I am suffering from a late evening compulsion to remind all of us of one of the most famous of Aesop’s fables, that being “The Goose and the Golden Egg”.
“There was once a Countryman who possessed the most wonderful Goose you can imagine, for every day when he visited the nest, the Goose had laid a beautiful, glittering, golden egg. The Countryman took the eggs to market and soon began to get rich. But it was not long before he grew impatient with the Goose because she gave him only a single golden egg a day. He was not getting rich fast enough.
Then one day, after he had finished counting his money, the idea came to him that he could get all the golden eggs at once by killing the goose and cutting it open. But when the deed was done, not a single golden egg did he find, and his precious goose was dead.”
And I can just hear some of you already saying, “I know exactly where Merlin is going to take this, Please NOT AGAIN! I just can’t stomach anymore of this America missing its mark paranoia!” As I said above , I am “compelled” and I make no apologies as I see and speak everyday with many clueless. The world’s humanity is on the ropes and down for the count. Or perhaps better visualized on the stormy high seas of life in a rowboat without oars, sails, or even an engine. Being without Christ’s awareness and His indwelling Spirit, we have no clue of our physical, mental, emotional, and especially, our spiritual vulnerabilities, even here in the spiritual breadbasket of Wayne County OH.
So, for America, what represents the golden goose in Aesop’s famous fable? Perhaps our nation’s “golden goose” could be likened to her citizens, created in the image of God, as is everyone on the planet, and because of the faith and wisdom of our nation’s forefathers, our citizens live with the freedom to create, work hard, and prosper. America’s liberty grants us both the privilege and responsibility to meet needs and challenges while pursuing our own dreams while assisting others in their meaningful pursuits.
Our Creator and heavenly Father loves to see His children blessed and freely able to bless others. History reveals that when people no longer recognize God in the first place as the wise, overseeing Father, they forfeit their freedom through foolish idolatry, selfish indulgences, irresponsibility, and insensitivity to God and others. When we fail to love God and our neighbors, we will lose our freedom and watch our productivity diminish. The inability to produce wealth and prosperity not only robs us of our own blessing but also prevents us from being in a position to bless others.
The noose that kills the goose is excessive control by any power other than God and the effective oversight given by free and responsible people. In America, this noose is the overreaching and excessive control of an ever-expanding, all-consuming federal government and its bureaucracies, along with freedom damaging regulations. Supported by the godless idea that the government can care for themselves and others, the noose is rapidly tightening and choking out the life and freedom that were handed to us by those who understood freedom, responsibility, and true prosperity. The excess and greed on the part of those who prosper, as well as the envy and covetousness of those who lack, are used to justify the federal noose being tightened, ultimately killing the goose that enabled us to be the prosperous and benevolent nation in history. Never doubt the father of lies is determined to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10).
We must remember that the same success and prosperity that consumes some people, leading them to be totally selfish, also enables those who have been blessed and prosper to assist the poor and needy. Those who work hard and succeed help fuel the economy by investing, creating business and opportunity, and producing the benefits derived from their consumerism. A person must have a measure of wealth and a level of prosperity to be able to purchase something they need or desire.
Never doubt that out-of-control people will lose their freedom to an out-of-control, all-consuming power. Truly free people will keep the Ten Commandments, including the first, “You shall have no other gods before Me.” (Exodus 20:3) and the last, “You shall not covet” (v. 17). Put God first, work hard, and be productive, while encouraging everyone to assist others. We need to be committed and consecrated to God, followed by compassion and care for others. When this happens we will watch America’s golden goose soar like an eagle and gratefully behold the manifest blessings of our God and Father. This will happen when we decide to put God and others before ourselves instead of foolishly assaulting the goose of opportunity.
May I share a simple Bible lesson? The prodigal son received from his father his rightful inheritance and then proceeded to mismanage (mostly squander) until he found himself in great want. The loving father waited eagerly for the son to come to his senses and return home, making things right. The prodigal returned home as a repentant son with a changed heart and the attitude of humble, willing servant (Luke 15:11-32). Problem solved!
In no way did the wise father give that foolish son more money to waste after he ran out. No way! Our out of control government demands that we continue to give it more to mismanage without first coming to their senses and finding every possible way to reduce government spending. If you want to rapidly assist the tightening of the noose that will kill the goose, just give irresponsible leaders more of the American people’s means to waste with mismanagement. Don’t attempt to justify this wrongdoing by saying the money will be taken from someone else (like the rich, our children, and those yet to be born), and that will justify the foolishness. It will not! It is easy to overlook stealing when the money is not yours.
In summary, a free market is a golden goose. It is a blessing of God. We must not destroy it in our attempt to solve injustices. Doing so will not raise anyone up or build back the broken any better. Such nonsense will only tear everyone and everything down as has been proven throughout history, and especially so, the past 150 years.
Again, the question that begs to be asked is “When is our silence-in-the-land actually becoming complicity?” Perhaps we are to ignore the rhetoric; and rather, seek truth telling dialogue with the “creative minority so as to impact the influence of the majority” as Jamie Winship instructs us in his You Tube “Turning Chaos into Opportunity in Every Area of Your Life.” (1:05:34) This clip actually accomplishes its title. Change your perspective and your life. merlin