BBD 07.30.13 Greed, Deceit, and Failure (Classic)
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The Burning Bush Devotional
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Classic from 2006
07.30.13
Greed, Deceit, and Failure
But they lie in wait for their own blood, they lurk secretly for their own
lives. So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain; it takes away the
life of its owners. - Proverbs 1:18-19.
For "he who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his
tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from
evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it." - 1 Peter 3:10-11.
Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all
evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may
grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. - 1 Peter
2:1-3.
In Missouri, Kris and Sarah Everson went to elaborate
lengths to perpetrate a hoax in the hopes of obtaining money. The deceit
involved was the claim of having six newborn babies. The couple had fake
sonograms and a nursery had been prepared in their home along with photos of an
apparently pregnant Sarah. The couple now says, "We’re sorry for everything we did. We didn’t mean to hurt anybody,
we did it out of financial reasons."
Then, there is Heather Faria in Massachusetts who told
her fellow teachers in 2003 that she had stomach cancer but could not afford to
pay for treatment. Thirty thousand dollars was raised in donations to help pay
for treatment for Heather. However, it was not true. She resigned from teaching
last year and has pleaded guilty to several charges including, "gross
fraud."
Heather and the Eversons fell into the trap that so many
have fallen into with no way out. They were faced with a difficult financial
situation and came up with plans that by deceitful means would solve their
financial difficulties. At least, that was the plan. From their greed came a
wrong decision to pursue the deceitful means. What has been the result?
The result has been failure - massive failure, and it will take them years to
recover, if ever. The Eversons have not yet been charged with violations of law
but that is surely coming soon. Heather Faria has been charged and convicted.
It is unlikely that she will ever be able to teach again with a felony
conviction. Greed as the writer of Proverbs points out, "…takes away the life of its owners."
Even though it is difficult to face some of the financial
and personal problems that we as human beings are able to get ourselves into -
to choose the way of evil, the way of deceit is never the right way. Even those
who may succeed in perpetrating their deceit still have to live with what they
have done. They must continue their deceit - cover up and cover over
continually. It never ends.
Peter reminds us that, "he who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue
from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and
do good; let him seek peace and pursue it." Living life the right way must be pursued. It does
not just happen. When tempted by greed to
be deceitful instead pursue life because your life indeed is at stake.
Copyright © 2006-2013. Ed
Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On
June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.
Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of
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