Blessings Greater Than Riches

JON had a very successful career as a consultant in the United States.  Even as a young man, he traveled the world and made a lot of money.He and his wife had a beautiful home and a comfortable lifestyle. In the eyes of many, they were blessed.

Consider another case. out of over 5,000 applicants, Kostas was one of only 80 selected to become an apprentice with a prominent European bank. Within just a few years, he was repeatedly promoted, eventually being made the head of a major department at another bank. By the time he left his job to start his own company, he was making more money in one year than most people make in a lifetime. He felt blessed.

Yet, bot these men are convinced that there are blessings greater than material riches.  For instance, today Jon volunteers as a Bible teacher helping others to get closer to God.  "I have personally seen and experienced that material wealth does not lead to  happiness," says Jon.  "The struggle to get it and keep it allows time for little else. On the other hand, living by Bible principles opens up so many blessings, such as a much happier marriage, peace of mind, and a good conscience."

Kostas similarly observes:  "God does not want us to live a life of opulence. I strongly feel that whatever he gives us that is beyond our daily needs puts us under obligation to use it according to his will." Recently, Kostas and his family started to learn another language in  order to teach more people Bible principles.  He says,  "We have learned that giving makes us happier than does receiving." -Acts 20:35.

Indeed, Jon and Kostas have both learned that spiritual blessings are much more valuable  than material riches.  Daniel Gilbert, a professor at Harvard, notes that mental-health experts "have spent decades studying the relation between wealth and happiness, and they have generally concluded that wealth increases human happiness when it lifts people out of abject poverty and into the middle class."  But then he adds, "It does little to increase happiness thereafter."

Next time: Blessings Greater Than Riches/A Lesson Often Painfully Learned

From the jw.org publications 





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