of fear of offending, avoid talking about this important area entirely. But this topic is too important to ignore.
Wesley Willmer in his book God & Your Stuff: The Vital Link Between Your Possessions and Your Soul points out: "17 of Jesus' 38 parables were about possessions. Possessions are mentioned 2,172 times in ...
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