Money Honey

“It’s money honey, if you want to get along with me,” sang Elvis.  Unfortunately, that attitude penetrates many people.  In the movie All the President’s Men, about the Watergate scandal, we heard the famous refrain, “Follow the money!” meaning the source of corruption can be found if you follow the money trail.  The apostle Paul would famously say, “The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.  It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith” (I Timothy 6:10).
Some try to say that our money follows our heart.  There is some truth to that.  We invest in things that are important to us.  What is almost always true is that our heart follows our money.  Whatever you invest your money in will capture your time and attention.  Jesus said this, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).
As a young boy I remember my mom encouraging me with the $10 I made mowing lawns ($2.50 per lawn!) to give $1 back in the church offering on Sunday.  I practiced “tithing” for many years, but at a point in mid-life, with several financial burdens facing me, for a few years I backed off doing this.  Things didn’t improve.  I finally determined to give of my first fruits to God again, and although that didn’t result in riches, with my priorities straight, my finances started to fall in order.  I’ve heard many testimonies over the years, and can provide my own, about how giving to God coupled with common sense spending within your means, results in financial stability and peace of mind. 
There’s a rather odd thing Jesus said on this topic, recorded in Matthew 6:22-24.  “The eye is the lamp is the body.  So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.  No one can serve two masters, for he will either hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and money.”  What does he mean about the eye and light versus darkness as it relates to money?
In the ancient world they thought the eye was the portal to the soul.  Good and evil entered the body through the eye.  There is some truth in this.  If your eye is on possessions, then possessions become the object of your affections, and can become an idol you worship.  On the other hand, if your eye is on God’s Word, if it is looking to the rewards of heaven, not the rewards of this life, then God becomes the object of our affections, and we worship him.  And if our eyes are on Jesus, following him (Heb 12:2), money can find its proper place.  We may rarely do this, but we know it’s true (I recommend it): If we assess our checkbook over a month or a year, it will show what truly captures our heart.
Truth is, making more money does not relieve stress and worry, it increases stress and worry.  We scheme about how to make more, we develop strategies about how to keep what we have, we guard our possessions from others. We live in the wealthiest country in the world, yet we’re considered the most worrisome country on earth.  Money hasn’t helped.  It doesn’t eliminate worry, but true worship can.  This doesn’t mean we don’t work hard, save wisely, or spend carefully; it just means we acknowledge it all belongs to God and as stewards of what God has entrusted us with, that’s when we find true blessing.  We have purpose and meaning, hope for the future, and reason to give.