Money, Money, Money

If you bought a used couch and found $40,000 stuffed in it, would you search for the owner and return the money?

Or, suppose you had won $60,000 at the Kentucky Derby, would you give some of that money away?

These two questions are intriguing, and yet I find it interesting that these two stories really happened in the same week.

Three college students bought a used couch from the Salvation Army for $20 back in February. Just recently they found  the couch that they had been lounging on was stuffed with envelopes full of money. One of the envelopes had a name written on it. The kids chose to do the right thing.

One of the students had their mother search for the woman whose name was revealed on one of the envelopes. The elderly woman had been given envelopes of money to stash away from her sick husband. After a long illness, the gentleman passed away and his wife forgot all about the money they had been hiding in the couch for years. The elderly woman rewarded the honesty of the three students with $3,000.

Wes Welker, a highly-paid successful football player won over $50,000 at the Kentucky Derby. After collecting his winnings, he was found leaving the park handing out $100 bills to people. But in recent days, the Park is saying that they had overpaid him by $15,000 and they want him to return the money.
Wes Welker says he won't return the money because it's their mistake.

I am hoping he changes his tune on returning the money, because it's the honest thing to do. I do applaud him though on his generosity.

I always thought one of the most important character traits that every human being should carry is honesty.
Thomas Jefferson once said,

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom."

Being honest and doing the right thing is a reward in itself. And somehow God sees that and rewards us in someway for choosing to do the right thing.

The other parallel I also get from these two stories is how the poor (in this case the students) chose to do the honest thing, while the other, the rich athlete, chose the opposite in not returning the overpaid money.

Money changes people extensively. Perhaps this is why Jesus taught us,

"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

God isn't against us having money, but He wants us to choose wisely in spending that money. More importantly, by investing in the kingdom of God through love. When we give out of love, expecting nothing in return, God will bless that a million times over.