Sir, no man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money.
—Samuel Johnson
Always pleasant to be labeled a blockhead by a genius. Still, fortunately for me, there are many other writers who disagree with Dr. Johnson. There are also many who note, essentially, that if Dr. Johnson were correct, no one but a blockhead would ever write. Fortunately for all of us, this doesn’t prove to be the case . . .
I believe in “freely you have received, now freely give.”
If the Lord blesses me with something to share, I would feel like a whore demanding money for something that ought to be given with love.
And yet, “the laborer is worthy of his hire,” and, “do not muzzle the ox that is treading out the grain.” For some folks, that’s how God provides for them, and I don’t begrudge that. For my part, I don’t demand money for preaching, but I have to admit that if folks didn’t pay me for it (among other things), I’d have a hard time doing much of it.