Can't Serve God and Mammon

Beads of Joy 09-19-10

Can't Serve God and Mammon
©2010 James Dacey, Jr. SFO

Hello Everyone,

So who is your Master? Yes that is a rather interesting way to start today. But let us seriously think about that. What do we do with what influences us in our lives? Are our objectives and focus towards advancing God's Kingdom? Today we are reading Luke 16:1-13 (The Parable of the Dishonest Steward). At the end of the parable Jesus concludes with this final verse, "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." What is Jesus talking about when He says, mammon? Mammon usually meant money or riches in some capacity. God does not want us to make "friends" with any material items, but rather use those material items of wealth to make friends from it. It sounds more like He wants us to use the mammon to help others, and in helping them in Jesus' name we draw them ever so much closer to our Lord by our generosity and love. Self esteem and self praise is not doing anyone any good, especially the one receiving all that. Whatever we have, we need to find a way to help someone else with it. We don't need to hoard our stuff, our things. Let us care about others with a heart of love, without seeking a reward or a pat on the back.

We must be wise and prudent in all that we do with what we have. Let us have mercy for the suffering. We all know someone who is struggling, whether they need clothes or food or their bills are piling up. So many people in our circle of friends and family are suffering so horribly, and some won't admit it out loud to all, but so many know it anyway. Let's really try to do all we can to help these families. Jesus has placed us in a certain place in their lives and if we are really able to help them, we really should. There are so many of us who have been blessed, maybe with an incredible career, an inheritance, or whatever; but either way we can really tap the till and do no harm to our own wealth by sharing, the crumbs will do wonders for the families struggling. One might say, "I refuse to give away thousands of my money to anyone." That's fine, but if you are that well off maybe you don't realize how a simple $5 bill or a $10 can help feed a family, or buy soap, or anything, maybe something for an infant. There is one thing we really have to understand, and I am no ones boss; I am just sharing what I have learned through the years spiritually. What we have here we cannot take with us to Heaven. Period. I hope we all know that. So what we have here can only bless someone else in a way that does come with us, when we SHARE and really LOVE our neighbor. See what I mean.

This is why we can't serve two Masters. The Master of this world is the one who rules this world; and everything about its riches (mammon) and lusts and wealth of this world shall remain here. And the Lord God or Heaven is our Master and all His glory and riches are in Heaven alone. So the question is: How do we make the riches of this world become a blessings of the eternal one in Heaven? It's so simple, consider this simple thought, it's been shared in another blog I wrote. We are not blessed by how much we receive, but rather we are blessed by how much we give away. Because it's a two fold blessing when we give it away, it's no longer all about "me". I pray that this blog has blessed and touched you in some way that maybe you can bless others.

It is a great responsibility to have possessions and wealth. When it comes to having so much consider this scripture, Luke 12:13-21 (The Parable of the Rich Fool). We must remember what God told this Rich Fool who was hoarding all his goods and grain for himself. "And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'" Luke 12:19-20 This rich fool's riches stop at his death, when it comes to his selfish intentions. He can no longer bless anyone else from his heart to theirs. Instead family members will have bitter fights between each other to get what he had. Instead be like a Rich Saint and bless all you can in Jesus' name. And for anyone not sure what to do, simply pray the prayer I recommend to you, day in and day out, "Jesus, I trust in You."


Your brother in Christ Jesus & His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr SFO

Today we pray the Glorious Mysteries
1. The Resurrection
2. The Ascension
3. The Descent of The Holy Spirit
4. The Assumption
5. The Coronation