Whoever loves money will never have enough money; Whoever loves wealth will not be satisfied with it. This is also useless. The more wealth people have, the more friends they have to help spend it. So what do people really gain? They gain nothing except to look at their riches. Those who work hard sleep in peace; it is not important if they eat little or much. But rich people worry about their wealth and cannot sleep. (Ecclesiastes 5:10-12)
Ponder It.
- What financial concerns do you currently have?
- What are your financial goals?
- How have you grown in your financial habits in the past years?
Receive It. Money isn’t evil in and of itself. It helps us serve one another. It helps us honor God by providing for each other. It gives us the opportunity to be faithful stewards. We can choose to search God’s ways and respond in obedience – or not. God’s Word teaches us sound financial principles, but they conflict with the ways of the world. We’re surrounded by the “get more at any cost” mentality. Accumulating debt to get what you don’t need is widely accepted. Confusing needs and wants is commonplace. The confusion and discouragement becomes so overwhelming that to make changes seems impossible. The debt is too high, the needs are too great, and the income is too low.
God is sufficient for all things. He doesn’t work in the way or timing we want him to work, but he is always moving in our lives. The question is whether we’re being obedient or not. God isn’t going to fix everything we do wrong. He knows the goal, and he knows how to get there from here, but we have to join him in the journey. We don’t invite him to walk our path with us. He invites us to walk his path with him. We’re going to step off the path from time to time when we get distracted by the beautiful window displays of the world. But when we’re committed to God’s ways, our focus more readily returns to his ways. His choice becomes our choice.
Live It. What’s one response of trust and faith you can make to honor God in your finances today? Do it.