20/20 Vision Day 11 - Use of Money.

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.” 1 Chron29:11NLT

Money is a necessary commodity in this world.  For most people, it is the bargaining tool that lets us buy and sell, do business.  The use of our money boils down to two things:  how we get money and how we spend it.

There are many verses regarding how we get resources. These are just a few:

·    Pro 10:4 “Lazy people are soon poor; hard workers get rich.”

·   Pro 6:6-8 “Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise! Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work, they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.” (hard work and savings plans)

·  Pro 22:7 “Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.”  (excessive debt assumes that you will live long enough to pay it back)    

The money itself is not the problem, it is the LOVE of money that creates evil in our lives.  It can become an idol when we are not watching.  Matt 6:44 warns that “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”

Hebrews 13:5 “Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”NLT    Another version reads: “Stay away from the love of money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never, never fail you nor forsake you.” 

“For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” 1Tim 6:10

Luke 12:15 “Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”  Read Luke 12:22-34.

Father God, help us to look at every area of spending, to be true to ourselves in the evaluation, to develop a budget and to trust your provision. Keep us from idolatry. Provide guidance if we see things that need correction. Thank you for trusting us with your kingdom resources. Help us to use them for Your glory.