President George W. Bush is an avid athlete. He exercises daily and for many years, that meant a run, a good long jog. Then he took up cycling. He’s so fast; he outpaces the secret service agents riding with him.
As much as the drive to exercise motivates him personally, something greater also drives him. While maintaining high respect for other religions, Bush has not hidden his faith. In extensive interviews with Brett Baier for the Fox News Channel in January 2008, President Bush revealed his core belief about stewardship.
“I believe that to whom much is given much is required, and we’ve been given a lot,” President George W. Bush explained.
This idea comes from Luke 12:48: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” It’s a verse that guards against selfishness and complacency.
“It’s in our moral interest to help others. The enemy, those who kill the innocent to advance their political agenda, cannot recruit based upon their ideology. They can only recruit where there’s hopelessness,” Bush continued.
Bush believes that a key component in fighting terror is the need to combat poverty and diseases, such as AIDS, which affected 33 million globally. If a large portion of a nation’s work force is ill, then the economy can’t grow. Impoverished people are more apt to turn to an ideology of terror than those who have hope.
“Disease and hunger cause people to be hopeless. That’s why our foreign policy is to help others live healthy lives. To help others live in a free society. It’s the ultimate solution to protecting America,” Bush explained.
Six months later, in July 2008, President Bush signed legislation that tripled the United States funding to fight AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis around the world, particularly in Africa. Bush described the five-year, $48 billion program as “the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in human history.”
For a president of the United States, “much is given” means a responsibility of stewardship and decision-making in leading a nation. But “much is given” doesn’t have to be measured on a continental scale. Much is given can mean many things. For a physician, “much is given” is about dispensing knowledge and prescriptions with mercy. For a mom, “much is given” is observing her children’s needs and responding with an abundance of love.
Show me today the “much” you have given me, whether it’s my time, talent, or treasure. Lead me to an opportunity to use my abundance selflessly.
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:48b)