05 Dec Physical Health #4

In the last communication we spoke about diet and man’s drive for material wealth. Here are some Teachings along those lines.
 
The Buddha said, “Health is the greatest gift, contentment is the greatest wealth…” Confucius said, “In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.” In Ecclesiastes 5:10 we find the following Teaching: “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income …” and then Socrates adds: “He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of nature” and “If a man is proud of his wealth, he should not be praised until it is known how he employs it.”
 
Of course, there is the well-known saying of Jesus: “And again I say unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:24 KJV)
 
What this Teaching means is that one’s concern for wealth, keeping it, protecting it and seeking to get more of it; all blocks a man from going within. Money is a tool; however it has become the distraction of being a goal. It is a sign of power and wealth. Yet, most that are wealthy are often physically sick or they have misguided purposes.
 
There are a few Teachings about this aspect of material considerations. Here is one: “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.” (Luke 16:13 KJV).
 
What most Christians don’t know is that Mammon was the Persian god of riches. It appears that our society worships Mammon more than it does God. We are NOT saying that you should be poor and without. On the contrary. God said you have dominion over everything, therefore you should have everything you need to be happy and healthy. When you are not, it is because there is an understanding that you have NOT come to. An understanding of the concepts that motivate you to have, or have not.
 
Examine your life style. Are you really happy with where you are? If not, make a list of your dissatisfactions, your wants, needs and desires. Once that is done, then ask yourself WHY. Why you feel and think the way you do. See if you can identify the concepts that are affecting you NOT having. Also, if you do have, examine why you think you need more. What is that about? Seek to find the answers so that you have more control over the concepts that influence your thinking and actions.