Ask 100 people how they’re doing and count the number of times they say, “Busy!”. 

Busyness seems to have become some sort of idol in our culture.

But why are we so busy? 

Many times it’s because we work insane amounts of hours every week - why?  Just so we can get ahead.

But does building your earthly kingdom equate to true wealth? 

Ask anyone who is on their death bed if they wished they spent more time at the office and I can (almost) guarantee they will answer with an emphatic “No!”

Instead, they wished they repaired a relationship with their son or daughter or they wished they would’ve been a better husband, or that they gave more time helping others.

According to the National Sleep Foundation:

the average employed American works a 46-hour work week; 38% of the respondents in their study worked more than 50 hours per week.

I know some of you are not employed right now because of this recession and would be glad to work even 10 hours a week. 

This post is for those who are working a ton of hours just to get more money so they can increase their lifestyles.

I think this can be a challenge for all of us, and I direct this post to myself maybe more than anyone!  I’ve been extremely busy lately trying to get our house done and moved in etc. 

Busyness isn’t bad

Don’t get me wrong – busyness isn’t a bad thing.  We should work hard, play hard and enjoy life.  After all, we’re only here for a short time.

But all busyness isn’t created equal.  I know for myself I have to fight a constant battle against wanting to “get ahead” with taking time to rest and spend time with family.

Are we busy with the right things?

My wife and I get a kick out of watching House Hunters International.

One of the recent couples they had on were looking for a vacation home in Nicarauga.  The husband was a general contractor and worked an insane amount of hours. 

The wife ran her own rental real estate business and one thing she said in the opening was something like this:

We don’t get to see each other much since our lives are running in so many separate directions – so we want a vacation home so we can relax and spend time together.

I looked at my wife and said, “that sure doesn’t sound like an appealing lifestyle to me”.

Sure, they’ve got a huge house in California and are buying a vacation home in Nicaragua, but I can’t imagine not spending time with my wife or kids just to be able to afford vacation homes that you won’t have time to go to.

Most of us are busy with things that ultimately won’t mean a thing.  Sure that promotion would be nice – but what will it mean for us?

Probably more time at the office and less time with family.

What should we do about it?

I don’t have all the answers – and I am still , but I can tell you one thing that I made a commitment to in 2009 and will continue in 2010 and am happy to have followed through on it.

I decided at the beginning of the year that I’d take one Friday off per month and call it Friday Family Fun Day – where my wife and kids would spend the day together, go out for lunch or to the park and just enjoy being together.

I actually marked these in my calendar at the beginning of January and stuck to just about every single one of them – apart from some extenuating circumstances.

Another thing I did was marked off a quarterly Daddy/Daughter Date where I would take my 2 year old daughter out on a date and we’d go hang out.  I took her to see puppies and out for breakfast, we did a lunch together.  These were GREAT times!

So, all that to say – make sure you’re busy with the right things.  I’ve got room for improvement, but I’m taking steps in the right direction.

What about you?

What are some ideas you have to help keep busy with the right things like relationships and helping others? 

Do you have any traditions in your family for quality time?

Have you ever played the “Would You Rather…” game?  It pits two opposing choices against each other and people go around and decide which one they’d rather have and why.

It’s a good ice-breaker and a fun game to hear people’s insights.

That’s exactly what I’d like to do this weekend – play the “Would You Rather” game and hear your points of view.

At first glance this looks like an easy question – I mean who really wants to be extremely poor!? 

In order to play the game effectively you have to think about the implications of both:

If you’d rather be filthy rich, do you think that would lead to pride, arrogance, self-sufficiency and perhaps even an indifference toward God?

Or would it lead to doing more good and giving to the poor.

If you chose extreme poverty do you think that would lead you down the road of anxiousness, hating God for your situation or even stealing to meet your needs?

What Scripture Says

Here’s a couple of interesting verses to consider as we wrestle with this question: 

Proverbs 30:8-9:

…give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me,  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.

Luke 11:2-4:

And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name.  Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins,  for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.  And lead us not into temptation.”

So, it seems like Scripture would have us go with a balanced view here.  Neither poverty nor riches, just enough to get by each day.

What I Would Choose

I’d try to go with the balanced view of Scripture found in Proverbs, but if I had to pick one – the pious side of me could justify both. 

On the one hand, if I was rich think of all the good I could do and poverty I could help eliminate.

On the flip side, think of how big my faith would be because I’d have to trust in God for every meal and after all - God has a heart for the poor and marginalized.

But would I really do that much good or would I really have a deep faith in God’s provision and sovereignty?

What About You – Which Would You Choose?

Now it’s your turn!  I purposely didn’t give a full answer of what I’d choose because I’d like to hear your insights into this question.

So, which is it – Would You Rather Be Filthy Rich or Extremely Poor – and why?

These two terms belong together don’t they - Wealth and Happiness?  Do you remember a time in your life where you weren’t making much money?  You probably weren’t very happy.

Maybe it was during college, or when you first started a business – perhaps it’s now and you’ve lost your job recently.  One thing that often goes through our minds if we were honest with ourselves is this:

If only I had a bit more money, then I wouldn’t be so strapped and could actually enjoy life!

What’s ironic is that not only do many poor people feel this way, but what I’ve often noticed is that many wealthy people feel this way too!

John D. Rockefeller famously answered, “Just a little bit more” when asked the question how much money is enough.

I went to a business planning session yesterday with a group of advisors and one gentlemen mentioned how America is the richest nation in the world - yet the most depressed! 

How could this be?  The answer is clearly that wealth does not equal happiness!

After you arrive at a certain standard of living that affords you the basics - house, food, clothing etc. – any correlation between happiness and money is short lived! 

Think about it, all those things you thought would make you happy didn’t really bring you happiness.  Be honest.  How long after you achieved that goal or that wealth did you say to yourself:

Is that it?  What can I accomplish now?

1 Timothy 6:17-19 offers a little perspective about the rich and their attitude towards money:

As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and  ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

What’s interesting about this passage is that the Apostle Paul tells us that in order to enjoy our wealth and our lives our hope should be set on God.

He also tells us that the rich should be generous, ready to share, doing good and their wealth shouldn’t define them, but rather their good works (rich in good works).

Now, some of you might say, but I’m not rich.  I dare you to go to the Global Rich List - type in your annual income and compare yourself to the rest of the world!  Then let me know what percentile you are in! 

You are wealthier than you think – and that wealth won’t bring you ultimate happiness.  You want true happiness?  Put your hope in God, through Jesus Christ and be generous!

This week I’ve spent some time thanking God for his provision.  I’m constantly amazed at how He takes care of His children.  I’ve seen this recently in friends lives and in our own lives. 

If you’re like me though, it’s sometimes easy to forget who the true source of provision is.

I find myself constantly leaning towards self-sufficiency and pride rather than leaning on the Jehovah Jireh, our provider!

I came across this Scripture that serves as a great reminder that God is the one who provides and it is He we need to give our praise and thanks to.

Deuteronomy 8:17-18 (ESV):

Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 18 You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

ESV Study Bible notes for reflection:

In Part 1 of Avoiding Financial Hell we looked at the power that money can have in our lives and the consequences of loving money.  If left unchecked, our love for money could have a say in where we spend eternity.  In this post I’d like to offer some tools or resources to help us in our fight against the love of money.

Last time we began looking at 1 Timothy 6:6-20 (click here to read the passage).  If you haven’t read part one, I highly suggest perusing it so you can have some context for part 2.  Otherewise here is a quick summary:   

• False teachers were preaching to get rich. v.5
• The Apostle Paul redefined true wealth: “godliness with contentment is great gain” v.6
• Proper perspective: nothing is really ours anyways. v.7
• Our love for money has the power to send us to hell and lead us away from our faith. v. 9-10

Thankfully Paul doesn’t just end there.  He gives us some practical guidance on how we can avoid the issue of money controlling us instead of us controlling our money.  So here are Paul’s tools for the fight against loving money.

Flee, Pursue & Fight

In verse 11, Paul encourages Timothy to “flee these things”.  In other words, run as fast as you can from the idolatry, materialism and greed that we are so prone to.  We need something to run to, not just run from so Paul tells Timothy to instead “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness and gentleness”.  I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a pretty good list.  One of the best ways to get our minds off our money is to get serious about pursuing “bigger” things. 

Paul tells Timothy in verse 12 to “fight the good fight of faith”.  Fighting involves shunning evil and running towards virtue.  As John Piper often mentions in his preaching, we need to have a “war time mentality” when it comes to fighting against sin.  We need to fight against loving money.   Pray for help and read and memorize scripture passages that have to do with money. 

Humility & Hope

Paul stresses that Timothy should exhort the rich in this present age to be humble (v.17) or to not view themselves as better than others because they have money.  At first glance, many of us will gloss over this thinking that surely Paul isn’t talking about us.  After all we don’t look down on others if they have less money.  Besides we are not really rich, or at least we don’t feel rich.  That may be true if we compare ourselves to others in America, however, it is far from global reality.

If you want a little perspective on just how rich you really are then check out Global Rich List, type in your annual income and see where you rank on the global list.  If you are making $25,000 per year you are in the top 10% of all the world!   A good application of this is to remember that a person’s value does not come from their net worth statement, so don’t look down on others who have less money than you and don’t idolize those who have more. 

Paul also mentions that Timothy should “charge the rich to not set their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God who richly provides us everything to enjoy”.  2008 was a great lesson for those of us putting our hope in uncertain things like brokerage accounts, home values and our jobs.  God is the one constant, He never changes so put your hope in Him. 

Proverbs 23:4-5 says,

Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist.  When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven. 

Open Hands & Loose Grips

Verse 18 gives a final admonition for the rich.  They are to “do good, be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share”.  We must remember that our treasures are not found on earth.  We should store up heavenly treasure by using our money to do good for others.  I have to constantly remind myself and often times I fail to remember that I need to view my money with an “open hand – loose grip” policy.  None of it is mine anyways so I should seek to be generous, pray for opportunities to give where there are needs and “be ready to share”.

What does it mean to be ready to share?  Perhaps we need to build generosity into our monthly expenses at first just so we can get used to the idea of giving to others.  Here are some other tips on how to be ready to share:

• Simplify your lifestyle – the more stuff we accumulate, the more time and attention gets taken away from what’s really important.
• Get rid of debt – when we are bogged down by credit cards, mortgages, car payments, it is very difficult to be generous and ready to share with those who are in need.
• Seek opportunities – pray for God to provide circumstances where you can be generous and then seek them out.  Volunteer at a food pantry or visit the poor end of town and seek to help others.

Christians should be known for their generosity.  After all,  God has been so generous to us and we should respond likewise.  He sent his only Son to die for us.  We didn’t deserve it, yet Christ came and laid down his life.  What an amazing example of a generous life!