Waylon Prendergast, 37, of Tampa, Florida, committed a spur-of-the-moment robbery while on his way home from a late-night drinking session. A very inebriated Mr. Prendergast forced his way into the house through an open upstairs window, filling a suitcase with cash and valuables before setting the living room on fire to cover his tracks. He then escaped through the back door and made his way home, chuckling all the way. Only as he turned the corner into his own street, however, and discovered three fire engines outside his house, did he realize that in his drunkenness he had, in fact, burgled and ignited his own property. His comment: "I had no idea I had so many valuable possessions."

While we may not do anything quite that stupid — at least nothing that makes the national newspapers — there are times when Christians need to stop and reflect, coming to the same conclusion Mr. Prendergast did: "I had no idea I had so many valuable possessions."

We have been blessed with so much that we take for granted.

From family and friends to material comforts (like electricity and running water), from our basic needs (like food) to luxuries other generations never imagined (like the computer you're sitting at right now), from the freedoms we enjoy to the jobs we hold, we have been blessed with so much that we take for granted.

Even beyond the physical blessings, there is so much that God has given us through Jesus Christ. As Paul wrote: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ." (Ephesians 1:3)

Truly, I had no idea I had so many valuable possessions. "God, forgive me for taking so much of it for granted."

 

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© 2004 Alan Smith. Used by permission. This devotional was reprinted from Thought for the Day.

Title: "Valuable Possessions"
Author: Alan Smith
Publication Date: April 02, 2004

Wild at Heart by John Eldredge Helping men rediscover their masculine heart, this is a guide to understanding Christian manhood and Christian men.

Alan Smith ministers with the Church of Christ in White House, Tennessee and publishes the email devotional "Thought for the Day."

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