There is more to wealth than money. As a teenager I read a quote by Saadi Shirazi that immediately seared into my brain: “I cried that I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.” Our “needs” become immediately redefined when we compare them to others. Those comparisons are a great reality check when we feel sorry for ourselves and think, “poor me.” The subject of comparative suffering is a great one and perhaps we will tackle it one of these days.

In yesterday’s blog I defined wealth as anything we can use or exchange posited that money is not bad and that wealth consists of more than money. Today I’d like to share other forms of wealth that it’s easy to overlook. I created the pie chart below to help us visualize them. The majority of these forms of wealth can be enjoyed by people of all stripes across the world and across the age span.

1. Family and community – this might be the greatest innate forms of wealth. Some of you might agree with our initial definition and ask to exchange your family. At this juncture I propose that we modify the definition to include what makes us who we are with little or no effort on our part.
2. Wisdom and understanding – I think that this gift combo is a foundational form of wealth that can be used to appreciate (increase) or maximize all the other forms. I love to emphasize that this combo is not necessarily age based. I’ve met many wise and understanding young people and many unwise elderly with little understanding. The Holy Spirit can powerfully impart these to anyone who desires it. Of all forms of wealth to desire, desire this one! All others fall flat with it.
3. Gifts & talents – These are innate yet can be nurtured and harnessed to great heights. One of my favorite Scripture passages states, “Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze,  to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.” Exodus 31:1-5
4. Opportunities – open doors are a great form of wealth. People flock to the United States, the land of opportunity. With wisdom and understanding, make it a habit to notice and jump on opportunities as they arise in your life. Take or make time (yet another form of wealth) to explore, experience, and exploit opportunities.
5. Good name/reputation – this one is gold. What is the word on the street about you? While you can’t always control this nor should you be overly concerned with what every single person thinks of you, which would be immature and crippling, a good name is one of your greatest assets. Get to work nurturing the traits you want to be known for. This takes a long time of consistent effort and is well worth the investment.
6. Money – train yourself and those around you in healthy money mindsets. Financial intelligence can make or break you.
7. Generosity – this is a great form of character building and has incredible returns in this world and in the one to come. The creative genius of generosity dictates a counterintuitive mandate – your need to give is more desperate than other people’s need to receive. Think on that provocative truth for a moment. Matthew Kelly says, “Aim to be more generous today than you were yesterday but not as much as you hope to be tomorrow.” Be generous with your time, knowledge, your money, your very self!
8. Contentment – Seneca’s ancient wisdom says, “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” Timothy taught, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 1 Timothy 6:7-10.
9. Doing right – the word righteousness means doing right. Doing wrong costs you – always. “In the path of righteousness there is life, and in its pathway there is no death.” Proverbs 12:28. Jesus said that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied. Isaiah said, “the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.” Isaiah 32:17.
10. Work – The dignity and joy of work was woven into our DNA long before Adam and Eve sinned and were banished to toilsome labor. As I described in my book Quit Wandering, work is not a dirty four-letter word. We must work if we desire to be like Jesus. This work does not have to be paid. Scripture teaches that he who does not work does not even deserve to eat!

CTA (Call to Action):

1. Pick one form of wealth above that you know you need to invest in. Share it in the comments as a step of boldness and commitment and then pour yourself into the pursuit of excellence in nurturing it. Why did you pick that one? What could you stand to gain from it?
2. What would it profit you to gain all these forms of wealth and lose our own soul? Where is your security, not just for this world, but for the one to come? Jesus invites you to entrust your money, your wealth, and your soul to His able hands where moth will not destroy it nor thieves steal it.

Semper fi! Ooh rah!