Why God Wants You to Be Rich

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You are incredible!

You are one of God’s creations and I believe He wants you to succeed and enjoy your life. And he doesn’t mind if you get rich along the way.

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We all need money. Not only to survive and pay for living expenses, but also if we want to enjoy pleasures of life.

In secret we fantasize about living in our dream house or relaxing on the beach of a secluded island.

We do it in secret because we either convince ourselves that are dreams aren’t all that important or we convince ourselves that it’ll never happen so we need to keep our heads out of the clouds and our feet on the ground.

Maybe we’d even be a “bad person” if we had lots of money.

Not true. Money won’t make you a bad person, and God won’t condemn you for it. In fact, I believe he’s cheering you on to get there for His own reasons.

A few clarifications

Yes, I mean God in the literal sense. Creator of man, earth, and everything in it.
I use the name God with the utmost respect and reverence and may use the name Him or He in its place.
I’m not a gospel scholar of any kind and have no intention of offending others beliefs. I submit this as my opinion based on my own belief in God. I have a high regard for others beliefs and opinions that differ from my own.
All biblical references I use are from the King James Version of the bible.

Define Rich

Growing up my family was crazy poor.

Like—wearing socks on my hands in winter because I didn’t have any gloves—kind of poor.

My sweet mother would tell us would always encourage us and tell us we were “rich in love.” While I appreciate the sentiment, this is not what I’m talking about.

I’m talking about money.

Crisp bills that are traded for goods and service. As much as I love my mom, love doesn’t pay the bills or put food in mouths. (But it does count for something!)

Putting a dollar amount on rich is a harder definition. There are doctors who make a great income who are dead broke and teachers living on a modest income who are thriving.

Having a million dollars means nothing if you waste and spoil ever dollar.

My definition of rich is having abundance. Having everything I need and then some. Having enough money that it becomes a non-issue.

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

3 John 1:2

Enough to pay the bills, enough to enjoy life fully and enough to give without putting any strain on my family.

Your definition of “rich” may differ from mine. Go with your definition.

From the scriptures we learn that we should grow and expand the blessings and gifts that God gives us. In Matthew 25:14-30 is the parable of the talents. You can interpret this to mean talents in the way we see them today, as skills that we are naturally gifted at, but in biblical times a talent was a large sum of money.

The parable gives one man 10 talents, one man 5 talents and one man 1 talent. The man with 10 and 5 go and double the talents they were given and are blessed by their Lord. The man with 1 talent is afraid he’ll lose it, so he buries it. He is condemned by his Lord because he wasted his talent by burying it.

Money is NOT the Root of All Evil

Filthy, stinking rich.

Spoiled, selfish brat.

Money doesn’t grow on trees.

Money is the root of all evil.

Any of those sayings sound familiar? Notice how negative they all are? You can probably think of more, but you get the idea.

Money is the root of all evil is reference to a scripture found in the New Testament (Timothy 6:10). There is a word left out of that scripture. It actually says “the LOVE of money is the root of all evil.” (Emphasis added.)

Money itself is not evil. People do many things with it, good and bad. It depends on who’s hands it’s in.

Money amplifies who you already are.

Having money doesn’t change the person you are, it magnifies what’s already inside of you.

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If you are a good, kind, charitable person, money can help you spread kindness and charity. I believe God would be pleased with you, not only for your giving, but for your ability to give.

For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.

Luke 12:34

You can become an instrument in His hands and help Him answer prayers by having the ability to be generous with money.

The parable that Jesus teaches in Matthew 25:35-46 talks about giving to others by feeding the hungry and clothing the naked. He equates giving to others as also giving to Him. In further verses, he also says when you don’t give you aren’t helping Him.

Greed and Selfishness are the Problem (and not of God)

If you’re a jerk, money won’t change that fact, it’ll amplify it.

Rich people aren’t necessarily greedy. Some definitely are, but most aren’t. You might not even recognize the good ones as rich because they might not live lavishly but can still be kind and generous in ways that you’ll never see.

I know plenty of people who are poor or middle-class that are very greedy and hard hearted.

Sometimes, the lack of money can be the problem. Going without and constantly having wants and needs going unfulfilled might leave one jealous and bitter about life. Money in the wrong hands won’t fix any problems.

If you are trying to follow God’s will, and live a good upstanding life, then greed and selfishness shouldn’t be a part of your life.

Self-Reliance

If you’ve ever flown on an airplane, you know they give you a safety drill before take-off. When they tell you about using an oxygen mask, they tell you to make sure your own mask is securely in place before you help anyone else. Including elderly, disabled and even your own children.

You are not able to help anyone, including those who do need your help, until you’re securely able to help yourself.

In the case of the oxygen masks, you won’t be much help to people if you’re passed out on the floor because you can’t breathe.

In the case of riches, how can you be a blessing in the lives of others if you can’t support yourself and your own family?

I believe being totally self-reliant can also help conquer greed and envy.

If we are fully capable of taking care of ourselves, in an abundant way, our minds can be freed from financial worries and stresses. We can focus on family and others and enjoy life more.

Secure your own mask first, then assist others.

Charity

God certainly has a soft-spot in his heart for the poor. They were attended to regularly in the scriptures.

I’ve been on the receiving end plenty of times and am eternally grateful to those who were able to give my family a helping hand.

You can’t be very charitable if you have nothing to give.

It’s true that not all charity comes in the form on money. There are plenty of ways to be charitable. Donating clothing and food are great ways to give. Even so, this can be hard to do when you’re struggling yourself.

Even with the option to donate food and clothes, sometimes money is the best option to give.

In an article by CBS News, we learn that just donating clothes and “stuff” can actually cause a burden in cases of large natural disasters. Our hearts go out to victims and we want to help, so we ship our “stuff” thinking we are offering help, when in fact we might be making things worse.

In cases of natural disaster, being able to give our time and our money are the most beneficial. Our money can be used to pay for the most immediate needs of the people in the most resourceful way.

If we want to give of our time, this will also cost us financially. We may be giving up pay taking time off work and the expense to travel and take care of ourselves while we are helping.

This makes it imperative that we are in good financial standing to be able to help others.

A word of caution: Please always donate money to a reputable charitable organization that you know and trust. There are those that will take advantage of the less fortunate in the disguise of a charity.

The Parent/Child Relationship

I believe God is our Heavenly Father. As such, He is our parent and loves us the same way any parent loves their child. He wants us to succeed and wants the best for us the same way your earthly parents want the best for you and the same way you want the best for your children (if you are a parent).

He also wants us to learn and grow and won’t do everything for us.

As a parent myself, I know there are things I can’t do for my children, they have to do them by themselves. I can lead and guide them, but they have to do things for themselves. Even as young toddlers, there are things they must do on their own. Things like learning to walk, eating and going to sleep and many other things as they get older.

There are also things I can do for my children, but I won’t. I won’t take care of their hygiene after a certain age. I won’t make their bed or do their laundry if they are old enough and capable of taking care of themselves. I won’t do their homework. Whatever they can easily do for themselves, they need to do. If I expect them to grow into capable adults, then I need to give them room to learn and grow and do things for themselves.

I believe God works much in the same way.

He wants us to succeed, but He won’t do it for us. And He shouldn’t. He has high expectations of us and knows that we must learn to do things for ourselves.

What to Do

If you believe as I do, that you were meant for great things, it’s time to start striving for the riches you desire.

Adjust Your Mindset

What goes on inside your mind can make or break your success. You may have mental blocks holding you back. I highly recommend the book “The Abundance Code” by Julie Ann Cairns. She helps you identify myths that self-sabotage your success.

Get Your House In Order

Take the steps you need to get your financial life in order. This will be the process of getting your oxygen mask in place so you’re fully capable of helping others

Establish an emergency fund
Start living by a budget
Pay off your debt (Proverbs 22:7 The borrower is slave to the lender)
Save for your future and your kids future

After you’ve taken care of the essentials, then you can expand into living a more abundant life.

When You Feel Abandoned

We all have struggles in life. Not a single person is immune from this. I don’t have all the answers but want to offer my sincere promise of hope for you.

God loves you because you are incredible. Try to have faith in His purpose for you. Reach out for support from those you know you can count on. Be patient and work through difficulties one step at a time.

God wants us to be rich so we can take care of ourselves and help Him take care of others. He wants us to be rich so money becomes a non-issue and we think about it less. He wants us to be rich so we can explore and enjoy all the wonders of the world that he created for us during our precious time on this earth. So we can enjoy priceless moments with our families.

I hope these words lift and inspire you to know you are meant for great things.

If you have goals to live a rich lifestyle with your family, you might be conflicted what God thinks. So many scriptures condemn being rich, but you can be rich and still be great in the eyes of God.