The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,
the world, and those who live in it;
for he has founded it on the seas,
and established it on the rivers.
Psalm 24:1-3
The opening verses of Psalm 24 are a clear and powerful statement of ownership. God owns the
earth and all that is in it. The basis for this claim of ownership lies in God’s creative act. God made
the world, and therefore owns the world and all that is in it.
When we give a gift to someone, we understand that a transfer of ownership has occurred. If I buy a
sweater at Kohls, it belongs to me. I have paid for it. It is mine. But if I decide on a birthday or at
Christmas to give that sweater as a gift to one of my daughters it belongs to her. I have given up any
claim to it. What she does with the sweater from that point on is not in my control; it is in her control.
The gift is hers. She owns it.
This isn’t the way it is with God and us. No such transfer of ownership occurs. God has created all
that is, and God continues to own all that is. Everything we have still belongs to God.
The water we drink and use to wash our bodies, clothes, and dishes, was here long before we were,
created by God. It is not ours, yet many of us who have wells on our property say it belongs to us. We
think a transfer of ownership has occurred and we can do with it as we please.
All of the natural resources we use to maintain a comfortable lifestyle: natural gas or wood to heat our
homes; petroleum to run our cars; granite for our kitchen counters… all of it was here long before we
were, created by God. Yet, once it comes into our hands, we claim it as our own. It belongs to us.
NO. God made it all and God owns it all. In the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 8:11-18, God reminds
the people of Israel (and us) of the provisions he gives to sustain life. In verse 17 God speaks to us
through these words, “Do not say to yourself, ‘My power and the might of my own hand have gotten
me this wealth.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, so
that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your ancestors, as he is doing today.”
Since God is the owner of all that is, and since God is the source of all the abilities and resources that
allow us to live a more than comfortable life, then there is no room left for us to imagine that we are
the source of our good life. God is.
The proper response to the blessings of this life is not to pat ourselves on the back and try to have
more stuff. The proper response is to give God thanks and praise and to ask serious questions about
how we are called to use what God has entrusted to us.
This month, I encourage you to meditate on Deuteronomy 8:11-18 alongside the latter portion of the
Holy Cross mission statement – Together, we serve and welcome all of God’s children and act as
stewards of God’s creation. As a church, let us not be afraid to ask serious questions about how we
are called to use what God has entrusted to us: ministry, buildings, finances, resources…
It is, after all, not ours – but God’s.
Be thankful and serve the Lord,
Pastor Julie
Excerpts taken from the book- Ask, Thank, Tell by Charles R. Lane