Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. – Psalm 16:11, KJV

Take a quick look at the following video:

As the video proves, our human senses can be tricked into thinking that a lie is the truth and that the truth is actually a lie. If you didn’t know there was a glass of water in front of the arrows on the page, you’d swear up and down that the arrows were pointing to the right. But, truth be told, the arrows are most definitely pointing to the left, and we know that only because we can see past the glass of water that is attempting to trick us into believing a lie.

Satan is a MASTER at putting glasses of water in front of the spiritual arrows we are supposed to follow. God tells us to go one way, but Satan often tricks us to travel in the opposite direction. For example, most people, if not all people, long for peace in their hearts (freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions*). Satan teaches us that there are many paths to heart peace, not the least of which is being monetarily rich. According to this theory, if you are filthy rich, all of your problems will disappear. The problem with this theory is that there is plenty of human experience to prove it isn’t true. In many cases, riches can provide a shadow of peace, but the shadow is temporary and incomplete, and it can disappear in an instant. The truth is that complete, full, and everlasting peace is found in one place and in one place only: God’s presence. Rich or poor, healthy or ill, famous or totally unknown to others, each of us can have full joy by snuggling up to God every day as a loving child snuggles up to a loving parent.

Please don’t misunderstand. There is nothing inherently wrong with wealth, just so long as we recognize that any wealth we enjoy isn’t really ours; it’s God’s. As long as we use wealth for God’s glory, the wealth is holy. And, if we use it for His glory, then we are actively in His presence as we use it, making the wealth a tool by which to enjoy peace, not the source of the peace itself.

The next time you are plagued with the urge to seek wealth for wealth’s sake, remember the arrow-waterglass exercise. No matter what your natural heart, your natural mind, Satan, or the world tell you, God’s Bible has all of the arrows pointing in the correct direction. When it comes to peace, God’s arrows point this way:

• Make your motivation for work to serve God, not to pursue riches. (Proverbs 23:4, Proverbs 28:20, 1 Timothy 6:9-10)
• Make your daily desire to be in God’s presence through prayer and Bible study, for in His presence is fulness of joy. (Psalm 16:11)

* Merriam Webster’s Dictionary iPad app.

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