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Lady Bracknell, in The Importance of Being Earnest, said, “Never speak disrespectfully of Society, Algernon. Only people who can’t get into it do that.” Unfortunately, this axiom holds true for money as well. Hermann Steinherr wrote, “Money is not everything, but reality is that money is something and it is the closest thing to everything, but it is also what distances us from many.”
Essentially, therefore, earning money frees up time, for money earned can keep earning more without requiring the expense of your time to do so. As time is the only limitation, by which we all are constrained, money helps us accomplish more in the time we have been allotted in this life than we could have accomplished without it.
Imagine having to spend your time in producing everything that goes into your morning cup of coffee. First, you would need to acquire the land. Then you would need to plant the coffee plants, wait till they matured enough to produce coffee beans, then harvest the beans, dry them, grade them, sort them, roast them and brew them in order to sit down to your cup of coffee. However, because you earn money you can exchange your money for all this extensive time and labor and enjoy your cup of coffee.
Children should be encouraged to earn money as early in life as possible. I am not speaking of paying children an allowance to complete household obligations. Taking out the garbage, keeping a clean room, picking up the yard, the house, mowing the lawn, doing laundry, etc., are things that every living person has to do without pay. So don’t program your child by paying them to do these required chores. Remember, the way you train up a child is the way they will behave when they are grown up. Perhaps this is why so many young Americans today still expect an “allowance” from their parents, employer and the government. Parents should instead, create meaningful work for their children to do in exchange for money. In this way children will get to experience the joy of exchanging something of value for money and that joy will become contagious and manifold itself to them for the rest of their life.
The scouts, various clubs, and many sports teams frequently sell something of value to raise money for their organizations. This concept is effective on a personal level as well. When a child earns money for him or herself, instead of having to turn the money they have earned over to a group cause, something supernatural takes place. The apostle Paul understood this completely when he instructed Timothy in his second letter, chapter 1:17 “The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the harvest.”
Humans tend to value what we have worked to attain over what has been given to us. This is a basic human characteristic. Having skin in the game makes a difference. And because human nature is what it is, early Christians, as well as early American settlers, turned their backs on communal living and encouraged independent living and free enterprise instead. After all we have been told, “If someone refuses work, when they are capable of working, they shouldn’t be allowed to eat.”
In light of these truths, teaching children, at the youngest age possible, the consequences of exchanging work, or something else of value, for money, is a priceless lesson in economics. But following hard on the heels of this first economic lesson is the second most priceless thing we can teach our children. And that is to save as much of the money they make as possible. The respectful John Wesley put it this way, “Make all the money you can, save all the money you can, and give all the money you can.”
Savings is essential to building financial sustainability. Joseph, the Hebrew slave, instructed the servants of Pharaoh to keep 20% of everything that was produced in Egypt so that in the future there would be enough supplies to meet the needs of the land. Pharaoh acknowledged the wisdom in Joseph’s recommendation and put him in charge over all the land of Egypt. No one sat higher than Joseph in the kingdom besides Pharaoh. This is a promise God provides to everyone who responsibly manages the money they earn. Influence and authority come to those who manage money well in accordance with Luke 19:11-26. And keeping the most money you can is part of good money management. Nobody knows what tomorrow will bring so keep everything you possibly can today.
Last, but certainly not least, comes the important lesson of giving all you can give. We are not to give beyond our ability, as the story of 10 virgins in Matthew 25:1-4 demonstrates. To give away what you need to survive is foolishness, not charity. We are boldly told by Jesus during his own temptation by Satan in the desert, “Do not put the Lord God to the test.” Don’t mess with God’s provision for you and your family. It will only allow Satan to insert a temptation into your life.
These three essential lessons of earning, keeping and giving, if taught to young people, would eliminate socialism, in all its forms, quite rapidly. Only those who have never experienced the joy resulting from learning these would ever be tempted to embrace Karl Marx’s axiom, “From each according to his ability to each according to his needs.” This is why parents must provide meaningful work for their children, so they can experience the euphoria which earning, keeping and giving provides. Consequently, their children will never be tempted to embrace Marxism.
Karl Marx never worked a day in his life after he was fired from his first job as a newspaper editor at quite a young age. His ideas and philosophy about how an economy should operate have been fatal to every society which has even remotely embraced them. Marx was dependent on the Dutch tobacco capitalist, Lion Philips, for money as well as his wealthy coauthor Friedrich Engels, who funded Marx for forty years. Marx was related to the Rothschilds who encouraged him to subvert democracy in attempts to advance their socialistic movements which they funded both in London and New York.
Today our beloved America is facing a major dose of Marxist indoctrination. This is taking place in our schools, our entertainment, our media, social media and even in our churches and houses of worship. If we as parents fail to teach our children the truth about money, then America will suffer the fatal consequence of Marxism, just like every other society which has attempted to incorporate Marxist philosophy. Marxism has destroyed more lives in the last 100 years than any war ever fought, or any plague ever encountered. The question is, what are you willing to do to keep that death knoll from ringing here in America?
Call our office we can help you teach your children to “Make all the money you can, keep all the money you can, and give all the money you can.” In doing so, America can continue to be the “Shining city on a hill” which the entire world looks upon in admiration and to emulate. It only takes a small candle to extinguish the darkness. Your efforts will not be unnoticed or return void. Call us today, 702-660-7000.
Dr. Tomas P. McFie
Most Americans depend on Social Security for retirement income. Even when people think they’re saving money, taxes, fees, investment losses and market volatility take most of their money away. Tom McFie is the founder of McFie Insurance which helps people keep more of the money they make, so they can have financial peace of mind. His latest book, A Biblical Guide to Personal Finance, can be purchased here.
