The Bible has a lot to say about money. From the warning that money is the root of all kinds of evil to admonishing people not to take bribes, the Bible’s got it covered. We know that money can buy lots of things and for those who have it in the greatest abundance, there’s almost nothing that they can’t buy. Forbes magazine reported in January of 2021 that the number of Billionaires in the world reached an unprecedented number of 2,755. That’s 660 more from 2020 with 493 new billionaires! (Forbes) In a time when so many people have lost their lives, family members, jobs, houses, etc. one might wonder, “Where is God in all of this?”

When you read the Psalms you might notice that not all of them were written by King David. Although David did write most of the Psalms he also appointed some Levites as worship leaders (1 Chronicles 6:31-32). Asaph was one of these men and when we read Psalm 73 of his we can see that, he too, wondered about those who seemed to prosper when everyone else did not.

As Christians, we must be careful to not compare ourselves to other people and the Bible warns us to not fall into this trap (Galatians 6:4, 1 Corinthians 4:7). We ought to look to what God has done in our lives and be content with what He has done and trust in Him. When we read Psalm 73 we can see the danger in looking at other people’s lives with envy.

But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Psalm 73:2-3 (NIV)

God is an equal opportunity entity. Whether you’re financially well off or sleep on the sidewalk He is there for you and will joyfully accept you into His Kingdom. God promises us the gifts of love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, and self-control in eternity with Him. There will be no more tears of sadness, pain, or suffering. He also promises that He’ll take care of all of our needs and that He’ll never leave nor forsake us. When we consider other people and everything we think they have that we do not then we’re opening the door to destruction in our lives. Asaph describes this as his “feet almost [slipping].” There are a few things that can happen when your feet slip.

Having your feet slip is like a cascading failure. A cascading failure is “a condition of interconnected systems when the failure of one part or component can lead to a failure in related areas of the system that propagates itself to the point of an overall systems failure” (InfoBloom). When your feet slip you lose your balance. When you lose your balance your arms may flail about and you’ll grab hold of anything to keep yourself from falling. Sometimes our falls are so sudden we barely have the time to gain our balance and we either fall flat on our face or on our backside.

However, when we lose balance in our faith, we might flail around looking anywhere but to God to steady us. Our priorities can change from seeking first His Kingdom and His righteousness to seeking those things we desire. If we’re pursuing monetary riches we can see why money is the root of all kinds of evil because we’ll do anything to get that paycheck. When we believe the lies like “They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong” (Psalm 73:4 NIV) and “They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills” (Psalm 73:5 NIV) we’re buying into the schemes of the Devil who told Jesus, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to” (Luke 4:6 NIV). All we have to do is worship him and it will ours. Such can be the cascade failure when our feet “slip” in our faith.

We forget that people can be blessed by the Devil with all sorts of things except for those good things that come from God. Even such things as health in the body can be given by the Devil. However, the saving of our souls can only come from faith in Jesus Christ. While all of us have eternal life, for our souls are eternal, some will spend that eternity in the darkness where there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth while others will be with the Saints in Heaven.

Do you know God? God knows you and He loves you. He sees you as significant because you are. No one is insignificant to Him. He’s with you today, right now, and He wants you to know Him. Jesus died for your sins and mine so that we could be free of guilt, be freed from death, and live eternally with Him. Eternal salvation is just a prayer away.

Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.

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