Did you know there are a lot of “sayings” and expressions that many associate with scripture – when in fact they’re not. “Cleanliness is next to godliness.” Nope, not in the Bible. “God helps those who help themselves.” Not there, either. But the most misquoted non-scripture has to be the saying, “money is the root of all evil.” The Bible doesn’t say that at all! What the Bible does say is, “The LOVE of money is the root of all sorts of evil.”

In other words, money is neither good nor bad. It’s our relationship with money that God’s interested in. Why? God knows that money can hold a lot of power in our lives – if we let it. We all know that money is necessary for survival and that it can be used for incredible good. But at the same time, we can become so consumed with accumulating money, that we ignore the people and relationships in our lives. It can become a kind of idol. For others, in the pursuit of “measuring up” and “keeping up” with society, we can become enslaved to money as we spend more than we earn. Our anxiety and stress grow in pace with our debt. That’s why God’s interested in our attitude towards money: how we acquire it, spend it, and where wealth ranks in our list of priorities.

God says we need to sort out our priorities. Who will we love more – God or money? God’s warning is there: To love money more than God can bring a lot of unnecessary grief into our lives. Don’t we all know a story where the love or pursuit of money led to the downfall of a leader, company, or a family? Perhaps you’re trying to recover from some poor financial choices right now.

Be careful to not let the LOVE of money take over your life. After all, God allows us to be the caretakers of what He provides, including our money.  So, love God first and manage His money second.