Those of you who have kids will relate to this post.
Isn't it great to see your children learn new things? I know I enjoy it. But have you ever thought about how you teach them? You start with the lowest level of responsibility and once they prove they can handle that, you increase the level of the task. The cycle then repeats itself until they become more and more able and accomplished.
The Bible talks about our relationship with money in the same way. Again and again, it emphasizes the fact that if we are faithful, wise stewards with the money we possess today (a "little" amount compared to what we can hope for), God will entrust more to us in the future. There are several Bible passages that talk about this dynamic, and I want to share three today.
First, in Luke 16:10, the Bible says:
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much."
In other words, however you manage your money when you have just a bit is the same way you'll manage it when you have a lot. The verses that follow this one go on to ask how you can expect to receive more if you're not faithful with what you have now.
The next verse comes from the well-known Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25 where the master rewards a servant for managing his assigned amount wisely. In Matthew 25:23 it reads:
"His master replied, `Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
Once again a person has done well with managing a little, so he's rewarded with more.
The final example comes from the Parable of the Minas in Luke 19 where another master responds like the one in Matthew 25. In Luke 19:17 it reads:
"`Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. `Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'
Over and over again we get the same message -- be faithful with the finances you have today and your heavenly Father will reward you with more.
Why? We'll cover that soon. For now, I'd ask you to meditate on and study these verses this week and ask the Lord to reveal their meaning to you. Next week, I'll add a more to this topic by giving you my thoughts on what it means to be faithful (with any amount of money) and why (for what purpose) you'd get more.
Hi, I enjoy your Sunday posts because they bring a different perspective than a lot of the other personal finance blogs I read have. I don't necessarily always agree, but I like reading them.
One question about this one, though. While these passages are on the surface about money, I think they're about much more than that. They're about being faithful with *everything* we're entrusted with, our talents, abilities, relationships, our whole lives.
Obviously this is a PF blog, so I understand the focus on the money aspect. But I worry that in framing these verses as relating only to money, we let ourselves off the hook too easily. What we do with our money is important, sure, but what we do with our lives as a whole is that much more important.
Posted by: Julia | February 28, 2006 at 05:20 PM
Julia -- You're right on both points: 1) I focus on money because that's what the blog is about and 2) there's much, much more to these verses than just talking about money. I'm going to stick with #1 to keep on theme, but wanted you to know that I agree with point #2
BTW, there are a lot of blogs out there who will cover these verses from different perspectives -- you may want to check them out. ;-)
Posted by: FMF | March 01, 2006 at 07:32 AM