5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
6 So we may boldly say: "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"
We can delight in the Lord, not coveting, or earnestly desiring in an unhealthy way, the things of this world, but recognizing the sovereign hand of God. He is with us, He is our helper, and we can know that He is taking care of us. If we are surrendered to Him, He will shape our view of material possessions, and we can recognize that our contentment and joy are not tied in to the wealth of this world, or the lack of it. As Jesus taught, we are called to seek first the kingdom of God, and realize that He is our provider.
From 1st Timothy 6, we can receive clarity regarding a Scriptural view of money and the overall topic of contentment. We read:
6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Last month, it was announced that Angus Deaton had won the Nobel Prize in economics. According to a piece on the Business Insider website, his work "investigates how humanity's overall quality of life has surged in the past 100 years, thanks to global advancements of tech and healthcare, as well as Asia's incredible economic growth."
But, Deaton has also looked into how people relate to money. In a study conducted with former
Nobel winner, psychologist Daniel Kahneman, they claim that there is a "happiness plateau" above an annual salary of $75,000.
Business Insider reports that to arrive at that figure, Deaton and Kahneman analyzed 450,000 responses from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, a daily survey of 1,000 US residents conducted by the Gallup Organization. They discovered there are two kinds of happiness:
One is everyday contentment, or "the frequency and intensity of experiences of joy, stress, sadness, anger, and affection that make one's life pleasant or unpleasant." The other is life assessment, or "the thoughts that people have about their life when they think about it."
Money affects each kind of happiness in a different way.
Deaton and Kahneman found that "everyday contentment" increases up to $75,000, but then starts to level off after that. But the "life assessment" column continues to grow with salary — someone pulling in $250,000 will report higher life satisfaction than someone earning $100,000.
The article quoted Deaton from a Wall Street Journal interview, when he said, "Giving people more income beyond 75K is not going to do much for their daily mood … but it is going to make them feel they have a better life."
But, of course, $75,000 in Alabama is different than the same amount in New York. According to an AL.com piece, "adjusting for cost-of-living, researcher Doug Short found Alabama's happiness plateau could be reached at $65,400. The cheapest happiness in the country was in Mississippi ($64,000); the most expensive in New York ($104,300.)"
Well, what we have here, unfortunately, is a goal that could be unreachable for many in Alabama, if happiness is determined by income level. The median household income in Alabama is a little more than $41,000. So, while that includes many who are affluent or doing well financially, there would also be those who make below that number.
It is very easy to connect household income to happiness, and I don't doubt the validity of the study I cited earlier. But, I believe that Bible sets forth a different set of criteria, and even a different goal. It's been said that happiness is related to circumstances. I would contend that another characteristic - joy - is related to the satisfaction that comes from a right relationship with God. Pure joy is available and attainable, and it's not dependent on the size of your wallet.
Money is important for a number of reasons, and God has a purpose for money. But, if we allow the amount we possess to directly influence our enjoyment of life, then our priorities are misaligned. We are called to use money, and to attain it for worthy goals, but we are not called to be greedy or to develop what 1st Timothy 6 refers to as "the love of money."
Interestingly enough, that chapter talks about another state of mind - contentment, which results from being in that right relationship with God. Contentment, I think, is related to peace, and our joy flows from that sense of deep satisfaction. Money can purchase a lot of things, and the lack of it can produce stress; financial struggles are a threat to peace. So, the correct, Biblical management of money can be a contributing factor to our peace of mind, and a lack of order can disrupt our spiritual life. For the believer, good management of money can perhaps contribute to a more satisfying life than the actually the accumulation of it.
So, we pursue the things of God and allow Him to shape our emotions and enable us to experience joy, contentment, satisfaction, even what is called "happiness." And, pure joy is not measured in dollars and cents. God desires for us to be fulfilled and recognize that He is our true source of contentment.
+++++
From 1st Timothy 6, we can receive clarity regarding a Scriptural view of money and the overall topic of contentment. We read:
6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Last month, it was announced that Angus Deaton had won the Nobel Prize in economics. According to a piece on the Business Insider website, his work "investigates how humanity's overall quality of life has surged in the past 100 years, thanks to global advancements of tech and healthcare, as well as Asia's incredible economic growth."
But, Deaton has also looked into how people relate to money. In a study conducted with former
Nobel winner, psychologist Daniel Kahneman, they claim that there is a "happiness plateau" above an annual salary of $75,000.
Business Insider reports that to arrive at that figure, Deaton and Kahneman analyzed 450,000 responses from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, a daily survey of 1,000 US residents conducted by the Gallup Organization. They discovered there are two kinds of happiness:
One is everyday contentment, or "the frequency and intensity of experiences of joy, stress, sadness, anger, and affection that make one's life pleasant or unpleasant." The other is life assessment, or "the thoughts that people have about their life when they think about it."
Money affects each kind of happiness in a different way.
Deaton and Kahneman found that "everyday contentment" increases up to $75,000, but then starts to level off after that. But the "life assessment" column continues to grow with salary — someone pulling in $250,000 will report higher life satisfaction than someone earning $100,000.
The article quoted Deaton from a Wall Street Journal interview, when he said, "Giving people more income beyond 75K is not going to do much for their daily mood … but it is going to make them feel they have a better life."
But, of course, $75,000 in Alabama is different than the same amount in New York. According to an AL.com piece, "adjusting for cost-of-living, researcher Doug Short found Alabama's happiness plateau could be reached at $65,400. The cheapest happiness in the country was in Mississippi ($64,000); the most expensive in New York ($104,300.)"
Well, what we have here, unfortunately, is a goal that could be unreachable for many in Alabama, if happiness is determined by income level. The median household income in Alabama is a little more than $41,000. So, while that includes many who are affluent or doing well financially, there would also be those who make below that number.
It is very easy to connect household income to happiness, and I don't doubt the validity of the study I cited earlier. But, I believe that Bible sets forth a different set of criteria, and even a different goal. It's been said that happiness is related to circumstances. I would contend that another characteristic - joy - is related to the satisfaction that comes from a right relationship with God. Pure joy is available and attainable, and it's not dependent on the size of your wallet.
Money is important for a number of reasons, and God has a purpose for money. But, if we allow the amount we possess to directly influence our enjoyment of life, then our priorities are misaligned. We are called to use money, and to attain it for worthy goals, but we are not called to be greedy or to develop what 1st Timothy 6 refers to as "the love of money."
Interestingly enough, that chapter talks about another state of mind - contentment, which results from being in that right relationship with God. Contentment, I think, is related to peace, and our joy flows from that sense of deep satisfaction. Money can purchase a lot of things, and the lack of it can produce stress; financial struggles are a threat to peace. So, the correct, Biblical management of money can be a contributing factor to our peace of mind, and a lack of order can disrupt our spiritual life. For the believer, good management of money can perhaps contribute to a more satisfying life than the actually the accumulation of it.
So, we pursue the things of God and allow Him to shape our emotions and enable us to experience joy, contentment, satisfaction, even what is called "happiness." And, pure joy is not measured in dollars and cents. God desires for us to be fulfilled and recognize that He is our true source of contentment.
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