Money & Finances
I earn a good salary but feel guilty spending money on nice things. Is it wrong to enjoy wealth?
“Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion. Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.”
Qohelet (the Teacher who narrates Ecclesiastes, and a man who had more wealth than almost anyone) does not conclude that money is evil. He concludes that it cannot provide meaning on its own. But the enjoyment of good things (food, work, rest, beauty) is described here as a gift from God, not a spiritual compromise. Enjoying what God has provided is not the same as worshipping it.
“Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;”
Paul does not tell wealthy people to be miserable or to give everything away. His concern is with where confidence is placed, not whether nice things are enjoyed. The test of a healthy relationship with money is generosity: people who hold wealth loosely can enjoy it without being controlled by it.
A path forward
Ask yourself honestly: does spending money on this thing increase anxiety or decrease it? A healthy enjoyment of money does not spike guilt or fear. If it does, that feeling is worth examining.
Establish a giving practice before you spend on yourself this month, not as a tax on enjoyment but as a way of keeping your hands open. Generosity inoculates against both guilt and greed.
Check whether the guilt is coming from a genuine conviction, a comparison to others, or an inherited belief about money being inherently dirty. The source matters for what you do with it.
Closing verse
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
- James 1:17
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