ONE-YEAR JOURNEY OF THE BIBLE
Day 198 - Proverbs 21-23 (Is it Wrong to Work to Be Rich?)
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"Do not overwork to be rich;
Because of your own understanding, cease!
Will you set your eyes on that which is not?
For riches certainly make themselves wings;
They fly away like an eagle toward heaven."
(Proverbs 23:4-5)
The Bible does not say that it is wrong to work to be rich; it does say, however, "not to overwork to be rich" as we read in our text above. Solomon explains in the next verse what he meant by "overwork", that is, setting one's eyes on that which "is not" or that which does not have eternal value.
Like many couples in our modern society who both work outside their home to provide for their families, my wife and I could have worked more than we did and made more money but we made a deliberate decision not to because we wanted to care for our four children ourselves and make sure that we spent enough time with family modeling to our children how to live the Christian life.
That turned out to be one of the best decisions my wife and I ever made as a couple. We praise and thank God for honoring our desire to teach our children biblical values. Today, all four of our children are God-fearing believers who all live morally upright lives.
I dread the thought of how my family could have turned out had I set my sights on that which is not. Not only could the riches I could have made "fly away like an eagle", my children could have also flown away from the right path and gone on the way of the world like so many who have their age.
"Father, thank you for giving me the wisdom early on as a husband and father to not set my sights on the things that are not but rather on the things that last forever. Thank you for honoring the desire of my wife and I to raise a family that will serve you as long as we live. I pray you grant the same conviction to all our children for their own families. Amen."
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