Dig Out The Root
How important is money… really?
What role is it playing in your life right now?
And—let’s be honest—how well are you actually managing it?
Paul once wrote to his young protégé, Timothy: “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” (1 Timothy 6:10)
That’s a weighty statement.
So what did he mean?
Money Isn’t the Problem… But It Can Become One
Money, in itself, is not evil.
It’s useful. Necessary. Even enjoyable.
But it becomes dangerous when it takes on a role it was never designed to carry.
Money makes a terrible god.
Let’s Name This Honestly
An idol is anything you look to for what only God can give.
And money… quietly steps into that role all the time.
- Security about your future
- A sense of identity
- A measure of your worth
Have you found yourself leaning on money for any of those?
The False Promises of Money
Money whispers…
“If you just had more, you’d feel secure.”
“If you just reached that level, you’d feel like enough.”
But let’s tell the truth:
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Listen to Learn and Be Changed
- Listening Is the Primary Pathway of Personal Transformation
- God shapes us more through grace than striving, more through reception than toil.
- Listen well to those who are speaking.
- We cannot be formed by what we refuse to hear.
- “… Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak …” James 1:19 NIV
- Selective listening leaves us stuck and unchanged.
- Poor Listening Protects the False Self
- We often listen to confirm what we already believe.
- Defensive listening protects what we believe and resists exposure, correction, and growth.
- True listening requires humility and surrender.
- What we won’t hear determines where we won’t grow.
- “You will be ever hearing but never understanding…”
— Matthew 13:14–15
- Jesus Models Listening as Submission, Not Passivity
- Listening precedes clarity, authority, and fruitfulness.
- Jesus listened to the Father to align His actions.
- Listening is active alignment with God’s will.
- Listening Requires Slowing, Softening, and St...
Are You Aware?
Why do people become friends or get married? Usually they want to be with each other and enjoy one another’s company. When I was courting my wife, I wanted to be with her all the time – nothing else compared. This is a shadow of God’s created order.
God created you, and He likes you, and He wants to be with you. That is why He formed and fashioned you. (You may want to take some time and let this sink into your soul – it is bedrock understanding for deep, experiential identity.)
If God created you in order to enjoy you, it follows that you will enjoy life and be most satisfied when you are aware of and are enjoying His presence, too. Unfortunately, our attention is prone to wander! We may go long periods of time without even thinking of God, let alone experiencing His presence. We can easily become distracted by others, worries, concerns, or our own obsessions.
What do we do when we realize that we have, for all practical purposes, been living apart from God? Some feel guilty, and h...
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