A Wasteful Saver

  Hetty Green had money problems.

  She would wear the same black dress till it was worn out. Her daughter was sent to a convent to be raised and provided by nuns and her son lost his leg because of the cost of treating an infection. She separated from her husband because he spent too much and he eventually died bankrupt. She ate cold oatmeal, onions, and eggs since she hadn’t paid for fuel to heat it. She sold newspapers she had read to others for half price for extra cash. She used a ragtag trunk as a desk and set on the floor rather than have proper office furniture.

  You may be tempted to feel sorry for a woman so broke, but don’t. She wasn’t broke. Heddy Green was the daughter of a shipping magnate that had inherited 10 million dollars. When she died in 1916, she had over 100 million dollars. She had money, she just didn’t ever use it.

  Maybe we should feel sorry for her to have such a warped perceptive on what money was good for.

  We may not have that much money but I bet we may have some of the same skewed viewpoints.  Churches sometimes get so caught up on having money that they forget it is a tool we are to use to grow the kingdom.  In our desire to not be wasteful, we do nothing. As Christians, we give only to maintain not to grow.  We would rather be ‘well off’ in an earthy bank than a heavenly one.

 

"Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you?

Luke 16:11 

 

  You can waste money without ever spending it if we don’t use it to do good and further the kingdom of God.