For the Love of Money is the Root of All Evil: 1 Timothy 6:10

This is a famous verse from the Bible that even non-Christians know. It talks about money and if you love it too much it becomes like an idol and it can control your life. This is not to say that having a lot of money is bad, just don't let your love for money control you.

There is a song by the O'Jays called “For the Love of Money” it talks about money, obviously, and how people will steal for it and hurt for it. It's actually a pretty good song, lyrically and musically.

If you're thinking that being wealthy is immoral, well it's not necessarily wrong. It's not the amount of money that's immoral, it's the person who has or wants it that's immoral.

So if you ask yourself, “is it immoral or moral to be wealthy?” You can't just say it is or isn't, you have to look at a person and say, “are they being moral or immoral with their wealth?” To answer this question you need to look at what they do with their wealth. Do they love their money so much that it becomes an idol? Do they use their wealth for drugs and alcohol and other immoral things? Or do they put God, their family, and people in need before their wealth? That's how you can decide. It's the person behind the money that makes it right or wrong.

Another thing to point out is that not all people that give to charities are doing it because they want to help. They could be doing it to show off their wealth, like the Pharisees in the Bible. Are the people giving for the right reasons? Like the widow in the Bible. She gave out of her heart and didn't put her money before God.

Mark 12:41-44 (NIV)

Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

So the next time you see someone who is wealthy, don't automatically think, “oh they're a horrible person because they're rich.” Look at what they do with their money. Do they use it to make the “world a better place?” or do they use it for themselves and their own well being? I’m not saying “someone should give all their money away” they have to use it for themselves. But are they exclusively thinking about themselves and their money. In other words, selfishness and idolatry.

A Few Ways to Save on Small Expenses

In this short paper I will talk about ways you can cut down on small expenses. Also I will give some of my personal experiences with money.

A few ways you can cut down on small expenses are;

• Budgeting
  I don't necessarily have a budget but I do put the money that I earn in different envelopes; spending, saving and tithing. This works really well for me. I put 60 to 70% of the money I earn in savings, 10% in tithing and the rest goes to spending.
• Carry less money on your person.
  This doesn't really help for those who only carry debit cards with them but for those who carry cash, like myself, this will limit the amount you can spend. Now if you're going out to buy a specific list of items, then you'll need enough cash for the things you're buying. But if your just in a store looking around, not suggesting you do this, but if you do, then don't carry as much with you. Not too long ago whenever I carried cash I felt like I had to spend it. But now I always carry a little bit of cash with me,without feeling like I have to spend it.
• Think about it before you buy.
  Even for just an iced tea at a gas station you should think about what you're buying. Think about if you really need this product or you just saw it and it was on sale, so you bought it. This “rule” is also for big items. One time I saw a really cool canvas picture that I really wanted. It was $40 and I didn't have enough money to buy it right then. My mom reminded me that my birthday was coming up so I waited. The day I received the money I went to buy the picture. I brought it home put it on the wall and boy did it look great! The next morning though I realized that I didn't really need it. Lucky for me I had saved the receipt and I brought the picture back. With that money I bought something that I needed a lot more than that picture. So think about it before you buy.

Thank you for reading this and I hope that this paper told you something about saving on small expenses.