"Money Makes People Do Funny Things!" (1 Timothy 6:10)

My dad shared many aphorisms and witticisms with me as I was growing up. One that he repeated quite often had its application in many different settings. We observed it with shady business dealings with formerly close business partners cheating one another to gain control of the business. We observed it between family members fighting over an inheritance that each felt rightfully belonged to them. After each episode, my dad would shake his head and state, “Money makes people do funny things.”

The longer I live, the more I see the veracity of his words. Perhaps it is not that money makes people do funny or strange things but rather, it reveals their true character. I, too, have fallen victim to this mindset. It does not take the form of heated arguments over inheritances or swindling a business partner or customer. No, my sins are more insidious. I may justify a purchase of something I don’t really need, but I easily convince myself and others of the necessity. I convince myself to purchase something deeming it  necessary for my Christian ministry when in reality, it is benefitting my personal comfort and feeding my ego far more.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

1 Timothy 6:10 (ESV)

The love of money is at the heart of so many sins. The only solution to this wandering from the faith is to return to Jesus Christ. It is only by confessing and repenting of my sins and accepting Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior that the vicious and desperate cycle of chasing after money will be broken in my life. I still fail, but with the Holy Spirit empowering me, the victory becomes easier to reach each time I am faced with temptation.

How I desperately need Jesus Christ to keep my love burning only for Him.

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.