Community

Many of you are familiar with Facebook, where you can reconnect with old friends from high school, college, and workplace and with families. Over the past couple of weeks, I have been playing a game on Facebook called Farm Town . It is a game where you simply create your farm, plant your crops, wait for it to mature and then either harvest it yourself, or hire someone to harvest your crops for you.
As I go to the marketplace to hire a person for my farm, the parable of the workers comes to mind. If you stand around the marketplace, you will hear people begging for work. It is up to the owner to hire the best person for the job. As for me, I like to hire the person that does not beg.
When you accept the job on Farm Town, you may get a big job and earned a lot of money, or a small job which earns little money. The purpose of earning money is to build your farm.
Lately, Wal-Mart has been cutting hours because sales are dropping. I listen to the employees complain about hours being cut, how they will not be able to pay bills and keep up with their style of living, while others are happy to have a job to go. These people who have taken jobs after being on unemployment and not able to find equal jobs as before, also learned to cut back on their unnecessary expenses, spend more time with their family, and count their blessings.
Unemployment rate is at their all time high. People are learning to get back to basic by going to restaurants once a week or not at all, taking the kids to the park and having a picnic, spending the day with relatives, going to the library instead of buying books, spending time at museums and zoos.
In the parable, the people who worked all day for the same wage as the people who worked just an hour were upset and angry with the owner. People at Wal-Mart, who has worked several years, are upset because their hours are getting cut as those who just started a month ago.
As Christian, whether you have been a Christian all your life or accepted Christ as your Savior five minutes ago, the gift is the same for all. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) Christ has given his life for all who believe in him. He paid the ransom when he laid down his life for us. Not just a few of us…all of us.
As for those of us who is begging for more, whether it’s a job, bigger house, a new car, a new I-pod or Wii….(the list goes on and on), how about finding ways to spend time with the people you love and get back to basic. Donate your time at a non-profit organization or your church. Become a community who is not afraid of their neighbors, but is happy to help those in needs. It all begins with you.