| “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). |
| As we have seen in our meditation on January 24, our natural hearts are never satisfied, and we always want more. If this way of thinking has a hold on us as Christians, it will make us covetous, and our conversation will show it. We must learn to be content with such things as we have, for as we have seen, nothing in this world will satisfy our hearts. Only the Lord can do that, and as we read in our verse, He will never leave us nor forsake us. |
| In today’s world it is easy to get into debt, and to borrow money by using credit cards, easy loans, etc. in order to buy things we think we need. But the Bible warns us about debt, telling us, “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another” (Romans 13:8). While every kind of debt is not wrong, it is a bad practice to borrow money to buy things we cannot afford. |
| Like William Colgate’s family, the family of William Borden (who was born in 1887), had also emigrated from England to America, but much earlier. The Bordens had come over in the early 1600’s and settled in New England. They later moved to Indiana and started the Borden Milk Company. William Borden inherited a fortune when he was still in university and was a millionaire before he was twenty. Cars were just starting to become more common in the early 20th century and Borden loved cars. Once he saw a beautiful car go by and remarked to a friend, “My, would I ever like to have a car like that!” Knowing that William Borden had plenty of money, his friend replied, “Then why don’t you get one?” “I can’t afford it,” Borden said. William Borden was a Christian, and he knew that his money belonged to the Lord. While he could appreciate a nice car, he would not go out and spend the Lord’s money on something that would not help him in his service for the Lord. |
| A few years later, in 1913, William Borden went to Egypt as a missionary, and died that same year of meningitis (an infection in the brain). When they looked at his will, it was found that he had left all his fortune for Christian work, a sum that would be worth more than twenty-six million dollars in today’s money. He had plenty of money, and could have lived a life of luxury, ease, and pleasure. But he looked beyond it all, and gave not only his money, but his life for the Lord. Some felt that he had thrown his life away, and questioned whether it was worth it to have died so young. But his life inspired many others to give up ease and prosperity, and to use their talents, money, and lives for the Lord. Their contentment came from a sense of doing the will of God, not having more possessions. |
