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Woe Is My Bank Account
In
the musical “Fiddler on the Roof”, the young revolutionary
Perchik says “Money is the world’s curse.” The
poor dairy farmer Tevye replies, “May the Lord smite me with it
and may I never recover!”
Do you ever find yourself like Tevye, wishing your financial circumstances were different? As women we naturally want to make our homes orderly places of beauty and refreshment. We want our children to look nice on occasion and not be ragamuffins. We would prefer to not be driving the worst-looking vehicle on the street. And the list goes on. The problem comes when our list requires spending money we don’t have. Today’s society makes it simple to get everything on our list right now, but it’s no secret that we end up paying more in the long run, not only in interest fees, but in peace of mind because we have debt hanging over our heads.
During one of my own bouts of “Woe is my bank account,” God graciously called to my attention in the book of Colossians that there are numerous places where we are told to give thanks. We find, “be thankful” 3:15, “with thankfulness” 3:16, “giving thanks” 3:17, “attitude of thanksgiving” 4:2. Why did Paul bother to say it that many times? If you recall, this is the same guy who said, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” Phil.4:11. This must be a critical part of contentment. I think thankfulness is the key to living within our means because it allows us to let go of some things when we reflect on all we DO have.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking “If only we
had the financial freedom to_____.” Ironically, there is a
great deal of freedom that comes from making the choice NOT to spend
and to just “make do.” If the money isn’t
there, it just isn’t an option. No use fretting over it,
the solution just needs to come from a different quarter. God
cares about what matters to us, and He is far more creative than we
are. Didn’t He design the universe after all? Why not
ask God for that creative solution to your needs next time, and
actually wait for the answer? It might take some time, or it
might not, but certainly there is much to be gained in learning to be
content with what we have and practicing a life of thankfulness.
Copyright © 2008-2015 Heather Gwaltney
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