Someone Should Do Something!

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint for us a king to govern us like all the nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds which they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, hearken to their voice; only, you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking a king from him. He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your menservants and maidservants, and the best of your cattle and your asses, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; and they said, “No! but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations.”
(1Sam8 4:19)

When I heard these words read in church this week, I was reminded of the situation in our country. So many people are saying “Things are bad; somebody should do something,” and the “somebody” they think of is the government. The “apparent” starving (“apparent” because no one starves in this country), those without “written” medical guarantees (“written” because everyone IS guaranteed medical treatment in this country), and those who don’t have homes (since Congress dictated home ownership SHALL be a certain portion of the populace) – all these people who are having “bad” things happen to them: “Somebody Should Do Something!” And now we are even extending our thoughts to Haiti, and primarily looking to our government to do something there, too.

This week I spoke with a woman who said: “I don’t understand why the government can’t just give free medical care to the people. In Switzerland they have no taxes and medical care is free to everyone. If it can be free in little Switzerland, I don’t understand why it can’t be free here.” There is much this woman doesn’t understand.

Earlier in the week, another person said they “didn’t understand why we can’t get drugs as cheaply as they do in Canada.” There was also much this person didn’t understand.

Maybe it’s because these people were younger, and the fault lies in our educational system. I don’t know. But I was reminded of my experiences with a non-profit organization called Paint The Town, which painted and repaired homes for free for the elderly and low-income people of the Detroit metropolitan area. One of the biggest problems for Paint The Town volunteers was getting the elderly to sign up for the program, even if they desperately needed it. “Paint and fix my house for free?! Get outta here; no one gives you something for nothing.” These elderly people had this truth fixed in their minds (correctly), and were rigid in their thinking to avoid the many scams tossed their way. I wish some younger people were as wise.

Even if the young were never taught in school that “you never get something for nothing”, perhaps a few heard and heeded the words and clear meaning of Scripture above. The people wanted a king “like all the other nations” with all the perceived benefits. God finally gave in to their pleadings, but not before He warned them: “Watch out what you ask for; you may get it.” What they perceived as the benefits were far outweighed by detriments they were not considering.

So many people are asking for things of the government today, and will be surprised at the results – the detriments -- if they get it. We need to go back to our elderly grandparents to get educated on what happens: “No one gives you something for nothing.” If really and truly “Someone Should Do Something”, we need to recognize that that “someone” is likely not the government, it is us.

I really and truly believe all people in this country, liberals and conservatives, want the same thing: to love their neighbor. Only some view that as being done by GIVING everything to their neighbor, and others believe it is done by helping the neighbor to get all they need. I believe that God promises he will GIVE us everything in heaven; here on earth we are to work. The government cannot promise heaven here.