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Have You Got the Money?

by Jerry Ousley  
1/16/2007 / Christian Living


"Have you got the money?" my wife asked me. "Of course," I replied. It marked the early days of miscommunication between my wife and me. I'm sure no one else has ever had that problem.

It was thirty years ago, on our very first anniversary. In those days money was scarce (but then times really haven't changed all that much). We had scrimped and saved as much as we could in order to celebrate with a nice dinner at the "King Fish" in Louisville. We had looked forward to it for several weeks.

I don't know why, but when she asked me that question I interpreted it as, "Are you sure we can financially afford to do this?" We had saved the money back and it was lying on top of the refrigerator, so when I answered, "Of course," I was saying, "Of course we can afford it. The money's on the refrigerator." However, she was actually saying, "Did you put the money in your wallet?" I misinterpreted that.

We went to the "King Fish," waited to be seated (about a half an hour wait if I remember correctly - but I'm not too sure of that either), then ordered our food. However before the waitress had a chance to bring us anything it struck me like a lightening bolt hits a tree and I split right down the middle because I realized we had the money but it was still on top of the refrigerator.

We were in a jam because in those days we didn't even have a credit card to back us up. I looked in my wallet. I can't remember how much was in there but rest assured, it wasn't enough. It was "fess-up" time. It wasn't a pretty picture but I had deserved anything that came to me. I had ruined our first anniversary dinner.

We called the waitress and cancelled our order promptly and I explained the best I could. I know my face was three shades of red. We managed to go ahead and have dinner sort of; as it happened, between the two of us we put enough together to go to the carryout section and order something much less expensive and eat it in the car.

I'd like to say that I learned my lesson but I must confess that I have made many such mistakes since. I am trying to improve. You'd think that after thirty years you'd make some progress, right?

This situation just goes to show how differently people think and hear. It has to do with the way our mind processes information. We not only do that with other people but with what we read too especially in the Bible. I really don't believe that when God had His prophets and servants pen His words that He meant for us to take it forty different ways. He, like all of us, meant what He said. We just have problems hearing.

God knows that our interpretation is a product all too many times of incorrectly hearing or incorrectly processing in our minds. He knew we'd have trouble with that because of this "sin-thing" we caused. However, that is why Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you . . ." (Matthew 7:7). If we realize that we aren't going to be right all the time and we apply His word to our interpretation process joined together with prayer asking Him what the truth is, we will eventually come up with the answer to what God really means in His word.

I'm not going to even remotely suggest that I have all the answers. I know by experience. Over the years I've had to correct my "Theology" many times because I was taught one way or had come to believe another way and after careful study and prayerful listening to the Holy Spirit, realized that I had been off base all along. I had to adjust what I believed to the Word and sometimes that meant apologizing to others for teaching them the wrong thing.

That's what we've got to do! We've got to realize that we do make mistakes in interpretation. Why is it that we can be quick to admit we have been wrong to family and friends but when it comes to the Bible we can never be wrong? It's a little trick of the devil called "deception." You see, the devil likes to make us think that we can't be wrong in our interpretation of scripture. He does this to keep the Church in havoc. If we are always fighting and bickering among ourselves instead of preaching the Good News, then he can keep us from seeing souls saved and born into the Church.

Let's remember that the basic beliefs of almost all denominations are saying the same thing. Yet, when we come to interpretation of these beliefs, then we differ. But I believe there is hope. I'm not going to argue with my brothers in other denominations because they just might be right and I just might be wrong. It wouldn't be the first time. If we'll keep that fact in mind and concentrate on our job of seeing souls saved, we'd get along a whole lot better and we just might be a better witness.

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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