Perspective
Investment Strategy
This passage is one of my wife’s favorite scriptures. I remember her quoting it even before we were married. It is a passage that not only challenges us, but also gives great encouragement for the hope to come. It motivates us to set priorities that place God above ourselves. Not only does it assure us that there is a reward to come, but also reminds us that He rewards us now. C.S. Lewis said, “Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.”
This past summer, while I was attending the first conference of the West Africa Christian Medical Society, I was reminded how difficult it is for Christians to follow this teaching. The keynote speaker reviewed the history of the mission outreach to Africa, particularly in the late 1800s. At that time missionaries were on a waiting list to go to the “Dark Continent,” even when their life expectancy was measured in months due to the risk of yellow fever, malaria and other tropical diseases. He challenged the audience of 300 physicians and medical students to take up the same zeal for ministry to their own people. He urged the audience to stay away from “brain drain” affecting Africa, where educated people leave for better lifestyles in other countries. However, after discussing the issue, over 75% of the attendants indicated they would move to Europe or America for better conditions if they had the chance.
This reminded me again of the sacrifice Luke Society directors make when they follow their call to ministry. Not only do they choose not to move their families to more affluent countries, they often move to the poorest areas of their own countries. I was recently in Transcarpathia, Ukraine, visiting the ministry director, Dr. Pal Oroszi. He reminded me that he had undertaken his medical training in Estonia, and he and his wife lived there for the first few years of his medical career. Estonia, now a member of the European Union, had and now has a much better economy than Ukraine. Pal and his wife realized that they were becoming dependant on a higher standard of living, and they made a conscious decision to leave that comfort to return to their home in Ukraine. Pal and his wife, Jolika, demonstrate their priorities to “store up treasures in heaven.”
Like most principles in the Bible, this one is best applied to ourselves and not used to evaluate others. I urge you, along with myself, to examine our “investment strategy.” The best return will be in heaven!
Dr. Wrede Vogel