Went to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving and had a great time with Eric and Jenny. It is amazing how peaceful life can be when you see that your kids are doing well. Eric and I tried to electrocute each other working on wiring some spotlights over his fireplace. Never did get them working. Usually I can figure out how to make things like that work, but not this time. The wiring in the house is a little screwy. We also built a railing on the front porch. It came out pretty good except for the warped pieces of wood. The trouble with buying wood at places like Lowes and Home Depot is that the quality isn't always the best. You search for the best pieces and still can't always find good quality. Oh well, it really turned out just fine and it was fun doing it together.Jenny is feeling great and the baby Will is doing great also. Still not sure I feel much like a grandfather. Ready or not, here it comes!!

Bible class yesterday has really got me thinking. The subject was the text of Mark 10:17-31, the story of the rich young man. I've been thinking about what it is about money that is so corrupting. Why is it easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom? What makes money the root of all evil? I am thinking it has something to do with dependency. When we are self-sufficient, when we are able to meet all our own physical needs, we become independent of our need for God. At least it seems to work that way. Money enables us to satisfy all of our desires, both good and bad. The fact that the money itself is only ours because of God's provision seems to be irrelevant. I guess that is why I have not been given the means to be independently wealthy. I can't seem to be able to put it in a healthy context. I know in my mind that what I have is a direct result of God's provision in my life, but I don't always act like I understand it. The more I have the less I depend on God. I don't think I'm much different than most. Today's reading from Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest says

"the greatest spiritual blessing we recieve is when we come to the knowledge that we are destitute. Until we get there, our Lord is powerless. He can do nothing for us as long as we think we are sufficient in and of ourselves."

How can a person feel destitute when they are rich? How can we ever really get there if we continue to have more than we need? How can we become more dependent on God when in reality we spend most of our time trying to become more and more self-sufficient?

Like I said, its really got me thinking....