“A little thought and a little kindness are often worth more than a great deal of money.” John Ruskin
Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. Deuteronomy 15:10
Auspicious: “showing or suggesting that future success is likely” Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Raise your hand if you worry about money. Don’t feel alone, I just had to raise mine too. Except if you don’t worry about money. In that case, feel alone. Feel very alone. Just kidding. If you don’t worry about money I hope that you’re teaching other people how not to worry about money as well. But for most of us, we worry about money. I’m not saying it’s right, I’m just saying how it is. However, the fact remains that we should not be worried about our provisions. The Bible lays out plainly how we should live. That is, we should give. It doesn’t necessarily say that we should give away everything we have. Although for some that may be the case. But that everything we have is a blessing and a gift from God and our hearts should desire to share it. We should save. Much of our worry about money comes from the need of it. Much of that need comes from the fact that too many of us spend too much money and save too little. The Bible also says that we should not go into debt that we cannot repay. That makes sense. Generally lenders won’t let you go into more debt than you’ll be able to repay simply because they want a guarantee they’ll be repaid. However more and more debt is being piled up in credit cards and more than ever people are being allowed to build more debt than they can repay. Sure we may be able to pay at the current rates and as long as we get our yearly cost of living pay raise, but rates will go up, and those yearly pay raises are getting farther and farther apart. It doesn’t take long with a lifestyle of debt to find out that we can’t pay the debt we’ve accrued. And I don’t have to tell you that having un-payable debt is one of the most distracting and life disrupting things we can ever live through. Then there’s the age old principle of hard work. Hard work always pays off. Maybe not in money alone, but definitely in satisfaction. And isn’t that what life is all about? Satisfaction. Possessions can definitely bring some satisfaction, but they can’t satisfy completely. Only God can do that. And like everything else. God wants us to be wise with our possessions. They shouldn’t be the driver of our lives. They shouldn’t be all we worry about. They should be managed wisely so that God remains firmly in the center of our hearts. And I’ll get back to the first point. If we can’t manage them wisely, if they’re distracting us from tuning our hearts to God, maybe we’re the one that needs to give them away. That sounds scary, but without our Maker at the center of our lives, no amount of possessions is going to make us happy anyway. God is a giving God. He’s a loving God. He’s a fair, just, and wise God. He’s given us everything we have and He knows how it can serve us best. That is to be giving, loving, fair, just, and wise too. That’s how we live truly auspicious lives.
Daily Journaling Questions:
How did I help someone in kindness today?
What did I learn today?
What am I thankful for?
Who did I love today?
What am I dreaming of?
What about today do I want to remember forever?
What are my goals for tomorrow?
Thanks for reading,
Jake
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Daily Self Growth Journal Pt. IV
Non-FictionThis is the fourth part of a project called the "Daily Self Growth Journal." Its purpose is to prompt readers to journal through encouragement, motivation, and inspiration. In it, the first thing I do is provide a motivational, or inspirational qu...
