Money Trouble

Have you heard the news lately? We’ve got trouble. And it’s getting worse.

The last six months redefined the economic reality of our world. Boom years are history.

Since the stock market’s high point in October 2007, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down some 50 percent. That means over the last 18 months we’ve seen half the value of our nation's wealth vanish into thin air.

Unemployment is the highest in 25 years. Millions of Americans are unemployed or underemployed. Small businesses are hurting. Big businesses are on the edge of bankruptcy.

One commentator put it like this: “Confidence is low. Credit is tight. People are anxious.”

What about our leaders? They seem clueless. Congress is spending money we don’t have to fix a problem they don’t understand. And we’re already in debt up to our eyeballs!

If there’s a silver lining to this storm cloud it’s that we’re better off than the rest of the world.

What’s the solution? So far there doesn’t seem to be one that will work.

“Now hold on just a minute! Isn’t that depressing? Where can we turn for help?”

How about God? Seriously.

Oh, sure—people pray, but when will we get serious about God? Like we did after 9/11?

Economically, the effects of this crisis could be more far reaching than the World Trade Center tragedy. This is a global economic mess. Fasten your seatbelt. It may be a rough ride.

Casual conversations frequently turn to the economy. People who never followed the stock market watch it now. They ask each other, “What’s going on? What will happen next?”

Does God have our attention yet?

Many years ago God told another nation in crisis, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Does that sound like something we need? No doubt. So what will you do about it?

Instead of pursuing possessions, will you seek God? Jesus said, “A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” In one sentence Jesus diagnosed our trouble.

Our problem is we worship stuff and use God. Just the opposite of what we should do.

Jesus’ solution is to “store up for yourselves treasure in heaven” and to be “rich toward God.” We do that by spending money on things that have eternal value.

What if the Stock Market goes lower? What if you lose more of your wealth? What if you lose your job? Why not invest your time, energy and resources in God’s work now, where it will bring eternal returns?

This spring I’ll be in Trinidad on a mission trip. Friends who’ve invested in this trip know there will be eternal dividends on their money. Lives will be changed for good.

God is shaking our country and the world. He is making us all reconsider what we value, where our treasure is, where our hearts are. He is preparing us to stand before him.

When we see God, the Bible says there will be a day of accounting. He will ask us what we did with the resources He entrusted to us. What would you like to be able to tell him? That you helped the poor, fed the hungry and clothed the naked? That you helped the troubled find peace?

Some will be ashamed to say they spent everything on themselves. But that doesn’t have to be you! Start today and make an eternal difference in someone’s life. You’ll be glad you did.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!