Caleb meets his wife and what is his first reaction. Is it “hey you are my reward for doing battle, so you will do my bidding”? Are his first thoughts about what he is due? No his very first words are “what would you like?” Now that’s an example for any marriage. Actually that’s an example for any relationship. When we meet our friends what are the thoughts in our mind? Do we think what can I do with this relationship, what can I get out of it, or do we ask the question, what can I do for you? There is a really old song which tells the story of a boy and his mother. The mother asks the boy if he would mind doing something and he says he will do it for some money. Anyway, the song then goes on to list all the things the mother does for the boy and the punch line is, no charge. That means the mother didn’t see the opportunity to serve the boy as a money making exercise, she did it because she loved him. Naturally the boy gets the message and does what his mother has asked without charge. This is obviously a key message that we must learn because Caleb isn’t the only example of this type of selfless love shown in the Bible. The Bible is littered with heroes who put other people’s needs before their own. And then of course we have the ultimate example of someone asking what can I do for these people rather then what can I get out of these people. Jesus on the cross was an expensive gift from God, but guess what, there is no charge.
