Many of you are relieved today because you made the deadline for filing your tax return.
It’s an annual ordeal that nobody would classify as “fun” yet we accept that it is part of living in a governed nation.
Many people portray themselves as wealthy but their tax return proves otherwise.
The reverse is true, of course, with many portraying themselves as poor yet their tax return proves otherwise.
We can lie to other people about our financial status, but it’s hard to get away with lying to the Internal Revenue Service.
Oh, some people will do so for a time, but almost always they are eventually caught and it ends up costing them more than if they had just paid the taxes expected of them.
We humans are something else when it comes to money and its influence upon our behavior.
We’ve all heard the stories about the spinster librarians or reclusive old couples whose wills surprisingly leave millions of dollars to favorite causes…. or sometimes to their pets.
The consistent theme in such stories is that relatives and friends were shocked at the amount of money the misers had accumulated.
Obviously, these folk didn’t believe in conspicuous consumption.
It’s more common, I suppose, that prideful people will live and spend to impress others, even if it means living on the edge — or past the edge – of financial insolvency.
Blow money at nightclubs, drive a newer car, enjoy snazzy wardrobe additions on a frequent basis, own the latest tech gadgets, take enviable vacations, enhance the physique with plastic surgery — all paid for on credit.
So what if the payments made don’t keep up with the ballooning principal? There’s fun now and peer esteem now and isn’t that what matters?
We all know that hoarding money and leaving it to a cat is foolish.
And we all know that blowing money and leaving behind a legacy of debt is foolish.
This isn’t a modern phenomenon, by any means.
Check out Solomon’s words in Proverbs 13:7.
“Some who are poor pretend to be rich; others who are rich pretend to be poor.”
As you consider the roster of your friends and acquaintences, you’ll likely find some who fit into either of the above categories.
Such masks are never good. God certainly sees right through them.
Let’s reject the temptation to “pretend.”
Let’s remember that being rich — in God’s eyes — is having enough to give some away to others who really are poor.
For it’s the person who doesn’t feel like giving any money away who really is “poor” — no matter how much money he or she has in the bank.
You see, no matter how much money we have in the bank, we can be rich when we give money to others because we’re confident that God will provide for us.
As always, I love you
Martin
I´m a friend of Susan´s from Mexico, and I read your devotions off and on…
My desire is to serve the Lord, and be useful to His Kingdom…so after retiring in Mexico, I came to Ecuador. I live on my retirement, of about $600 a month (so there is no way I could afford to live in the States), but always find people I can help financially. I am rich .Seek ye first the Kingdom of God….
Thanks for your devotions, I enjoy them a lot.
Lisa
Thank you Martin for the reminder to not to pretend to be not what we are. Please pray for a Christ love of the poor and give to others in need in order to glorify Him and we then will be assured of real bountiful from above.
Lorene,
I am always encouraged to hear from you. Pray that all is well and that you are enjoying your role as a vessel for compassion.
Martin Drummond
Thank you, Lisa. It’s encouraging to know that the Lord is using you for His kingdom in a faraway place. I’m sure that you love hearing His voice and following His leading. It’s good to know that you want to be a vessel — not a hoarder — of God’s favor.
Martin Drummond