Priorities V ...

Friday, August 26, 2011. Have you ever had the dream of being a successful businessman? Or are you dreaming of being a well-known artist? Others want to be a scientist who contributed by key discoveries. And many normal people dream of earning a million dollars in some lottery or game show.

What to head for? …

What are the goals we have for our life? Do we have far reaching dreams? Clearly, dreams are important. Without dreams we would be bound to our current state. Only dreams or tasks which take us beyond our current state can help us to make real progress in one or the other part of our life.

But what about the dream of just being normal. What about the dream of creating a reasonable life for everyone. If everyone wins a million, it will not help anyone, since then the million would just be average and price levels would adapt to it immediately. So when we talk about dreams which include society, we need to dream of a state which everyone can reach and which is still exciting!

The idea of a civil society is a sustainable vision of our community. It means that everyone has the possibility to earn a salary which provides all the basic needs and even more than that. It means that we create an environment with individual rights and individual freedom. In such an environment, people can evolve their creativity and live according to their choices!

Put God's Kingdom First …

Jesus talks about Christian community and the community with God. His vision reaches beyond a civil society, into what he calls the “kingdom of God”. It is a space where God's love and truth govern and where his influence grows.

I think that the basic guidelines of the “Sermon on the Mount” will be a perfect background to a civil society. People who follow Jesus will be reliable. They will take care of others. They will be truthful and careful. Crime is not an option for someone who follows Jesus. But there is more: greed is not an option as well. He asks us to put his kingdom first. So truth and love are more important than earnings or success. Fair prices are a part of this story as well as well-set investments and balanced relationships to colleagues and customers.

When more and more Christians start to actually follow Jesus, that will change our environment. It will be good for everyone, indeed! ... more texts