Hi all. I am in such a great mood today. Things have been going great in my home. Things are almost as good as they used to be. I'm falling in love with my husband all over again, and he is treating me better than he has in a long time. I can't tell you how glad I am that I hung in there when I was ready to throw in the towel. There is an old saying, "It's darkest before the dawn breaks," and I believe this to be true. Toward the end of December things were just getting so ugly in my marriage. All I wanted to do was run away and be done with the whole horror or it all. But I waited, and since the New Year begun things have progressively gotten better. God is truly good.
Of course there are still other areas to deal with in our lives. Trouble sometimes comes from every direction, and in my life it is no different. Have you ever heard the saying, "More money, more problems"? Lately I have been ruminating on this saying because I have come to believe that this saying truly holds some truth. Obviously no one wants to be poor, but I have always had a nagging feeling that being rich is no walk in the park either. I have never been one to fall for the hype, that being richer somehow makes you happier.
With my tax refund check sitting idly in the bank, I find myself thinking about it a lot. Usually, like many other Americans, we have just enough to get by. The tax refund check is a small windfall, one we are grateful for. On the other hand I have noticed that ever since I got the check I have been thinking about money a lot more, and it's rather annoying. What should we do with the money? What have we been putting off buying? What if I spend it foolishly? What if it's gone in a month? These are all the questions running through my mind. When I had fifty dollars in my account, money didn't bother me. I paid what had to be paid, and forgot about it.
Somehow, where your comma falls in your bank register total affects the way you think and feel. Money is such a huge part of your lives, and it sometimes brings a pain with it that I prefer to do without. Don't get me wrong, I love a great Coach purse just like the next gal, and I'm not one to deny myself the occasional luxury, but for the most part I am happy and content where I am in life, with the finances God has given me. By most any one's definition, our family finances are pretty modest, but somehow God has provided us with not only our needs, but most of our wants.
One of my favorite Bible verses is Proverbs 30: 7-9:
7 Two things I request of You
(Deprive me not before I die):
8 Remove falsehood and lies far from me;
Give me neither poverty nor riches—
Feed me with the food allotted to me;
9 Lest I be full and deny You,
And say, “Who is the LORD?”
Or lest I be poor and steal,
And profane the name of my God.
This message really speaks to me, and it is precisely how I feel. I may be one of the few people who would never want to win the lottery for millions of dollars. I just don't see the point of it. Having grown up in a poor home, and having lived my life with less than for many years, I learned early that money simply cannot buy happiness. All I want out of life is to have a relationship with the Lord. I want to have a loving family, and enjoy the things God has given me. I want my health, and my salvation. Everything else is just a bonus.
One way I show my gratefulness to God is by making sure to tithe from everything God has given me. I made tithing a habit many years ago, and I truly believe this choice has had some effect on God blessing me and my family. To me, the economy has no bearing on tithing. Just as I wouldn't dream of missing a credit card payment, I wouldn't think to not tithe. It is just something I do, and I have been doing it for so long that it is second nature. This isn't to say that if someone is struggling financially they should feel obligated to pay their tithe. If you have to choose between making a mortgage payment or tithing, I say go for the mortgage payment. We shouldn't be bound by rules, and a fear that God will punish us if we mess up.
But enough about me. If you are getting a tax return what do you plan on doing with it. Are you going to catch up on some bills? Start some home projects? Or are you going to splurge on something you normally wouldn't buy? Whatever you do, try to enjoy it a bit. Don't let it become a burden like it seems mine has become. I hope you and I both will always remember that money comes and goes. We should certainly enjoy the blessings God has given us, but in the long run we have to keep in the forefront of our minds that nothing we buy or possess can be taken with us to Heaven. When we die, we can't take our five bedroom home in the nice part of town, or our late model car. In the grand scheme of things, these material objects mean nothing.
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