QUESTION #12
Have we stolen? Do we take little things that do not belong to us?

I’d assume that most of you reading this aren’t into stealing identities and spending other people’s money, but I love that we can still take this question into deep consideration.

What are the little things? I know when I worked at Starbucks years ago, people would pour TONS of milk into an “iced espresso” to make it an iced latte. We knew what they were doing when they asked for this. I’ve seen people abuse coffee in public places like Panera and Whole Foods where the carafes just sit out. This to me boils down to a sense of entitlement. We think we are owed something that does not belong to us.

In our line of work, are we robbing those we are selling to and working with? We’ve seen sadly too many testimonies of Christians stealing money from others and allocating funds improperly. Have we sold cheap and faulty work? Have we taken paper products from our jobs or used work stamps for personal mail? Have we claimed someone else’s work as our own? Have we borrowed items belonging to someone else and not returned them? CONFESSION:SORRY Pradeepan, Phil and Matt F—if it’s an compensation, your books have changed my life! And R&M—your juicer and loaned books will make their way back to you soon;) Really though, these areas can become habits that continue to grow into more sins if we don’t catch ourselves doing them.

We aren’t children who exclaim “Finders keepers, losers weepers.” We are to grow in our walk with God and allow for more of Him in our lives. If we find something, we need to search for an owner. If something doesn’t belong to us, we don’t need to entertain possessing it.

APPLICATION:
1.Are there deeper areas in our heart that we are compromising in that make us steal? Do we covet? Do we want to get even? Are we walking in a sense of entitlement?
2.Find one scripture that talks about stealing being a sin besides those listed below. Pray and ask God to convict you of the sin of stealing.

SCRIPTURES:

Exodus 20:15“You shall not steal.”

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.