One of the greatest pleasures of being young is impertinence. As youths we can throw around opinions without experience, talk about things we really don’t know about, and live in an imaginary world where everything conforms to the way we understand it to be. Some might call it idealism, others smug self-assurance, but it’s a state of being in which I find myself particularly caught up recently. Being in a rather isolated Paraguayan evangelical community where my closest friend is nearly identical to me in many aspects of worldview and identity, the temptation to understand things from a very limited perspective is even stronger.
Today I saw that the stock market crashed. The US economy is in terrible shape, and my mind immediately goes to several impertinent thoughts:
1. The US is reaping what it’s sown.
2. I’m glad I don’t have any stocks or a 401K plan to worry about.
3. I’m kind of thankful I don’t have any money at all.
4. My family knows how to grow and can tomatoes. If there’s another Great Depression, we’ll at least survive on stewed tomatoes all year long.
5. I know how to work, and I also know that no work is below me. I’m ready to wash dishes or do yard work if the economy fails and there are no jobs for me when I return
6. Manual work is a large part of spiritual formation and practice in many Christian communities, from Catholic Trappist monks working on egg farms in Tennessee to Anabaptist Mennonite believers toiling away in dairy production on the Paraguayan frontier. These say that calluses are good for Christians and moral development, and I kind of agree with them.
7. Another Depression could serve the US well. We have, after all, become proud consumerist fat cats. My family has four televisions and only three people are living at home. I have an entire household of appliances in storage waiting for me when I come home, and I’m only 23. Where does all this wealth come from? Most Paraguayans live on a couple dollars a day.
8. I have some friends who lived in Argentina when their economy crashed a few years ago. Without any money, they grew and ate fried manioc (a big tuber) all year long. I kind of envy their frugality, and think fried manioc with stewed tomatoes alongside it would be a good combination.
9. A crashed American economy would show American Christians that the blessings of the Gospel are spiritual, not material. We need to hear and know that. “every spiritual blessing in Christ” does not mean a chicken in every Christian pot or a Mercedes in every Christian driveway.
10. I think I may invest in Paraguayan cattle. Cows can have babies every year, reproducing the investment annually, and I have contacts that, for the price of milk they sell, would manage and breed my herd well.
Yes, I am an impertinent youth. I have a particularly Christian view on everything, too, which makes my impertinence even more dangerous and self-justifying. I have a wild and rebellious streak in my ratiocinations on the economy, a strange mixture of workers rights, just desserts, and flippant disregard for the mammon of this world that I’ve inherited from both Joe Steidl and Jesus Christ and the gist of which goes against established financial wisdom, the power of the wealthy, and most of the economic policies of the Republican Party. I really don’t know what’s going on in the financial markets, but I do like to imagine that I could survive well in mind, spirit, and body with calluses on my hands and stewed tomatoes in my belly. I am, after all, an impertinent youth.
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3 comments:
Brother Jason! It's been a while since we've seen eachother last -- I honestly can't remember the last time we were both at Midwest Camp! I was surfing on the Vesper Lake church website and found the link to your blog. It's exciting to see and read your experiences in Paraguay and how God has been faithful in your life and how He's been teaching you through His Word, His Spirit, and through your experiences.
In 2005/2006 I did a year of Bible School at Capernwray Harbour which is on Thetis Island, in British Columbia. This year of Bible School augmented my Bachelor of Commerce degree at the University of Windsor which I'm finishing up currently. I will graduate in June 2009 with my BComm, and travel to Calgary, Alberta to start working as a Staff Accountant for Deloitte & Touche in the Assurance Department in September 2009. It's certainly exciting how the Lord completely worked out this whole job and I was already hired a year in advance.
I heartily lend me agreement to your sentiments in this blog post. Currently, one of my jobs is working for a financial planner so we've been dealing with clients who are literally in terror right now because of the darrastic drop in their account values. I will correct one thing, what happened on Monday wasn't a full stock market crash -- but definitely the largest drop we've seen in a very time. Some of it rebounded on Tuesday. However, the volatility is definitely there and will continue at the very least until the end of 2008 without question.
I seriously hope North Americans (because this affects Canada just as much as the US -- although to a slightly lesser degree) see this as a wakeup call to how we've living our lives and our dangerous spending practices. For Christians none of this should come as a surprise, and there is great opportunity to step up and spread the Gospel in these times of uncertainty because we know that God has promised to take care of our daily food and clothing in His Word -- which applies regardless of the surrounding economic situations. But even more, this should be a wakeup call in our lives to examine where we've placed our treasure and see the innate pride that is resident in our hearts because of our inherited sin nature and ask the Lord for forgiveness first, then seek His Holy Spirit to continue to lead us as we follow in obedience.
Rumour has it you're coming home for Christmas? Perhaps I can make a trip down to Vesper Lake for a visit with you and catch up if you have time over the holidays? Send me an email if you want ... protocol _2001@hotm ail.com (just remove spaces).
God bless you brother!
I'm not so young and not so rebuplican, but I agree with your impertinent remarks.
Hi Jas.As my many years and grey hairs qualify my wisdom in this matter I say youve hit the nail on the head.Unfortunitly our country has developed a mentality of entitlement.A little while back some bankers and insurance companys whom I call moneychangers got in trouble by using unethical practices to make huge profits wich is nothing but comon thievery.Many in this country myself included benefited from this as we saw our pensions and investments grow rapidly.But God in his wisdom could not allow this to continue So a few weeks back He sent the stock market into a downward spiral or basicly throw the thieving moneychangers out.But the leaders of our country in their lack of wisdom just gave them800 billion to try again The bad part of this is my generation doesnt have an 800 billion emergency fund set aside. it is a debt that will be handed to your generation. on top of that my huge generation of baby boomers is retireing soon.We would hope that your generation would see the importance of keeping us in the posh conspicuos consumption lifestyle we have become acustomed to. I bet you can feel those calauses growing on your hands just reading this.Love dad
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