D and I flipped a house.

My sister teaches girls and boys to flip.



Soon we will flip the calendar to September.

And I’m thinking a lot right now about how Jesus flips. And how His flipping is always for good. Whether flipping hard or flipping happy.  And how hard usually precedes happy. Matthew 21:12-13, Psalm 30:11

Yesterday I read 4 Really Good Money Questions, and my heart began to do some hard flipping.

This morning I read a story about a rich guy who hoarded all his wealth and ended up in hell. He was wishing for a flipping. But it was too late for him.

The beggar named Lazarus, who had agonized in hunger, pain and humiliation at the door of the stingy-rich man, had gone to heaven.

When the now-impoverished rich man who was burning-up in hell saw forever-wealthy Lazarus free in heaven,

. . . he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ Luke 16:24

I notice the rich man has no name known to Heaven. He probably never gave Jesus a thought as busy as he was – devouring grace on earth.

Look at Abraham’s response,

 ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’ Luke 16:25-26

You can read the whole story here. It is amazing that the man in hell is humbled enough to ask Abraham a favor, and that he appears to have compassion on his still-living relatives.

I began to assess my life in the light of my wealth, and I realized that in some ways it more resembles the rich man than I’d have admitted yesterday when I swiped my card at the grocery store. I’m floored, like face-down on the floor at the awareness of my self-indulgence.

Two days ago I purchased a $4. coffee without batting an eye. I swipe the card not thinking of denying myself something in my cart so I can give to another. I fly on a plane to a conference, fill my car with gas, go to Target and come home with non-essentials on a regular basis. – I know those things are not bad, many are necessary, but the fact that I don’t think more about the balance of my purchases with my giving – that is the part that I am being heavily convicted about this morning. I’ve become thoughtless regarding my spending.

Today, the Holy Spirit hit “refresh” on these words of Jesus as He flips my heart today:

The first will be last and the last will be first. Matthew 19:30
If you want to keep your life you must lose it. Matthew 16:25
If you want to be great you must be a servant. Matthew 20:26

And my consolation – every day I need this consolation, this is nothing new. My consolation is that by Jesus’ blood, I go free another day. He flips my sin. I’m washed free of my sin of self-indulgence of yesterday. 1 John 1:9

And my salvation – every day I need this salvation, this is nothing new. My salvation is the power of the Holy Spirit in me to enable me to walk free of this self-indulgence. He flips my desires. To deny myself, to take up my cross and follow Jesus in selfless living. Romans 8:12-14

This song keeps resounding in the background of my head today . . . What Have We Become by D.C. Talk

The one in the palace was imprisoned by his riches and impoverished eternally.
The one impoverished on earth, was eternally free and wealthy. 

O God, I beg two favors from you;

let me have them before I die.

First, help me never to tell a lie.

Second, give me neither poverty nor riches!

Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.

For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the LORD?”

And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name.

Proverbs 30:7-9