If there was ever a man who went from hero to zero, it was Michael Parker. Right now, Parker is in prison. His exotic cars, yachts, expensive club memberships and connections to the high and mighty are gone. He has traded in his expensive suits for prison garb. His remaining hope for freedom is a thick file of legal papers which he hopes will get him an appeal.
As president of a savings and loan bank, Parker was once worth $50 million and had all the power and pizzazz that go with wealth and success. In 1988, he was voted his country’s most outstanding entrepreneur. Then things began to go wrong. Bank examiners accused him of draining off $166 million of bank assets into a private corporation. When his bank failed, Parker’s high living was over.
How does a man go from hero–a well-loved entrepreneur who was a generous donor to organizations and politicians–to zero, just another number in a federal prison? By his own confession he "had his priorities out of whack". His goal was "to be a big shot" and "to earn money".
Parker is not alone when it comes to going from hero to zero. More than a few individuals have been on top of the pile, and suddenly the wind shifted, and they were left standing in a dessert of sand, disgraced, without friends or family, their fortune spent and their future uncertain. Such an individual was the first king of ancient Israel. Saul was a man who stood head and shoulders above the average in height, yet was a moral dwarf. Like Parker, Saul became heady with position and power. He thought, "The rules don’t apply to me. Look at my success. Who will challenge me?"
Prisoner 96056-012, who used to be known as Mr. President at Columbia Savings & Loan, has it all straight now, but it is too late. Saul got it straight, too. When he realized what was taking place he cried out, "I have played the fool" (1 Samuel 26:21, kjv), but it was too late to turn back the avalanche of disaster which had overtaken him.
Ultimately, we don’t break God’s laws; they break us. There is an eternal law that says, "Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap" (Galatians 6:7 kjv). Never think, "It couldn’t happen to me." Stay on the right side of right. It’s the only way to keep from going to zero.
Resource Reading: 1 Samuel 26