Comments on: Is Spirituality Your Excuse for Poverty? http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/ Life Coaching Tips that Create Happiness and Success Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:39:18 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Kathleen Daniels http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/comment-page-1/#comment-8042 Kathleen Daniels Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:53:58 +0000 http://matthewferry.com/blog/?p=1957#comment-8042 And in doing so ....we may not be conscious of being "righteous." We may be confusing being of service ....with love and acceptance of all things. Feeling that we must serve all people even when doing so causes us to feel bad ... is a trap. As you teach us Matthew ... service does not equal suffering ... when we are in alignment and serving we create joy and happiness. It is only when we are out of alignment and serving that causes sadness and suffering. And in doing so ….we may not be conscious of being “righteous.” We may be confusing being of service ….with love and acceptance of all things. Feeling that we must serve all people even when doing so causes us to feel bad … is a trap. As you teach us Matthew … service does not equal suffering … when we are in alignment and serving we create joy and happiness. It is only when we are out of alignment and serving that causes sadness and suffering.

]]> By: Jacob Nordby http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/comment-page-1/#comment-8039 Jacob Nordby Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:00:06 +0000 http://matthewferry.com/blog/?p=1957#comment-8039 I suggest you take a peek at my blog where I just posted an article on this very subject. The article is named "Fight of the Ages…Donald Trump vs. Jesus?" find it at http://www.RowdyCreator.com In this piece, I highlight the tension between ascetic spirituality and a heedless pursuit of gain. I'd love your comments and further conversation :-) Jacob Nordby I suggest you take a peek at my blog where I just posted an article on this very subject.

The article is named “Fight of the Ages…Donald Trump vs. Jesus?” find it at http://www.RowdyCreator.com

In this piece, I highlight the tension between ascetic spirituality and a heedless pursuit of gain. I’d love your comments and further conversation :-)

Jacob Nordby

]]> By: Tim Robbins http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/comment-page-1/#comment-8035 Tim Robbins Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:21:35 +0000 http://matthewferry.com/blog/?p=1957#comment-8035 in this time to see that drunk monkey for what it truly is.Fear!!!!! thowe i am jobless right now, i have lernd a grate lesson. it's not what i do or say around others but how i have been talking to my self. in this time to see that drunk monkey for what it truly is.Fear!!!!!
thowe i am jobless right now, i have lernd a grate lesson. it’s not what i do or say around others but how i have been talking to my self.

]]> By: Ramis Urribarri http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/comment-page-1/#comment-8032 Ramis Urribarri Tue, 15 Dec 2009 05:18:17 +0000 http://matthewferry.com/blog/?p=1957#comment-8032 I think that that there is definetily a different between facing trials with faith and facing trials with discouragement and defeat. Those that believe that being poor makes you spiritually righteous are poor beyond finances, they are also poor spiritually. The only requirement to be spiritually righteous is to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength; it has nothing to do with money. Only (caution) loving money more than God makes you not right. Loving anything (job, relatives, item, money, status, fame, etc) more than God makes you not right because you replace God with those other things. Where your heart is, that is your God. That doesn't mean we are not suppose to have or love relatives, jobs, money, sucess, etc. just don't replace the love of God with the love of those things. Those people that rejoice on being poor are ungrateful of the gifts and blessings that God have given to them, because they are wasting them. Everybody can be GREAT at something because God has given to each a great blessing according to His grace. God comforts you when you are broken down, but he does not want you there... discouragement is NOT one of God's attributes, instead faith is. God wants us faithful, joyful, loving, trusting, unafraid in spite of adversities with the knowledge that God's promises are true and eternal. God comforts the poor and the needy, but I would challenge anyone with knowledge in God's word to state where does God say that is good to quit on trials, or that is good to waste our blessings, or that is good to be a sluggard, or that is good be discouraged. Instead God tells us in the book of proverbs Prov 10:4 "The sluggar shall desire but shall be made poor; the diligent shall be made rich". Does this sound like God wants us to not work hard? realize our full potential? develop our gifts? God labored to create... why shouldn't we? On the other hand those that seek riches to the point of trading their morality to be rich then God deals with them with severity. It is in this fine line where many get cought up; simply drive to be the very best you can be, to be as successful as you can... just do not trade in the love of God for the love of anything else, and do not sacrifice morality in the process. When talking righteousness there is only one thing we need to know: No one is right, our righteousness depends only on what we do with God's son. Our unrighteousness is hanging on the cross, and our spiritual life only comes from the cross, is what we do with the cross that matters. It has nothing to do with money or success (or lack of it). To some these words will sound like rubbish, to others these words will be reminder of God's grace. How these words are received depends on where the reader is spiritually, dead or alive. I think that that there is definetily a different between facing trials with faith and facing trials with discouragement and defeat. Those that believe that being poor makes you spiritually righteous are poor beyond finances, they are also poor spiritually. The only requirement to be spiritually righteous is to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength; it has nothing to do with money. Only (caution) loving money more than God makes you not right. Loving anything (job, relatives, item, money, status, fame, etc) more than God makes you not right because you replace God with those other things. Where your heart is, that is your God. That doesn’t mean we are not suppose to have or love relatives, jobs, money, sucess, etc. just don’t replace the love of God with the love of those things. Those people that rejoice on being poor are ungrateful of the gifts and blessings that God have given to them, because they are wasting them. Everybody can be GREAT at something because God has given to each a great blessing according to His grace. God comforts you when you are broken down, but he does not want you there… discouragement is NOT one of God’s attributes, instead faith is. God wants us faithful, joyful, loving, trusting, unafraid in spite of adversities with the knowledge that God’s promises are true and eternal. God comforts the poor and the needy, but I would challenge anyone with knowledge in God’s word to state where does God say that is good to quit on trials, or that is good to waste our blessings, or that is good to be a sluggard, or that is good be discouraged. Instead God tells us in the book of proverbs Prov 10:4 “The sluggar shall desire but shall be made poor; the diligent shall be made rich”. Does this sound like God wants us to not work hard? realize our full potential? develop our gifts? God labored to create… why shouldn’t we?
On the other hand those that seek riches to the point of trading their morality to be rich then God deals with them with severity. It is in this fine line where many get cought up; simply drive to be the very best you can be, to be as successful as you can… just do not trade in the love of God for the love of anything else, and do not sacrifice morality in the process.
When talking righteousness there is only one thing we need to know: No one is right, our righteousness depends only on what we do with God’s son. Our unrighteousness is hanging on the cross, and our spiritual life only comes from the cross, is what we do with the cross that matters. It has nothing to do with money or success (or lack of it). To some these words will sound like rubbish, to others these words will be reminder of God’s grace. How these words are received depends on where the reader is spiritually, dead or alive.

]]> By: Fletch http://matthewferry.com/blog/life-coaching/is-spirituality-your-excuse-for-poverty/comment-page-1/#comment-8019 Fletch Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:53:48 +0000 http://matthewferry.com/blog/?p=1957#comment-8019 I’ll share a few thoughts. I have lived in and around the ‘poverty mentality’ – I have also been exposed to the ‘wealth gospel’. Both are mistaken. One who says that money is the root of all evil, probably hasn’t had any. And really it is the “love” of money that was mentioned as the “root of all sorts of evil”. I really like your last paragraph Matthew, because both can be an excuse for inaction and self defeating behavior – all the while your friends feel weird confronting you because of it’s purported “spiritual” nature. My solution is to thank God for all that I have in riches and in lack. To ask “what can I learn?” from my external circumstances to take action and move forward. Here is a quote from my faith tradition (Paul of Tarsus recorded in Phil 4:11-13 NLT) that I hope will be helpful to your awesome readers: “…I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ,[c] who gives me strength.” Conclusion; have gratitude in everything. fletch@mynameisfletch.com www.facebook.com/mynameisfletch I’ll share a few thoughts.

I have lived in and around the ‘poverty mentality’ – I have also been exposed to the ‘wealth gospel’. Both are mistaken. One who says that money is the root of all evil, probably hasn’t had any. And really it is the “love” of money that was mentioned as the “root of all sorts of evil”.
I really like your last paragraph Matthew, because both can be an excuse for inaction and self defeating behavior – all the while your friends feel weird confronting you because of it’s purported “spiritual” nature.

My solution is to thank God for all that I have in riches and in lack. To ask “what can I learn?” from my external circumstances to take action and move forward. Here is a quote from my faith tradition (Paul of Tarsus recorded in Phil 4:11-13 NLT) that I hope will be helpful to your awesome readers: “…I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ,[c] who gives me strength.”

Conclusion; have gratitude in everything.

fletch@mynameisfletch.com
http://www.facebook.com/mynameisfletch

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