By Dr. Luke
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:10). In my many years of practicing medicine, the breakdown of relationships because of money gave me chills. I saw the relationship between parents and children and brothers and sisters. They stopped communicating with each other or even went to court because of conflicts in the distribution of wealth. But when you talk to them personally, they have a valid reason to feel they are being mistreated. Therefore, when I divvy up my parents’ wealth, I had to be very careful to be fair and ensure harmony. But during the whole process, did I have a greedy heart? When I’m honest with myself, I have this temptation. “The greedy stir up conflict, but those who trust in the Lord will prosper.” (Proverbs 28:25). I realized that whenever I have presumptions about my brothers and sisters, I fall into this temptation. So I had to rise and fight against it. And I found that the real question was not whether I was greedy for money but who could satisfy my inner needs.
The Bible says, “But godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Timothy 6:6). One is not truly satisfied even when things are the way one wants. The real need in your heart can only be satisfied by God. We live in this age of sin, but God sent his Son Jesus to redeem us from the miry clay and gave us all his fullness. When we trust the Lord who loves us and convince that God has given us the best, we will always be thankful and can freely give up the rights we feel we deserve and entrust our sovereignty to God. Brothers and sisters, has your greed affected your relationships with others? If it has, please let us be honest with ourselves, come before the abundant God to confess our sins and repent, and receive all the great blessings of God again. Give up the rights you think you deserve and let God Himself meet all your needs.