Matthew 6:24- No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

Good morning!

In my opinion, we live in the greatest country in the world, and I’m proud to be an American. Year after year, people from other countries leave their homes in hopes to come and live in the USA. Living in America offers a better life for so many, and people flee to our country to live the “American dream.”

If you have ever been on a foreign mission trip, you often see how blessed we are. Just a few weeks ago, I led a group of 27 to Honduras to serve at an Orphanage. It was a “trip of a lifetime” as we were able to take our two boys on their first foreign mission trip with us. One of the days we were there, I made a point to take Brantley off site so he could see the “real world” of Honduras. The orphanage doesn’t always portray the rest of the country very well… and I wanted him to see how blessed he is to live where he does and have the things he has.

Though I wanted him to see how blessed he is, I also didn’t want him to think that he is “better” than those that don’t have what he has. I think this is where we have faulty thinking as Americans… we think we’re more blessed spiritually because of the material possessions… I personally believe this mentality leads us to be enslaved by wealth and possessions… In other words, it leads us to “serve money,” and wealth becomes our master.

If wealth is our master, we will lust for it and be devoted to its demands. We will be consumed by the pursuit of hoarding it. The lust for wealth is a master that is never satisfied. This principle is stated clearly in the Old Testament: “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). The lust for wealth is at direct odds with God and His kingdom.

By telling His disciples “You cannot serve God and wealth,” Jesus is asking them: which of these two masters are you going to love? Which will you despise? Which will you serve? This reminds me of the verse in Joshua 24:15, “Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve…” In other words, what defines you?

The truth of the matter is this, wealth is not sinful. However, the pursuit of wealth over the purist of God leads to destruction. Our goal as followers of Jesus should not be to obtain the “American dream” but to honor God in whatever way He chooses to bless us.

-Taylor