“… if you can fix it with money, don’t worry about it!”
There are many times during my life that I have heard my mom say those words. At just the right moment when she was alive as she patiently reminded me of it and even after she went to heaven, I can still hear her and even see the belief for these words in her eyes. I have shared them as many times with others who have been in a place of fear and doubt.
The power of those words meant something special coming from my mom, as she grew up very poor. As I reflect on her life, those words present a bit of a paradox, as my parents both spent their adult lives working very hard to provide the very best for my sister and I. Interestingly, most of the people in our neighborhood where we grew up thought our parents had money (at least more than the majority of the neighbors). Yet, the truth was they were selective in what they spent their money on, and tended to buy the very best they could afford (and took care of it). The dresses my sister and I wore with great pride were often very nice, but what most people didn’t know is that many of them were hand-me-downs from friends of the family.
The spirit of what Mama was trying to instill in me and in others was that there was plenty to worry about in life that couldn’t be taken care of with money. Not that everyone had enough money to take care of everything in that category, but that worry and concern should be reserved for those things that money cannot fix.
I was reminded of this concept over the past few days. As I’ve mentioned, my husband and I are on a down-sizing toward retirement journey and part of that process is to sell our second home which is a few hours away. It’s been on the market for several months with not much activity. Without selling that house at a price we have in mind, would change our entire plan. We are blessed to have other options, but you know how it is when you have ‘that’ plan in place! It’s getting to the point where it can keep one or the other of us up at night thinking, wondering and considering what we should do next.
My husband was telling me he had experienced just one of those nights last week. That same day he was talking with a co-worker who shared with him that his wife has ovarian cancer. As a result they had changed their life plans and were striving to put as much as humanly possible into the 5-year prognosis she had been given. My husband was touched by his co-workers story and realized (as we all can often do) that he was worried about the wrong things. Our situation was something “that money could fix”.
Trusting in God does change everything. This life can be hard, it can be complex, it can bring doubt and hurt and sorrow. But when we realize (in any situation) that we are powerless to make a significant change, God can and He does. Sometimes money can’t fix it, or sometimes there isn’t enough money. But what there is enough of is Jesus’ wisdom, strength, compassion and grace to see us through.
Psalm 37:7 says… God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him.
Today’s song is “We Believe” by the Newsboys. Take a few minutes and listen to the powerful words and conviction. This particular version is live at so you’ll see a lot of familiar Christian performers too!
WE BELIEVE! HALLELUJAH!