The entrance of a new year comes with new zeal and determination by many, to improve and better their lot in society. Many people make New Year resolutions that they eventually discard somewhere along the way.
I particularly do not make resolutions. I believe that resolutions are man’s attempts to take the wheels from God, and put man in the driver’s seat. The problem here is that man does not possess the key nor know the way, God does.
Resolutions, in my estimation, are exhibitions of man’s will. Many of such resolutions are made on the spur of the moment, with little or no regard for God or his will in the whole matter. Such resolutions more often than not do not last, and they too must vanish, like the end of an old year.
Some resolutions are good, but many are selfish and carnal resolutions that end up being a snare for the unguarded Christian. One case in point is the resolution that fastens the grips of a person on the pursuit of wealth, fame and fortune. Since greed and lust are the gods that govern the kingdom of fame and fortune, the optimum point of satisfaction is never attained by the man who has given his soul to the love and pursuit of riches.
True wealth and eternal satisfaction is found in God, and in knowing that He is the ultimate supplier of all our needs. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew16:26
The love of money exposes the problem of greed and lack of contentment in the life of the one that is driven or overtaken by its pursuit. When we give in to covetousness, we open the door to temptation and we give the devil the power to tempt our lives with all the ills that are associated with greed. We become bound, and remain captives, and enslaved by an illusion that can never satisfy.
The greedy man thus remains poor, because he never believes that he has enough, and will die in the pursuit of that which he does not have. He is thus tragically defined by his commitment to that which motivates and consumes him.
The seduction of mammon, like any other, is subtle, and it has the potential to derail even the most fervent Christian from the right tracks. It is quite painful to watch, as many Christians give themselves totally and passionately to this love rather than to God and his service. The seduction transfixes the eyes on the beauty and luster of wealth, and the consuming passion and service for God is exchanged for a total dedication and commitment to the pursuit and development of wealth, fame and fortune.
Since the love of mammon shifts our focus and sets one’s priority on carnal things, the best way to defeat this demon is to keep our focus on God. When we lose our focus, the visions of our destination become blurry.
Contentment is also a strong weapon that could be used to combat this vice. True contentment comes when we find the joy of giving. The key that unlocks the windows of blessing is buried deep beneath the rubbles of giving. The more we give, the closer we get to it. The simple mind might find it difficult to grasp this concept but God himself laid the foundation for it in Malachi 3:10 which says “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, and try me now in this” “If I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it”
The ensnared man is fooled by the outward glitter and glamour of mammon without realizing that inwardly it bears the gate of destruction, sin, and death. When we give in to the seduction of mammon we trade Godly virtue for devilish vice and we lose all that defines us as true and pure Christians, and slowly we peddle the wrong route until we permanently lose our way.