Opus 2015-164: Monday Pulpit: Sources of Poverty, part 5 of ?, Love of Pleasure

The love of pleasure leads to poverty.

(Proverbs 21:17 KJV)  He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.

(Proverbs 21:20 KJV)  There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up.

That is a pretty simple statement.

The second part of the verse might require some examination.  By loving wine and oil it does not mean that you like to have them around, it means you consume them.  People who love pleasure say things like, “Life is too short...” and “You only go ‘round once in life...”  The logic is that you need to grab what you can get, when you can get it and not worry about the future.

I see this around me all the time.  There are secretaries at my school that drive newer and more luxurious cars than I do.  That is a matter of choice on my part and their part.  I could afford anything they drive and they could find reliable transportation for a lot less. 

Years ago I read a couple of books, The Millionaire Mind and The Millionaire Next Door.  One of the ideas expressed was that the first generation makes the money, the second generation sometimes maintains the wealth and the third generation usually blows the wealth.  The reason is that the third generation does not have a clue to restraint.  All they know is wealth and privilege.

Several years ago I had a conversation with students about shoes.  At that point I was wearing some shoes I had resoled many times.  They were wearing the latest creations of Nike and Reebok.  I showed that over a period of twenty years I would have thousands in the bank and they would have a closet full of old shoes.  They were not impressed.  They could look cool today.

A major source of poverty is putting pleasure and comfort before thrift and planning.  Many people are poor because they live like kings...until the money runs out.  Then they want you to share.

To be continued...