Smart Money Smart Kids - Raising Money-Smart KidsSample

Day 09: Always an Upgrade (Contentment)

"Now godliness with contentment is great gain." (1 Timothy 6:6 NKJV)

If the newness of stuff funds your happiness, you'll probably end up being a rat in a wheel for the rest of your life. You'll keep going around and around in a circle, trying to find satisfaction in the "next big thing."

We live in a world where bigger seems better and newer equals nicer. But there's a catch we don't usually think about.

There's always an upgrade.

That's right. There's always some "next great thing" fighting for our money and attention. Parents wrestle with it as much as their kids. We're all tempted to chase the upgrade instead of being content with what we have.

One of the reasons we struggle so much with contentment is that we don't really understand what it's all about. We think contentment is a money issue when it's really a heart issue. It's the result of people feeling an empty place in their lives and trying to fill that void with stuff.

But more material stuff can't meet a felt need in your heart.

Paul understood that God is the true source of contentment. In a letter to his young friend Timothy, he pointed out that pursuing God and embracing contentment make a powerful combination. That's because contentment happens on the inside.

And when you have it, you really have it, no matter how much money you make or how many things you own.

My dad likes to say that content people don't always have the best of everything, but they always make the best of everything. That means you and your kids have a choice. You can play the endless comparison game that leads to discontentment or you can choose contentment and gratitude. One leads to misery, while the other leads to blessings.

So encourage your kids to quit being a rat on a wheel. Challenge them to find true contentment in their relationship with God and in His plans for their lives.

Contentment can be hard to develop, but it's a key ingredient to raising money-smart kids in our materialistic culture.