PERSPECTIVE

WHAT’S REALLY IMPORTANT

A YOUNG ROGER MORGAN came out of the Appalachian Mountains with the sole purpose of making a fortune.

Money became his god, and he became worth millions. Then the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression reduced him to utter poverty. Penniless, he took to the road. One day a friend found him on the Golden Gate Bridge staring down into the waters of the San Francisco Bay, and he suggested they move on. “Leave me alone,” Roger replied. “I’m trying to think.

There is something more important than money, but I’ve forgotten what it is.” What Roger Morgan forgot, or perhaps never knew, was the scriptural perspective of money.

That is what we will explore in this chapter. MONEY WILL NOT BRING TRUE HAPPINESS Solomon, the author of Ecclesiastes, had an annual income of more than $25 million. He lived in a palace that took 13 years to build. The futility of riches is stated very plainly in two places: the Bible and the income tax form. He owned 40,000 stalls of horses. He sat on an ivory throne overlaid with gold. He drank from gold cups. The daily menu of his household included a 100 sheep and 30 oxen in addition to fallowdeer and fatted fowl.7 Obviously, Solomon was in a position to know whether money would bring happiness, and he did not hesitate to say that riches do not bring true happiness: “He who loves money shall never have enough.

The foolishness of thinking that wealth brings happiness! The more you have, the more you spend, right up to the limits of your income” (Ecclesiastes 5:10-11, LB). In contrast, most people believe you can buy happiness. The American Institute of Public Opinion found that 70 percent of Americans thought they would be happier if they could earn only $37 more a week.

I find myself periodically siding with this majority, falling into the “if only” trap. If only I had a new car, I would be satisfied. If only I lived in that nice house, I would be content. If only I had a particular job, I would be happy. The list is endless.

The Bible offers a sharp contrast to this attitude. As someone has said, Money will buy: A bed but not sleep; Books but not brains; Food but not an appetite; A house but not a home; Medicine but not health; Amusement but not happiness; A crucifix but not a Savior. IS MONEY EVIL? Money is not evil. It is morally neutral. Money can be used for good, such as supporting missionaries or building hospitals. It also can be used for evil, such as financing illegal drugs and pornography.