• Money is the Root of All Evil
• You Cannot Serve God And Mammon (Money)

Let us take a look at each one of these ideas in turn ...
 

Money is the Root of All Evil

It turns out that this quotation is a line from a song, by Joan Whitney & Alex Kramer, recorded by the Andrews Sisters circa 1946. But it is not a line from the Bible as so many people seem to think. The Biblical quotation, which comes from the book of 1 Timothy, says that 'the love of money is the root of all evil'. There is, of course, quite a difference between these two quotations. 
 

You Cannot Serve God and (Mammon) Money

This is indeed a quotation from the Bible and it was Jesus who said it, so it merits careful examination. To understand what Jesus said in this verse, it it necessary to understand what it means to serve God and also what it means to serve mammon (money). To me, the business of serving money is putting the pursuit of money first in your life; and by serving God, it means to put God first in your life.

What this verse means then, is that you cannot (i.e. it is impossible) serve God whilst you are putting the pursuit of money first in your life. And if you really think about it, that is exactly what is also mean by the quotation from 1 Timothy.
 

The Story of Solomon

Do you know the story about when God appeared to King Solomon and asked him what he really wanted in life? I am sure you know that Solomon ruled over Israel during its golden age of peace and prosperity. Here is a brief extract which explains what happened. It is taken from the 2^nd book of Chronicles ...

That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him,

"Ask for whatever you want me to give you."

Solomon answered,

"Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people."

God said to Solomon,

"Since this is your heart's desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you King, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, riches and honor, such as no King who was before you ever had and none after you will have."

It is a truly amazing story. Here is God apparently offering to grant any wish Solomon would care to make and the King asks for 'wisdom and knowledge'. He could have asked for anything: wealth, prestige, victory in war and so on, but he didn't. What he did was to search his innermost being and discover what was truly hidden within. He discovered his heart's desire which was to acquire the wisdom and knowledge to lead his people. 

What would you do if God were to appear to you one night and ask you the same question? For what would you ask? Would it be riches; would it be fame; would it be to get back at people who have treated you unfairly? Let's take a look at each of these things.

Firstly, riches: would being rich make you happy? Perhaps our first reaction is to say something like, 'it would certainly make me happier than I am at the moment'. But we all know, really deep down within, that money can't buy us happiness. There have been many examples of celebrities who have discovered the hard way that being rich and being happy are not the same thing. Secondly, fame: would being famous bring you happiness? Again the answer from your heart, if you really listen, is, 'no'. Finally, what about revenge? Wouldn't you like to get your own back on a few people who have treated you badly in the past? If you listen carefully to you heart, you will find that no matter what has happened to you in your life, the real answer from within is, 'no'.

So what is it then? What would you ask for if God made you the same offer he made to King Solomon? Well you would of course need to really do some careful soul-searching, wouldn't you, to discover the deepest desire of your heart? When you knew what that desire was, then you would know the answer to the question.

Well all that soul-searching seems like a lot of hard work; and why should you be bothered to put in the effort? After all, I hear some people say, God is not going to come along and make me the same offer! But perhaps the greatest lesson of this life is that he does make you exactly the same offer. If you really study this passage from 2^nd Chronicles, you will find that God never actually offered to grant Solomon's wish ? he simply asked him a question. It was because Solomon looked within and answered from the heart that God not only granted his request but also added things for which he had not asked.

And so it is with you. The deepest desire of your heart is to find and fulfill your unique God-given purpose. Nothing less will bring you the happiness and satisfaction you really want. I believe that it is true that God has implanted this desire deep within your heart. You have a unique purpose to fulfill in this life. It is a God-given purpose. You don't have to take up the challenge; you don't have to ask God to grant that deepest innermost desire ? it is your choice. But finding and fulfilling that desire is the one thing that will bring you true happiness in this life.
 

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