Does something for nothing exist?

The “lottery” mentality of expecting something for nothing is a fool’s game. We hear stories of people hitting it big in the lottery or winning a fortune on some TV game show or getting a huge settlement in a lawsuit because the coffee you spilled on yourself was “too hot,” and I dare say that we wonder why we haven’t been so lucky.

Solomon wants us to gain the wisdom of what the Bible calls “sowing and reaping,” of which he has four illustrations for us today. There are tremendous benefits available if one will simply understand that benefits come when one does the things necessary to gain them. If you want a better life, then YOU need to change instead of wishing that some outside thing changes.

So, the first piece of advice from Solomon is that dishonest gain has no lasting value. The step between a lottery mentality and gaining wealth through unlawful means is not as big as some might think. When we are always thinking about gaining wealth in some big way, we can begin to think that we deserve it, and when it doesn’t come, we begin to little by little take advantage of certain so-called opportunities to benefit our desired lifestyle.

You may make a few “adjustments” on your tax return to start. When you get away with that you may go a little further until one day you are doing things you would have never dreamed of doing. But in the end the gains you are making will not last — and all the money in the world cannot buy you more time when the end of your life comes.

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