Greetings from Sodom and Gomorrah

[10] And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
[11] Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.
[12] Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.
[13] But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

For almost six months now we have focused on the area where spirituality and financial realities overlap, both in our own life and in the larger world. There is nothing inherently wrong with money any more than there is anything inherently wrong with electricity. They are both nothing but forms of energy. However, we would do well to remember that potential energy in any form can be dangerous if mishandled. Most of us are not called to full time ministry, so as we pursue our ambitions and develop our talents we will be drawn into closer proximity with the world. There are dangers here. It is important that we have the right safety equipment, insulated gloves, boots, and tools, maybe even a face shield or a hard hat when we work around high voltage equipment.

Abraham and his nephew Lot reached a point where their corporations had grown so large they could no longer operate in the same region without over saturating the market. Abraham, trusting his God, offered Lot first pick of new territories. Lot looked towards Sodom and Gomorrah because that is where it was happening. Lot knew about Sodom’s technology corridor and heard that Gomorrah was planning a new industrial park. For a man with ambitions and a plenty of capital the opportunities were everywhere. Quite frankly, the spiritual climate in the metropolitan DC area is horrendous, but there aren’t any naval ship research and development centers in Travelers Rest, South Carolina. We all make compromises with our talents, ambitions, and the financial realities of the world. If a dancer or a musician wishes to “make it” in their profession, they travel to places like Los Angles, New York, or Las Vegas. If drawn to the financial professions, the investment banking house and exchanges are found in New York and Chicago. All of these places contain more than a little of the same spirit that led to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

There are dangers in fulfilling our passions and developing our talents in places like Sodom, or Los Angles, or Washington D.C. In Lot’s case, his family and his family relations paid the price. Not just in his lifetime but even unto this day. His sojourn in Sodom contained at least two of the threads of murder and retributions that have troubled the Mideast for three millennia. If anything, the dangers are greater for those who have been called to the ministry. Attempting to expand the Kingdom of God on the enemy’s home turf is extremely dangerous and will inevitably attract opposition. This warfare can lead to attacks on our physical health, our emotional stability, our marriages, or even attacks against our children. Our enemy abides by no code of a just war or rules of engagement based on the Geneva Convention.

We have been called to be “in the world but not of it.” Sometimes that is hard and we fail, but we are assured that our Lord knows how to rescue godly men from their trials.

And, “Hey, let’s be careful out there.”

Second Peter Chapter 2 (NIV)

6if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
7and if He rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men
8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)
9if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the Day of Judgment, while continuing their punishment.