Caught in the Endless Cycle of Wanting More
When I started my first job, I used to imagine how amazing it would be to make $5,000 a year. Then, when I was first married, I thought that if we could make $20,000 a year we would have life well under control. Once I started making $20,000 a year then I started to dream of the day when $40,000 a year would solve all our financial challenges.
The truth is, no amount of money ever seemed to be quite enough. There were always more bills to pay, more children to feed, more car repairs to be done, and more vacations to experience. I became caught in this endless cycle of wanting/needing more.
Along the way, we work harder to make more money. We compromise the time it takes to build relationships, so we can add more cashflow in the wallet.
At what point is it enough? At what point do we realize that what we are gaining is not worth what we are losing?
The only promise God made to us regarding finances is that He would provide for all our needs. When was the last time you took an honest look at your expenses every month with this question in mind — did I really need that? I would guess that if most of us only spent what we really need to spend, then we would collectively have enough money left over to help those who can’t truly meet their financial needs each month. Imagine if we took the excess we spend on bigger houses, faster and stronger cars, or the biggest screen TV, and used those funds instead to invest in the work of God’s Kingdom.
My pastor recently preached on finances, and he made this statement: “Poverty is an issue more of friends, than finances.” The big idea is that we can work hard to gain the whole world but forfeit our very soul while we are doing it.
Another way to look at finances is this: how would I spend my money differently if I believed that it isn’t really my money, but it all belongs to God?
I am not against people making money. Money is not evil — the Bible teaches that it is the root of all kinds of evil, but it does not say that it is evil. I’m inspired by a friend of mine who calls himself a professional philanthropist. He believes God has given him a gift of making money, but that gift comes with a responsibility to give it away generously to those who are in need.
If you feel like you never have enough, then I want to encourage you to take one step back and ask the real question, “How much is truly enough?”
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