A (Quick) Meditation on Money
Been listening to a lot of business and entrepreneurial podcasts recently. There’s a lot of human wisdom in that world. A lot of tried and true human wisdom.
‘For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”’
See, the thing about tried and true human wisdom is that it’s tried and true because it works. If you want to get rich, there are formulas and how-to’s and coaching and podcasts and books and seminars and conferences on how to do just that.
‘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.’
Listen to that voice in your head when you read that verse. What does it say? Is it anything at all like, “Yeah, but…”?
‘Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist.’
Competition. Achievement. Success. Hard work. Acquisition. Validation. Capitalization. The vocabulary of those at the top, where we’re all supposed to want to be.
‘He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.’
Listen again, closely. Somewhere deep down inside, are you saying, “Yeah, but…”?
‘No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.’
Think and Grow Rich. Rich Dad, Poor Dad. The Power of Positive Thinking. The Secret. You Are A Badass. The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. The Power of Now. Awaken the Giant Within. Your Best Life Now.
‘Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”’
He has said it. God has said it. What are you saying in response? Does it sound anything like, “Yeah, but…”?
‘A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.’
Choose wisely, my friends. There’s a lot riding on what you give your devotion to.
‘And He said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”’
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