How do you view material wealth? What is its purpose?
"12 And now behold, my brethren, this is the word which I declare unto you, that many of you have begun to search for gold, and for silver, and for all manner of precious aores, in the which this land, which is a bland of promise unto you and to your seed, doth abound most plentifully.
13 And the hand of providence hath smiled upon you most pleasingly, that you have obtained many riches; and because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are alifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they.
14 And now, my brethren, do ye suppose that God justifieth you in this thing? Behold, I say unto you, Nay. But he condemneth you, and if ye persist in these things his judgments must speedily come unto you.
15 O that he would show you that he can pierce you, and with one glance of his aeye he can smite you to the dust!
16 O that he would rid you from this iniquity and abomination. And, O that ye would listen unto the word of his commands, and let not this apride of your hearts destroy your souls!
17 Think of your abrethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with your bsubstance, that cthey may be rich like unto you.
18 But abefore ye seek for briches, seek ye for the ckingdom of God.
19 And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to ado good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.
20 And now, my brethren, I have spoken unto you concerning pride; and those of you which have afflicted your neighbor, and persecuted him because ye were proud in your hearts, of the things which God hath given you, what say ye of it?
21 Do ye not suppose that such things are abominable unto him who created all flesh? And the one being is as precious in his sight as the other. And all flesh is of the dust; and for the selfsame end hath he created them, that they should keep his acommandments and glorify him forever." (Jacob 2: 12-21)
And here's the commentary entitled: “Let not this pride of your hearts destroy your souls!”:
"The Nephites had a problem with pride and focusing on riches (see Jacob 2:13), and that problem wasn’t unique to them or their day. How does the adversary promote the love of riches today? After reading Jacob 2:12–21, describe in your own words how God wants you to view material wealth. A hymn like “Because I Have Been Given Much” (Hymns, no. 219) could provide additional insights. What do you feel inspired to do about what you’re learning?"
God wants me to view material wealth as a means to an end which is to help the poor and the needy.
Grateful for the privilege I have to contribute a portion of my income to help the poor and the needy by fasting and donating my fast offering every first Sunday of the month as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I feel inspired to search for an orphanage here in Bangkok and take some time to visit. I can also visit a home for the aged. When I am already working from home rather than outside the home and have a lot more free time than ever before I would love to do these things and more. And I'm grateful that I'm now getting closer and closer to this point when I am the one in charge of spending most of my time daily since my full-time work is remote.
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