Our Blessed Lord states quite plainly in Matthew 6:33, “Seek ye the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all else will be given unto thee.” There is no mitotic division here between being given the wisdom that the Lord promises through the action of his Holy Spirit and acquiring the necessities in the temporal order. Why should there be? As Saint Thomas Aquinas so aptly describes the human person as “a soul which animates the body which it inhabits” then the same principle should apply to our intellect, a spiritual faculty, governing the right and proper use of the material goods that the Lord himself gives us. But therein lies the rub, as Shakespeare has said; what should I, my neighbors and countrymen seek in this fallen and sinful world and how much should we retain for the proper use for ourselves, family and those in need? Here we require the three theological virtues of faith, hope and charity to guide the cardinal virtues of prudence, temperance, justice and fortitude, for all seven must be employed with God’s grace to thwart all seven of the cardinal vices of pride, greed, lust, envy, sloth, anger and gluttony which are raging like the wildest of fires here in the United States. As my Grandma Antoinette would remind me time and time again during my youth, “listen, Mister, money doesn’t grow on trees” and our desires must always fall within and even below the means we have been given, rich or poor, for the Lord plays no favorites, but always has mercy upon and favors the lowly. Love always requires sacrifice and this must translate into the discipline to adhere to the paradoxical standard of thrift and generosity to the Lord, one’s self and neighbor. For as St. Paul reminds us so emphatically that we bring nothing into the world and we will leave take nothing with us on that day of judgment before Christ our Lord. Amen!

It is all well and good to list our shortcomings-,and our sins.
Have we not had a long history of being quite skilled in self-flagellation. As a sinner saved by Grace-, my history of failure and crying out in repentance is long-,storied, and ugly. I exist in isolation every day..as a result of the sins of my past,-in spite of my effort to make amends and some sort of restitution-,to those that were in the wake of my previous behaviors. As a believer in Jesus- the only thing that allows me to exist-..or to approach anything that resembles living- is the Lord’s Grace. I am very grateful for that. Just as a man or a woman finds Freedom when they discover the manifestation of their own business- or their own enterprise- and are freed from the bondage of working for someone else’s dream-,.. So may we discover the manifestation of the Lord’s presence in our lives in various ways, when we hopefully learn to function together as a family..building each other up -, supporting each other.. not only in prayer but in actual physical interaction. The family that works and prays together- stays together.. is a phrase that was intended as a marketing sligan..about 50 years ago- however was biblical in its foundations. The strongest influence in my life or behavior , before Jesus oh, and that I have struggled with since,.. is the tendency to try to be the great tower of Independence- where in my ‘fantasy’..I guess-it would be said.. I achieve great things all on my own. The reality is I never have. In fact it has been quite the opposite. In my old age I am quite chagrined to reveal that not only am I barely subsisting.. but that I strain to know the presence of God everyday. Also let us remember that the sins we are mired in.. were handed down to us from previous generations. For those of us who are fortunate enough to be raised in Godly homes from great grandparents, to grandparents, to parents.. then let us rejoice-, that there are those among us who have had those advantages. Many of the rest of us have struggled from day one of our revelation of Christ.. in our lives- to manifest his presence in meaningful ways.

See Below (my personal information listed below)

Amen. I have been opposed in bringing up many of these topics because they are political or controversial.

Thank you for pointing this out. Too many people spend recklessly. Why aren’t they teaching this in our schools instead of Critical Race Theory, trandergerism, Black Lives Matter, Equality, and a host of other nonsensical ideologies? Our education system is broken. It has been infiltrated by LGBTQ, Planned Parenthood and other negative Organizations. It is time for Parents to take back their children’s education and get the Teacher’s Union out of control!

I couldn’t agree more with what is said here. Isn’t it interesting we use the phrase “debt-free”? Could it be because when we do not live in debt, then we are “free” from the obligations that debt brings into our lives.? Debt enslaves, we are “in someone’s debt” when we owe them, if they have loaned us money, until it is repaid (with interest?) they have power over us. Could this be why our government wants us in debt and dependent upon them and their many programs and handouts, which we only need in the first place because of their bad policies rewarding those that don’t work? Then they have the control. Whomever we owe is our master. And Jesus says we can’t serve two masters. In God’s Word we are told to be good stewards of whatever God gives us. Some are entrusted with more than others in His parable of the talents, but whatever the amount, we are to use it wisely. I don’t have a lot of money by our culture’s standards but I am free and at peace because I don’t spend more than I make – so I am a slave to no one – except Christ, who paid my sin debt, a debt I never could pay, – I am “a slave to Christ” as Paul says – I freely choose and follow Him as my Lord and Savior. Besides on an individual level, I see this principle at work on a national level. Whatever country we owe money to (China) we are indebted to, we are enslaved to, – they have power and therefore control over us – just as someone we owe has some measure of control over us. We are not truly free if we are in debt, as individuals or as a nation. So, as a nation we do need to take control of our finances, change course and do things differently. The corruption and the waste are beyond what I can understand or want to believe happens on a daily basis. ” . . . give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown You and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.” (Isaiah 30:8-9) http://www.mtothe5th.wordpress.com

I see more and more that the Father is saying tighten your belt, stay away from the “I want” mentality so prevalent in our region.
We hear many blogs about food shortages y we t do we really need two dozen differ r not kinds of chips on our grocery shelf?
I am Ed more and more back to basics. My power bill showed a price increase 3+ times greater than last year. Note, I didn’t use 3 times more power. The price increased 3+ more.
Thus, as I pray for all those now known as refugees, I also give thanks that I have soap and clean water to bathe and wash clothes; I have lights and internet and family, transportation for r social support and change.
There is much evil in our own country. Children being abused in schools and religion that denies the power of the shed blood.
I was fortunate to hear an evangelist to Iran last year. The church is exploding among the most satanic practices imaginable but there is the h ope. For many have come. As persecution continues from swamp dwellers in this country, let us recall we are still commanded to pray for those who despitefully use us. A Prophetic Word said the Father released the heavenly host to send not only fire arrows against enemy fortifications, but also boomerangs were released by the Angelic host against enemies of the King.