Entitled

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Psalm 33:11     But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.

Psalm 128:2     You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands: you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

Proverbs 12:11     Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense.

Proverbs 13:4     The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Proverbs 13:11     Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it

Proverbs 16:3     Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.

Proverbs 21:5, 25     Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty. . . .The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor.

Ecclesiastes 9:10     Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

Acts 18:3     and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for there were tentmakers by trade.

Colossians 3:23-24     Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Jesus Christ you are serving.

1 Thessalonians 2:9-10     For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.

 

Our country is now producing generations that feel they are entitled to things—almost anything they want.  Work ethics seem to be on the downhill slide, and people want to have money to spend and to buy, but many do not want to work to get there.  Somehow, good work ethics and the pride and satisfaction one gets when they have EARNED or SAVED for something special is missing.  How often are you in a store, hearing a child whine for something, the parent says no repeatedly, then within 3 minutes or so, gives in, and warns, “But this is it.  You are not getting anything else.” 

Has that parent done the child any favors?  Has he/she proven they will stand on their word?  ‘No, You cannot get anything you think you want.  No, things do not come to you just because you whine and create a nuisance.  The answer is no, and if you continue to carry on, there will be consequences.’.  Or has the child learned whining and brattiness can get them what they want with little effort other than annoyance to the parent?  Seems to me we have PLENTY of that immature behavior throughout our country.

 

There are many negative issues I see with that feeling.  To me, there are many who are just lazy—‘just gimme duh bucks, huh?!’  We have seen more limited shop or restaurant hours since COVID with the government handing money to those who legitimately could not go into work—restaurants closing, many people fearful to go into smaller shops—boutique, gift shops, and such.  People had to get groceries—either that meant putting on protective gear and maneuvering through the store quickly, looking about suspiciously and fearfully, or calling for all the products they needed and paying for delivery.  

But those who had to deal with no work as places of employment were closed—they needed to still pay their bills so received funds—but how nice is that to get money but you don’t have to put in the hours and labor to get it.  It increased the feelings of entitlement, I think.

Not that those feelings started with COVID.  I believe they have been becoming more prevalent since the end of WWII.  Many women had had to go to work in factories and other places to keep production of equipment needed to fight the war; many had to continue if their men came home too injured to work a normal position.  Children became more dependent on nearby relatives to keep an eye on them after school, or dependent on an elderly neighbor if anything was needed.  And although there were cash issues, money slowly became more accessible as our country began getting back on its feet.  But children would beg and wheedle for that special pair of Keds or PF Flyers—and sometimes out of guilt because of two working parents, and sometimes to stop the whining, the purchase was made.  We began to think all could be readily at our fingertips without too much effort.

Then credit card companies saw how they could slide in and “help out and let you purchase. . . and you could pay it back over time.”  And suddenly people were purchasing things they did not always NEED, to keep up appearances to others, and then were suffering to pay back exorbitant interest rates.  And the thought process was, “Well, aren’t we entitled to have the same thing(s) in our home?”  It seemed easy, and so enticing to start a little credit to get what one needs—’after all we need a living room set for when people come over. . .’ but before that purchase can be paid off, another is made. 

Years ago, we had to work and save for what we wanted.  I feel blessed my parents did not buy everything I asked for (although I did get the pair of PF Flyers that Saturday morning!) but if I wanted something, it came mostly out of my allowance and what I was able to save.  That made the object that much more precious to me.  It COST me something—sometimes a good length of time before I had enough to purchase what I wanted.  I was thrilled to get some cash for birthdays or Christmas.  But the working toward and then being able to attain was a source of pride, satisfaction, and accomplishment.

Jesus did not say God would give us everything we want (entitlement).  He said He would give us all we need—food for the day, protection, love, care, guidance.  Entitlement can lead us into all sorts of things that are NOT good, healthy or necessary for us—smoking, drinking, drugs, porn, over-spending, and so forth.

Paul and his friends traveled throughout the areas of Ephesus, Lystra, Corinth, Rome and all the other places, but worked for their lodging and food while teaching the Good News.  They did not abuse someone’s hospitality but would make the tents, sell them, and contribute to whatever household they stayed in.

Because working toward goals was an important ‘child rearing tenet’ in my home, we all work steadily, are not abundantly wasteful, recognize waiting before making most big purchases, and as I am the only one who had children out of my nuclear family, am proud to say that their Dad and I also instilled that concept of responsibility to work,  save, wait, then purchase. 

It saddens me to see the people who are seemingly content to wait for a hand-out.  I recognize how blessed I am that my parents and grandmother instilled a good work ethic to us, and we have been blessed to attain much.

Thank You, Lord, for placing me in a home where the working, being dependable and accountable was important; and learning that achieving after a time of saving and then being in a position to purchase later, helped me realize the difference in a getting a handout versus a goal achieved purchase.  You have so blessed me and ‘mybellaviews.’