Question:  Dear Greg,

            I know that our true security is in heaven and not in the things on this earth and yet I find myself building my treasures on this earth.  I find that I am not really involved in doing the will of God but rather am concerned with job, money and possessions, and keeping my marriage going and helping my wife raise our infant son.  Is this a life that would please God, or does He expect more from us than that?

            David

Answer:  Dear David,

            God expects us to put our faith in him, for there is nothing we can do to merit or earn his love, his blessings, and certainly not salvation.  I believe that he delights in our love, in our attempts to tell him and demonstrate to him that we love him as long as he knows that we are not enslaved to some idea that we must earn everything we get from him.

            The issue you raise is a perpetual dilemma for Christians—taking care of our families, paying the bills, etc.—over against our love for God and his kingdom.  God does not expect us to abandon all physical responsibilities so that we can be “spiritual”—indeed there are passages that warn against doing so.

            We must remember that it can be easy to become engulfed with huge issues and problems that are outside of our personal responsibility—and become so engrossed with them that we forget what is going on in our own backyard, in our own home.  In fact, it is often those closest to us, our spouse and our children, where we find the biggest challenge.  Helping them, serving them, sacrificing for them can be neglected as we look at “bigger” and “more important” issues.

            May God bless you as a husband and a father.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht