Many people work hard for their money, some have inherited their money, and others make money in many ways. Most of us feel good about the money we have, even if it isn’t that much, but is the money really ours? Today we are going to talk about the heart of the matter when it comes to a Christian perspective about money. The most important thing you need to understand about your money is that it is NOT your money.
Psalms 24:1 states that the earth and everything in it is the Lord’s. God says that the silver and gold are His in Haggai 2:8. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 tells us that we don’t even own our own bodies; they were bought at a price. God owns everything, including your money. That makes you the manager. He is the owner, and you are the manager that works for Him.
If this is a new idea to you, it can be a game-changer. Have you ever been upset when your car broke down and you wondered how you were going to pay for the repairs? Let me explain this situation with our new lens. Let’s pretend you work for UPS (unless you actually do work for UPS; then you don’t need to pretend). Let’s pretend that the UPS truck you drive breaks down and needs major repairs that will cost a lot of money. Are you going to be upset about that, or are you just going to let someone know that your truck broke down and ask for a different one to drive? You aren’t going to be too upset because you don’t own the truck, UPS does. You know they have plenty of money to fix it and you won’t lose any sleep worrying about the cost of the repair. When your car, I mean God’s car, breaks down, you shouldn’t be worried about the cost of the repair. I’d be quite sure God is not up in heaven wondering how He is going to get through this problem.
Let’s try another one. Someone steals $100 out of your wallet. That tends to make us upset. Let’s pretend this time that we work for Wal Mart as a cashier and someone steals $100 out of your cash register at gunpoint. Granted, being held up at gunpoint would be very stressful, but how concerned would you be that Wal Mart just lost $100? You wouldn’t be concerned at all. And God is not concerned about how He is going to help you get by with $100 less in your wallet. He is pretty capable of finding solutions to help you get by so you should not be concerned when someone steals money from your wallet.
Having said that, it does not give us a license to be reckless with our money. We are the manager of the money and we still need to act responsibly. We shouldn’t be driving crazy and we shouldn’t leave our wallets sitting on our front porch. But if bad things happen when you are acting responsibly, don’t sweat it; God is going to take care of you.
We have one last myth to bust with this new mindset. Some Christians believe that if they give 10% of their money to God, the rest is theirs to do with it whatever they want. Again, we don’t own 90% because God owns 100% of our money. That doesn’t mean you can’t spend any money on yourself. You are the manager, and you need to decide what an appropriate amount of spending on food, housing, clothes, vacations, etc. would be.
If you are a good manager, Luke 16:10-12 explains that someone who can be trusted with little can also be trusted with much. It is likely that if you make good decisions with the money you are managing, God will trust you with more.
If you find yourself stressing out about finances, think about who really owns the money. That should put your mind at ease because we both know that God is not stressing about your finances.
-Rick McClain
Today’s Bible reading plan passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway.com here – Isaiah 51-52 and 2 Timothy 1
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