Living within
your means . . .

As inflation continues to bite and the Chancellor tells us once again to tighten our belts and expect tough times ahead it is a real warning not to put too much trust in things that most people consider to be the most valuable in life.
Your home, for instance, is the one item you spend more on than anything else. But once the mortgage has begun there is no escape from the inexorable rise in interest rate which makes it difficult to meet the demands on your purse from so many other quarters.
In the world’s poorest areas people are not so dependent upon their mud-walled homes. They simply worry about getting food on to the table.
And as the price of petrol soars we have to consider whether or not to use the car - or take a bus, or perhaps even walk. The world’s poorest know that they have to walk - often many miles simply to get clean water which then has to be carried back to their home.
It is a world of contrasts - and all too often we make the contrasts more stark than they need be.

Jesus was very clear when he said: “No man can be a slave of two masters; he will hate one and love the other; he will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
“This is why I tell you not to be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn’t life worth more than food? And isn’t the body worth more than clothes?”
He added: “Be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things.”
(Matthew 6:25-26, 33)
In other words, if you look to God for all you need you will not be disappointed in any way.