Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Love of Money (1 Tim. 6:9-10)

But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
(1 Timothy 6:9-10, NASB)

First, let me say that I don’t think the Bible is against the rich. If God has blessed someone with wealth, and that person is generous to those in need and holds his riches loosely, I believe God is pleased.

However, our “more is better” society can truly “snare” people. In order to amass greater wealth, we’ve turned into workaholics, sometimes neglecting our marriages or our children. We live and breathe by the stock market. Our financial statements dictate whether we’re happy or miserable.

We begin to read the Wall Street Journal more often than we do our Bible.

I have to admit, I’ve fallen into the “snare” myself. Eight years ago, my husband and I got caught up with the “McMansion” hype, and sold our perfectly adequate 1200 square foot home for a totally unnecessary 3071 square foot home. Now I will say it served us well when we brought my mother-in-law in to heal after a couple of falls and a couple of surgeries. And we’ve watched God bless others as they’ve been able to stay here.

But now, we realize that bigger isn’t really better. After the blessing of my being laid off in February, we’ve begun to do without. We’re trying to simplify, and it’s been time-consuming and somewhat difficult as we sort through all the “stuff.” We’re beginning to see how much we have that’s unnecessary, and we’re even talking about down-sizing. We’ve learned that money can indeed be a trap, and we’re fighting our way out of that trap.

So ask yourself. Have you gotten caught up in the “more is better” mentality? Have you become consumed with having “stuff”? A bigger house? A nicer car? A fatter portfolio?

Confess to the Lord your preoccupation with the “mighty dollar,” and ask Him what you can do to make Him the priority of your life.

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