Counting My Pennies

One of my all-time favorite speakers is John Wood, pastor of Christ Chapel in Macon.  Several years ago, he made a comment in a sermon that I have reminded myself of many times.  To paraphrase it, he said, that each day, we only have a certain amount of "pennies" to spend.  Those pennies represent our minutes and hours, emotions and energies.  He cautioned his listeners against spending them foolishly, because when you are out, you are out.  You just can't spend more than you have.  (at this point, I could make an enormous comparison to the economy, however, I will refrain.  He wasn't going there at the time and neither am I now.) 

At the risk of sounding ( and being) harsh, I wonder how many of us spend way too many  of our "pennies" on needy Christians when it would be better stewardship of those times and energies to reach out to the unchurched around us.  When that thought went through my mind earlier this week, I felt guilty at first.  After all, we are called to love each other.  "For by this all men will know that you are my disciples", right?  And we are called to share each other's burdens, "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ", right?  But when some Christians depend more on other Christians to sustain them, than they do on God, is that helping them?  I'm not saying we should abandon our Christian friends in time of need.  But those people who seem to stay in a time of need, and that need is me, not God, it may be time to cut the cord.

Reaching out to the lost can be time consuming.  And they may require extra patience and grace on my part to show them the true love of Jesus.  If I have spent all my "pennies" on my Christian friends and have none left for the lost, I just don't know that I have been a good steward.  

Where do you spend your pennies?