God Wants You to Have Fun with Your Wealth

Enjoy money when you can, but don’t forget where it really comes from.

God wants you to enjoy money.

The first time I realized that God wants me to enjoy money, I almost couldn’t believe it. Parts of our culture tell us that enjoying money is a sign of spiritual decay. But that simply isn’t true.

As I studied what the Bible says about money, I discovered that God is a good father. He delights in giving good gifts to His children. And one of the things He wants to see us do with those gifts is to enjoy them.
God gives us things that we enjoy because He wants to model love and generosity. tweet this!I’m not saying that God intends for His people to live a lifestyle of luxury and greed. (There are people that teach such things, but they’re wrong on many counts). I believe that God has a master plan for our money, and that plan includes a lot of important things like tithing, giving and providing for your family. But that plan also includes enjoying money. Enjoying it and thanking the One who provides it for you.

“Everything for our enjoyment”

This isn’t just my idea — it comes from a passage in I Timothy 6:17, where Paul is advising Timothy about the role of money in life and the church. Let’s take a look at what it says:

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

Let that sink in. Paul says that God “richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”

This phrase doesn’t jibe with the way we often talk about money in church. Usually, we hear discussion of God giving us everything that we need to meet our needs. But Paul isn’t talking about having enough to cover life’s basic necessities; he introduces the idea of enjoyment.

God provides for our basic needs. But because He is an extravagant lover, with infinite resources, He doesn’t stop there. Instead, He gives to us richly. He gives us not only the things that we need, but also things that we enjoy. Because He wants to model love and generosity to us.

Enjoy money as your last priority

While God wants you to enjoy your money, this verse does not discount the other things He wants you to do with it. God makes it very clear throughout scripture that he wants to to tithe to your church, provide for your family, give to the poor and store up an inheritance for future generations. Those priorities all come before enjoying your cash.

Once you’ve done all those things diligently, you can begin to enjoy what’s leftover. Don’t get this confused: Too many people fail to accomplish God’s plan for their finances because they start with enjoyment and then don’t have enough money for giving. Enjoyment doesn’t come first; it comes last. Enjoying your wealth is the fruit that comes from diligent work, righteous living and faithfulness to God’s plan.
Enjoying your wealth is the fruit that comes from diligent work, righteous living and faithfulness to God's plan. tweet this!

Where to place your trust

Have fun with your money, but don’t let it warp your perspective or change your source of trust. This is the point that Paul was making in the first half of the passage: “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God.”

If I’m not careful, wealth and abundance can lead me to put my hope in money or in my ability to provide for myself. But God is always the ultimate provider.

Enjoy money, but also remember that your abundance is a reflection of God’s abundant love. Our trust should always be in Him.