James 5:1

NIV: Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you

The Message:

And a final word to you arrogant rich: Take some lessons in lament. You'll need buckets for the tears when the crash comes upon you.

What a warning for those who are rich!  But I don't believe this is a warning for those who just happen to have lots of money, big houses, designer clothes and so on.  After all, didn't God bless Abraham with riches?  And look at how Joseph rose to become one of the most important men in Egypt.   It is what you do with the riches you have that count because there is nothing wrong in being rich in itself.

James here is, I think , not talking about those who go and do good with their money, the ones who give freely to charity, do not hoard, but instead take care of their family and help others in need.  No, I reckon he is talking about those who have put their riches and wealth above everything,  the ones who have put their trust in the things of this earth - the money, the position, the fame, the success and so on - rather than the things are of God.   He is referring to those to whom money is the be all and end all of life, the most important thing to them.

But it is not only money that we do this with.  What about those people whom we idolise, the ones we spend so much time thinking about, dreaming about, that life holds no meaning if we cannot have them in our lives?  What about the pop stars, actors, actresses whose lives we avidly follow, reading every snippet of information we can about them?  Then there are the reality TV programmes where we tune in every night to see who is evicted from the house, the jungle or wherever, who goes through to the next round, and so on.  At the end of the day they are just people like you and I, yet we endow them with so many special characteristics just because they are on the television, film or stage.

I reckon we each need to take a good long look at our lives every so often, to see exactly who or what we are making our priority.  Are we putting God first and foremost, giving him the praise and glory, turning to Him when things go wrong and giving Him the praise no matter what is going on in our lives?  Or are we putting others first, or our jobs, our bank balances, our family, browsing on the internet, spending time with friends, gossiping, passing on "news" about others under the guise of friendly concern.  Who or what is the first thing we think of when we get up in a morning, or the last thing we think of at night?  Is God really first in our lives, or a poor second, or third or maybe even lower down on the list as our problems and concerns take priority?

It is so easy to let the things of this world take over, to focus our hearts and minds on the everyday problems of making ends meet, paying the bills, looking after the family, working, dealing with illness and everything else that goes on in our lives.  But God is right there in the midst of all the chaos of everyday life.  He is the one we can turn to no matter what is happening in our lives.  He is the one constant we have.  He will not change like a chameleon, a friend and lover one minute, an enemy the next, listening to what we say in confidence and then passing this on to others.  He is never changing, always faithful, full of love, grace and mercy.  No matter who we are or what we have done, He is slow to anger and quick to forgive.  Just read the Psalms and see what the writers had to say about God and his faithfulness.

We need to place our faith and trust in Him and Him alone, not the things of this world.