Many of us have already received our tax rebate checks. The President is calling this an economic stimulus package. We’re told to spend this money as a way to get us out of the recession we’re in. Even economists call economics "the dismal science." But much of what I’ve read and heard is that even if each and every one of us spend every last penny, it’s a drop in the bucket of what our economy really needs. In any case, isn’t profligate spending how we got ourselves into this mess in the first place? And even if we take the wiser course and use it to pay down some of our debt, the rebate won’t be more than a spoonful out of the mountain of debt we have. Some might even choose to invest the money. But the best interest we can receive doesn’t come close to the interest we pay on our debt. Talk about a Catch 22!
But there are other ways we can use at least some of the rebate. We can use some, as Jesus said, to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven. How? What about giving at least some of it away where it could and will make a really significant difference? You can tithe some of it to your church. Also, food banks and food cupboards are in desperate need as more people come to them for assistance, and the numbers will only increase.
Other great organizations are the Episcopal Community Services, and Seamen’s Church Institute. They always have greater demand than resources. Through Episcopal Relief and Development Fund or the Heifer Project, you can purchase livestock (everything from honey bees to water buffalos) to be given to farmers to help them rise above poverty. You can make micro-loans through Kava to empower the poorest of the poor to become entrepreneurs.
A subsistence rice farmer in Nepal was loaned $27.00 to improve the irrigation of his one-acre plot. Improving the irrigation of 1/16th of an acre enabled him to grow vegetables in the off season. His first crop netted him $250.00. How is this investing our treasure in heaven? Because you would be investing in the lives of others. Even in today’s economy, what’s $27.00 to you or me? What’s the same $27.00 is to a subsistence rice farmer in Nepal?
So, even in today’s economy, there’s a big bull market. You won’t see it in the New York Stock Exchange. But always in the hearts, souls, and lives of people.