If I Had a Million Dollars

Originally posted on 05.01.2005

If I Had a Million Dollars ¹

If I had a million dollars (if I had a million dollars)
I'd buy you a house (I would buy you a house)
If I had a million dollars (if I had a million dollars)
I'd buy you furniture for your house (maybe a nice chesterfield or ottoman)
If I had a million dollars (if I had a million dollars)
I'd buy you a K-car (a nice Reliant automobile)
If I had a million dollars
I'd buy your love ¹

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For those of you that don't know, the "Barenaked Ladies" are neither ladies nor naked. For those of you that don't bother to read the footnotes, "The Barenaked Ladies" is the name of the group that performs "If I Had A Million Dollars," the song referenced in this installment of Clay's Ramblings. The Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian group that makes good fun music. Much of it sounds farcical, as the lyrics to this song suggest. But that really has nothing to do with today's topic. The lyrics to the song, however, do.

My wife and I began discussing all the things we would do if we won the lottery - which we neither desire nor can afford to play. (Gee, two uses of neither/nor in one installment! Am I getting too big for my britches? I don't think so. I been working out...)

She said she would quit her job and let me go to work. After all, that's what I want to do with my life. I said I would, but that I would continue the work I am now doing. Namely, I volunteer at the YMCA and at my church.

I guess my life wouldn't change much - except that I would let someone else do the cleaning around here. I enjoy volunteering my time, but I don't do it often enough. I would like to be able to leave the kids at home and head out to work at a soup kitchen or Impact Church of Christ. As it is, I can't seem to find the time to do my own laundry!

I would like to get involved with prison ministry (Goal met! Woohoo!). I would like to be there for each of my friends and neighbors when they need a shoulder to cry on. I would like to say "Here am I. Send me!"² but I just don't have the time.

But what was it Jesus said? It happens to be my favorite verses from the bible.

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." ³

See why I like it? It tells of where I want to be. I want to work for God. I want Him to pay me. Maybe I will have to make some tents along the way. God will still make sure I'm fed and clothed for the journey. He did so for the Apostles, and He'll do so for me.

So, I want to devote my life to the worship of God. It's hard to do, but that's a message for another day. Complete devotion results in complete care. The more I think about it, I don't want to be rich. I want to be able to relate to people. I want to understand them. If I won the lottery, even if I could relate, they wouldn't believe it.

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Prayer:

Jehovah Gyra, our Father in Heaven, You give us all we need. If we had a million dollars, would we spend it all on You? Father, if we had a million dollars, it would all be Yours. Our use of it would either please or disgust you.

Father, please give us the desire, the drive, the gumption to do Your work. Make us to be shining lights of Your Holiness and Love. Guide us down the paths of Your Righteousness that we may be at peace.

Thank you, Lord, for your complete and unerring grace that leaves us free from worry.

In Jesus' Holy Name we pray,
Amen!

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¹ Title and Lyrics ©1992 by Barenaked Ladies
² Isaiah 6:8, NIV
³ Matthew 6:28-34, NIV