A Ludicrous Investment

<p>In 1929, as the US economy crashed, millions of people lost everything. But not Floyd Odlum. As everyone else panicked and sold their stocks at cut-rate prices, Odlum appeared to foolishly jump in and purchase stocks just as the nation&rsquo;s future disintegrated. But Odlum&rsquo;s &ldquo;foolish&rdquo; perspective paid off, yielding robust investments that endured for decades.</p> <p>God told Jeremiah to make what seemed like an absolutely ludicrous investment: &ldquo;buy [the] field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin&rdquo; (Jeremiah 32:8). This was no time to be buying fields, however. The entire country was on the verge of being ransacked. &ldquo;The army of the king of Babylon was . . . besieging Jerusalem&rdquo; (v. 2) Whatever field Jeremiah purchased would soon be Babylon&rsquo;s. What fool makes an investment when everything would soon be lost?</p> <p>Well, the person who&rsquo;s listening to God&mdash;the One who intended a future no one else could envision. &ldquo;This is what the <smallcaps>Lord</smallcaps> Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land&rdquo; (v. 15). God saw more than the ruin. God promised to bring redemption, healing, and restoration. A ludicrous investment in a relationship or service for God isn&rsquo;t foolish&mdash;it&rsquo;s is the wisest possible move when God leads us to make it (and it's essential that we prayerfully seek to know He&rsquo;s behind the instruction). A &ldquo;foolish&rdquo; investment in others as God leads makes all the sense in the world.</p>