The word “money” makes some people’s eyes light up like they’re seeing dancing dollar signs. The world has a love affair with it, and some take this to the extreme and seek it exclusively. The get-rich-quick mindset that’s prevalent today leads the unsuspecting to develop a wrong relationship with money. There’s nothing wrong with being wealthy, but we must put financial gain into perspective so that greed and materialism don’t rule our lives.
Regardless of the currency, money is simply paper and ink, but it’s amazing how it can influence our way of thinking. We’ve all seen people who take great pride in building a vast empire with a large bank account. Others steal it, murder for it, or even commit suicide because they can’t hang on to it. We seem to have forgotten who the original source of wealth is. “If you start thinking to yourselves, ‘I did all this. And all by myself. I’m rich. It’s all mine!’—well, think again. Remember that God, your God, gave you the strength to produce all this wealth so as to confirm the covenant that he promised to your ancestors—as it is today” (Deuteronomy 8:17, 18, MSG).
People crave money for themselves and are jealous and highly suspicious of those who have it. This is due to the influence of the spirit of mammon, which encourages us to trust in material things more than in God. Mammon lies to us and promises to give us things that only God can provide; plenty of “self-made” millionaires who fell for those lies squandered all their fortunes on themselves and ended up penniless and miserable. Money itself isn’t evil, but developing a wrong relationship with it is. “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…” (1 Timothy 6:9, 10, NIV).
The world worships money and has made it their god, but it’s simply a tool to help others. God promises that if we love Him more than money, He’ll make sure we have plenty of everything we need. “Honor the Lord with your capital and sufficiency [from righteous labors] and with the firstfruits of all your income; so shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9, 10, AMPC). Sadly, few people in these end times believe that. Honoring the Lord means trusting Him enough to release our tight grip on our wallets and giving generously. Whatever we give will return to us abundantly.
Too many of us don’t see how God figures into our financial lives. He loves us and doesn’t want to see us struggle financially. Acknowledging Him as our true source of wealth causes amazing things begin to happen. Letting His Word guide us in every financial decision we make brings true prosperity on every level.
