Last week we talked about the 4 basic things we can do with the money God entrust to our care:
- Earn it honestly,
- Give it generously,
- Spend it wisely, and
- Invest it carefully.
Today we are going to drill a little deeper down on the third area, which is about spending God’s money wisely.
What constitutes wise spending? And who decides? How do we know if we are handling our purchases in a God-honoring way?
I think the biggest key to being a wise spender is to take a hard look at our level of personal contentment.
The thing that drives most purchases on some level is a feeling of discontentment. We all have urges and that little voice in our head says, “I’m not happy, and I won’t be until I get xyz product.”
Here’s an actual advertisement for perfume at Macy’s:
“You want it. You want it bad. Sometimes so much it hurts. You can taste it. You feel like you would do anything to get it. Go further than they’d suspect. Twist your soul and crush what’s in your way. Then you get it. And something happens. You become the object of your desire. And it feels incredible.”
The truth is the vast majority of our American economy exists because of a general feeling of dissatisfaction and unhappiness.
Someone put it this way: “Millions of Americans are buying things they don’t need, with money they don’t have, to impress people they don’t like!”
Here’s the hard facts: Americans now consume twice as many goods and services, per person, than we did in 1945. We buy twice as many clothes, twice as many cars, appliances, books, magazines, and telephones (not to mention computers, televisions, fax machines, and cell phones). We buy houses almost 3 times larger than the houses of the families who moved into the suburbs in the mid-1940’s, and we fill them with twice as many home furnishings. We have so much stuff we created an entirely new storage industry that never even existed a mere 30 years ago. Why is that? Because we cannot be satisfied. It’s downright un-American to be contented! Contentment is really bad for the economy!
A thousand times a day, in a hundred different forms, the message of discontentment is calling to us from billboards, magazines, television, radio, newspapers, movies, Web sites, and telemarketers. And every single message without exception is this: “You are not happy. You do not have enough. You have not achieved the American Dream.”
The question I like to ask myself is, “When is enough, enough?” July 1994 my friend Terry Glasgow gave me this black antique radio as a gift…
The Apostle Paul paints the picture of contentment – Philippians 4:11.
1. Contentment Is A LEARNED State Of Mind
We are born with a built in state of discontentment. When we were hungry, lonely, bored, or scared we cried and our mom came running. We learned whenever we were discontent if we’d pitch a fit we’d get what we wanted.
Some of us still behave like infants until we get what we want.
Contentment is a learned quality that the Apostle Paul said brings peace of mind no matter what.
Paul said he had learned contentment in all seasons of life – Phil 4:12.
As a young man I lived in a constant state of discontentment with the cars I drove. In the first 11 years of our marriage I bought 14 different cars, 4 of which were brand new. At a time in our lives when we could least afford it, we spent far more than was reasonable on automobiles all because I could not be satisfied. One of the worst habits I had was cruising new car lots. Almost without exception when I got back into my car it felt like it had aged 5 years just sitting there in the lot. I’m embarrassed by my actions now, but the truth is I kept our finances tight by my on-going discontentment.
Someone said, “Success is getting what you want; contentment is wanting what you get.”
So how do we learn contentment? We have to have an “ah ha” moment. We have to see ourselves as we really are before we make significant changes.
And that’s hard for us. We have an infinite capacity for self-deception!
One day it clicked for me. I realized that I was out of control, so I prayed and asked the Lord what I could do about it. He put it on my heart to buy an 11 year old Cadillac for $1850 and I drove it for next 4 years without a single payment. I bought an 8 year old Cadillac the day I moved here for $6000 and I have been driving that car every day for 13 years.
Cars were my issue, and that’s how I felt I could change my spending habits. I’m NOT saying that’s the way you should do it with your cars, but for me, it was the right thing to do.
And it’s so freeing! I can’t tell you how good it feels to be free of the compulsion to buy another car when I really don’t need one.
How do we learn contentment? Prayer. Ask Jesus to help – Philippians 4:13.
2. Contentment Is Accepting The Basics As Our True Necessities
The 4 basics in America are:
- food
- clothes
- house
- transportation.
Beyond that, everything falls into the category of discretionary spending.
I don’t have to have a big screen TV to survive. I don’t have to take exotic vacations to exist. I don’t have to have 25 pairs of shoes and 15 suits.
All spending beyond the basics requires spiritual discernment and prayerful consideration on our part.
Jesus said our Heavenly Father is fully aware of our basic needs and He promises to provide them if we will but put Him first.
Matthew 6:31-34,“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Paul’s advice is classic – 1 Timothy 6:6-10.
I want you to notice something. Paul does not say being rich is a sin, but the lust for being rich is the point at which sin enters in.
1 Timothy 6:9 “desire” {pathos} English word = pathological. 1. a mentally disturbed condition 2. behavior that is maladaptive and compulsive
3. Contentment Is Controlled Through Giving
One of the greatest ways to learn contentment is by giving away a part of our financial resources and thus denying ourselves in one way or another.
There is such a wonderful feeling of satisfaction and contentment when from time to time I say no to my own wants and desires and I give so that someone else may experience the blessings of God through me.
Giving produces a joy beyond any purchase I could ever make!
Recently, because of the Catalyst capital campaign, I’ve been challenging you to search your hearts about your part in giving to see the vision of reaching more families in our community for Christ.
So I began to look deeply into our own giving habits, and realized something for the first time. We give every month to 7 different Kingdom-of-God works.
- We give our tithe to Lakeview Church
- We support our fellowship with a monthly offering
- We give monthly to Light for the Lost
- We support North Central University with a monthly offering
- We give to Cityview – our inner city church plant
- We give to World Missions through Lakeview’s mission program
- We pledged $40,000 to the Catalyst campaign
And when I realized the broad level of our giving I was just overwhelmed with gratitude. “Thank you God that we were able to even do such a thing.”
Someday I’ll get a better car. Dorene and I will still take vacations. We will still spend money on ourselves and at times we will splurge.
But we want to live in the Spirit-led zone with all of our finances. We want to exhibit a life style of contentment in the broadest sense of the word.
