Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
Hebrews 13:5 NLT
In my youth when I went to university, before I was a Christian, my dad told me I’d have to earn what I needed for university because if he gave me money I’d only give it away to some cause or another. He was correct. I had little need of money and had always taken work to generate the very basic income I required. Any extra I passed on to those I saw who had a need, mine all being met. I had been impacted early in life by the words of the Greek Stoic philosopher, Epictetus, “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.”
I was comfortable living like this, then my new-found Christian faith reinforced these instincts. However, in middle age I began to worry if I had enough money! I confess today to living with a measure of double-mindedness. It’s not any love of money that demands my close attention; rather, it’s my uncertainty over the degree to which I am to take personal responsibility for securing the money I need both today and for my future. Yet, how long is my future? How can I make appropriate preparation? And as I leave the world as I entered, with nothing, how might I ensure that my vaults are empty when I die?
This is my mental struggle. It’s not necessarily yours and so don’t make it so. Yet, we each have a responsibility to have a light hold on money, especially when it comes to replacing our trust in God with trust in wealth. God tells me my future is safe with him. I’m convinced, although I want to determine the conditions of that future so that I am psychologically safe. God says, “No way!” for the issue is trust.
QUESTION
Are you satisfied with what you have?
PRAYER
Faithful Father God, I choose to put my trust in you and not in money. My confidence is in your goodness and not the depth of my pockets.
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